diff --git a/idc_index/index.py b/idc_index/index.py
index a8671a0f..2efea596 100644
--- a/idc_index/index.py
+++ b/idc_index/index.py
@@ -733,6 +733,10 @@ def download_from_selection(
             TypeError: If any of the parameters are not of the expected type
         """
 
+        downloadDir = os.path.abspath(downloadDir).replace("\\", "/")
+        if not os.path.exists(downloadDir):
+            raise ValueError("Download directory does not exist.")
+
         if collection_id is not None:
             if not isinstance(collection_id, str) and not isinstance(
                 collection_id, list