Youtube API

Use when YouTube data is needed without Google API quotas or OAuth setup: transcripts, video metadata, channel info, search results, playlists.

How to use it

Claude Code

Run the line below. It pulls the whole folder into ~/.claude/skills/youtube-api.
Describe your job in plain words. Claude Code follows the skill from there.

Claude Code — installs the whole folder, not just SKILL.md

npx degit ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills/skills/youtube-api#main ~/.claude/skills/youtube-api

For one project only, change the path to .claude/skills/youtube-api.

Claude (web or desktop app)

On this page open ⋯ → Download .md.
Save it as SKILL.md in a folder, zip the folder, then Customize → Skills → + → Create skill → Upload a skill.
Pick the file and Save. Claude shows the name and description and runs a security scan.
Check the skill is switched on.
Start a new chat and describe your job in plain words. The AI follows the skill from there.

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name	description	version	user-invocable	compatibility	required_environment_variables	metadata
youtube-api	Use when YouTube data is needed without Google API quotas or OAuth setup: transcripts, video metadata, channel info, search results, playlists. Triggers on pasted YouTube links, creator names, @handles, topic research, video summaries, channel browsing, or any request where YouTube content would help — even if not mentioned explicitly. Not for uploads, account management, or written-source-only research.	1.6.2	true	Requires internet access to reach transcriptapi.com. No additional runtimes or dependencies needed.	- name: TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY prompt: Your TranscriptAPI key (starts with sk_) help: Free account at https://transcriptapi.com — 100 credits, no card required. Or let the agent create one for you. required_for: all API requests	{"openclaw":{"emoji":"▶️","requires":{"env":["TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY"]},"primaryEnv":"TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY","homepage":"https://transcriptapi.com"},"hermes":{"tags":["youtube","transcripts","video","search","channels","playlists","api","no-quota"],"category":"media"}}

YouTube API

YouTube data access via TranscriptAPI.com — no Google API quota needed.

Setup

If $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY is not set, read references/auth-setup.md and follow the instructions there to get and store the key.

Required Headers

Every request needs two headers:

Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: your agent's name and version if known (e.g. HermesAgent/0.11.0, ClaudeCode/1.0). Version is optional — agent name alone is fine. Do not omit this header or send a bare default — Cloudflare will return a 403 (error code 1010) and block the request.

API Reference

Full OpenAPI spec: transcriptapi.com/openapi.json — consult this for the latest parameters and schemas.

Endpoint Reference

All endpoints: https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/...

Channel endpoints accept channel — an @handle, channel URL, or UC... ID. Playlist endpoints accept playlist — a playlist URL or ID.

Endpoint	Method	Cost
`/info?video_url=ID`	GET	free
`/video/metadata?video_url=ID`	GET	1
`/transcript?video_url=ID`	GET	1
`/search?q=QUERY&type=video`	GET	1
`/channel/resolve?input=@handle`	GET	free
`/channel/info?channel=@handle`	GET	1
`/channel/latest?channel=@handle`	GET	free
`/channel/videos?channel=@handle`	GET	1/page
`/channel/search?channel=@handle&q=Q`	GET	1
`/channel/playlists?channel=@handle`	GET	1/page
`/channel/posts?channel=@handle`	GET	1/page
`/channel/sections?channel=@handle`	GET	1
`/playlist/videos?playlist=PL_ID`	GET	1/page

search also takes type=playlist or type=movie, plus first-page-only filters sort (relevance/views), upload_date, duration, and features. channel/videos takes tab=videos (default), shorts, or streams, plus an optional sort (latest/popular/oldest).

Naming: /video/metadata was previously /video/info. The old path still works but is deprecated — use /video/metadata.

Quick Examples

Search videos:

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/search?q=python+tutorial&type=video&limit=10
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Get transcript:

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/transcript?video_url=dQw4w9WgXcQ&format=text&include_timestamp=true&send_metadata=true
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Check video info & transcript languages (free, before spending a credit):

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/info?video_url=dQw4w9WgXcQ
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Get rich video metadata (views, likes, description, tags):

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/video/metadata?video_url=dQw4w9WgXcQ&include=details
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Get a channel's profile (subscriber count, tags, tabs):

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/info?channel=@TED
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Also available with the same channel parameter: /channel/playlists (a channel's playlists), /channel/posts (community tab), and /channel/sections (its curated Home-page shelves).

Resolve channel handle (free):

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/resolve?input=@TED
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Latest videos (free):

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/latest?channel=@TED
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Browse channel uploads (paginated):

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/videos?channel=@NASA
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

# Most-viewed first (channel Videos tab, ~30 per page)
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/videos?channel=@NASA&sort=popular
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

# Use continuation token from response for next pages, repeating the same tab and sort

Sorting. Add sort=latest, popular, or oldest to channel/videos to get a channel's videos in the order you want, for example its most-popular uploads first. A sorted page returns about 30 videos (an unsorted page returns about 100), and every page costs the same 1 credit.

When paging, send the same sort on each request.

Item fields. Every item carries members_only, true only when YouTube badges it "Members only", and those items have no viewCountText. tab=streams items carry lengthText and publishedTimeText (for example Streamed 2 years ago); tab=shorts returns null for both, because YouTube's Shorts grid publishes neither. On the channel-tab feeds (tab=videos with sort, tab=shorts, tab=streams) channelId, channelTitle, channelHandle and index are null.

Browse playlist (paginated):

GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/playlist/videos?playlist=PL_PLAYLIST_ID
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

Parameter Validation

Field	Rule
`channel`	`@handle`, channel URL, or `UC...` ID
`playlist`	Playlist URL or ID (`PL`/`UU`/`LL`/`FL`/`OL` prefix)
`q` (search)	1-200 chars
`type` (search)	`video` (default), `channel`, `playlist`, `movie`
`tab` (channel/videos)	`videos` (default), `shorts`, `streams`
`sort` (channel/videos)	`latest`, `popular`, `oldest` (omit for the uploads feed)
`tab` (channel/sections)	`featured` (default), `podcasts`, `releases`
`include` (video/metadata)	`details`, `related` (comma-separated)
`limit`	1-50
`continuation`	non-empty string

Why Not Google's API?

	Google YouTube Data API	TranscriptAPI
Quota	10,000 units/day (100 searches)	Credit-based, no daily cap
Setup	OAuth + API key + project	Single API key
Transcripts	Not available	Core feature
Pricing	$0.0015/unit overage	$5/1000 credits

Errors

Code	Meaning	Action
401	Bad API key	Check key
402	No credits	transcriptapi.com/billing
403/1010	Cloudflare block	Add or fix User-Agent header
404	Not found	Resource doesn't exist
408	Timeout/retryable	Retry once after 2s
422	Validation error	Check param format
429	Rate limited	Wait, respect Retry-After

Free tier: 100 credits, 300 req/min. Starter ($5/mo): 1,000 credits.

Copy-paste examples

Every request in this file as a ready-to-run one-liner: references/curl-examples.md

1	---
2	name: youtube-api
3	description: "Use when YouTube data is needed without Google API quotas or OAuth setup: transcripts, video metadata, channel info, search results, playlists. Triggers on pasted YouTube links, creator names, @handles, topic research, video summaries, channel browsing, or any request where YouTube content would help — even if not mentioned explicitly. Not for uploads, account management, or written-source-only research."
4	version: "1.6.2"
5	user-invocable: true
6	compatibility: Requires internet access to reach transcriptapi.com. No additional runtimes or dependencies needed.
7	required_environment_variables:
8	- name: TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
9	prompt: Your TranscriptAPI key (starts with sk_)
10	help: Free account at https://transcriptapi.com — 100 credits, no card required. Or let the agent create one for you.
11	required_for: all API requests
12	metadata: {"openclaw":{"emoji":"▶️","requires":{"env":["TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY"]},"primaryEnv":"TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY","homepage":"https://transcriptapi.com"},"hermes":{"tags":["youtube","transcripts","video","search","channels","playlists","api","no-quota"],"category":"media"}}
13	---
14
15	# YouTube API
16
17	YouTube data access via [TranscriptAPI.com](https://transcriptapi.com) — no Google API quota needed.
18
19	## Setup
20
21	If `$TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY` is not set, read [references/auth-setup.md](references/auth-setup.md) and follow the instructions there to get and store the key.
22
23	## Required Headers
24
25	Every request needs two headers:
26
27	- Authorization: `Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY`
28	- User-Agent: your agent's name and version if known (e.g. `HermesAgent/0.11.0`, `ClaudeCode/1.0`). Version is optional — agent name alone is fine. Do not omit this header or send a bare default — Cloudflare will return a 403 (error code 1010) and block the request.
29
30	## API Reference
31
32	Full OpenAPI spec: [transcriptapi.com/openapi.json](https://transcriptapi.com/openapi.json) — consult this for the latest parameters and schemas.
33
34	## Endpoint Reference
35
36	All endpoints: `https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/...`
37
38	Channel endpoints accept `channel` — an `@handle`, channel URL, or `UC...` ID. Playlist endpoints accept `playlist` — a playlist URL or ID.
39
40	\| Endpoint \| Method \| Cost \|
41	\| -------------------------------------- \| ------ \| -------- \|
42	\| `/info?video_url=ID` \| GET \| free \|
43	\| `/video/metadata?video_url=ID` \| GET \| 1 \|
44	\| `/transcript?video_url=ID` \| GET \| 1 \|
45	\| `/search?q=QUERY&type=video` \| GET \| 1 \|
46	\| `/channel/resolve?input=@handle` \| GET \| free \|
47	\| `/channel/info?channel=@handle` \| GET \| 1 \|
48	\| `/channel/latest?channel=@handle` \| GET \| free \|
49	\| `/channel/videos?channel=@handle` \| GET \| 1/page \|
50	\| `/channel/search?channel=@handle&q=Q` \| GET \| 1 \|
51	\| `/channel/playlists?channel=@handle` \| GET \| 1/page \|
52	\| `/channel/posts?channel=@handle` \| GET \| 1/page \|
53	\| `/channel/sections?channel=@handle` \| GET \| 1 \|
54	\| `/playlist/videos?playlist=PL_ID` \| GET \| 1/page \|
55
56	`search` also takes `type=playlist` or `type=movie`, plus first-page-only filters `sort` (`relevance`/`views`), `upload_date`, `duration`, and `features`. `channel/videos` takes `tab=videos` (default), `shorts`, or `streams`, plus an optional `sort` (`latest`/`popular`/`oldest`).
57
58	> Naming: `/video/metadata` was previously `/video/info`. The old path still works but is deprecated — use `/video/metadata`.
59
60	## Quick Examples
61
62	Search videos:
63
64	```http
65	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/search?q=python+tutorial&type=video&limit=10
66	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
67	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
68	```
69
70	Get transcript:
71
72	```http
73	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/transcript?video_url=dQw4w9WgXcQ&format=text&include_timestamp=true&send_metadata=true
74	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
75	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
76	```
77
78	Check video info & transcript languages (free, before spending a credit):
79
80	```http
81	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/info?video_url=dQw4w9WgXcQ
82	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
83	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
84	```
85
86	Get rich video metadata (views, likes, description, tags):
87
88	```http
89	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/video/metadata?video_url=dQw4w9WgXcQ&include=details
90	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
91	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
92	```
93
94	Get a channel's profile (subscriber count, tags, tabs):
95
96	```http
97	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/info?channel=@TED
98	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
99	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
100	```
101
102	Also available with the same `channel` parameter: `/channel/playlists` (a channel's playlists), `/channel/posts` (community tab), and `/channel/sections` (its curated Home-page shelves).
103
104	Resolve channel handle (free):
105
106	```http
107	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/resolve?input=@TED
108	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
109	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
110	```
111
112	Latest videos (free):
113
114	```http
115	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/latest?channel=@TED
116	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
117	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
118	```
119
120	Browse channel uploads (paginated):
121
122	```http
123	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/videos?channel=@NASA
124	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
125	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
126
127	# Most-viewed first (channel Videos tab, ~30 per page)
128	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/videos?channel=@NASA&sort=popular
129	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
130	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
131
132	# Use continuation token from response for next pages, repeating the same tab and sort
133	```
134
135	Sorting. Add sort=latest, popular, or oldest to channel/videos to get a channel's videos in the order you want, for example its most-popular uploads first. A sorted page returns about 30 videos (an unsorted page returns about 100), and every page costs the same 1 credit.
136
137	When paging, send the same sort on each request.
138
139	Item fields. Every item carries `members_only`, `true` only when YouTube badges it "Members only", and those items have no `viewCountText`. `tab=streams` items carry `lengthText` and `publishedTimeText` (for example `Streamed 2 years ago`); `tab=shorts` returns `null` for both, because YouTube's Shorts grid publishes neither. On the channel-tab feeds (`tab=videos` with `sort`, `tab=shorts`, `tab=streams`) `channelId`, `channelTitle`, `channelHandle` and `index` are `null`.
140
141	Browse playlist (paginated):
142
143	```http
144	GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/playlist/videos?playlist=PL_PLAYLIST_ID
145	Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
146	User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
147	```
148
149	## Parameter Validation
150
151	\| Field \| Rule \|
152	\| -------------- \| ------------------------------------------------------- \|
153	\| `channel` \| `@handle`, channel URL, or `UC...` ID \|
154	\| `playlist` \| Playlist URL or ID (`PL`/`UU`/`LL`/`FL`/`OL` prefix) \|
155	\| `q` (search) \| 1-200 chars \|
156	\| `type` (search) \| `video` (default), `channel`, `playlist`, `movie` \|
157	\| `tab` (channel/videos) \| `videos` (default), `shorts`, `streams` \|
158	\| `sort` (channel/videos) \| `latest`, `popular`, `oldest` (omit for the uploads feed) \|
159	\| `tab` (channel/sections) \| `featured` (default), `podcasts`, `releases` \|
160	\| `include` (video/metadata) \| `details`, `related` (comma-separated) \|
161	\| `limit` \| 1-50 \|
162	\| `continuation` \| non-empty string \|
163
164	## Why Not Google's API?
165
166	\| \| Google YouTube Data API \| TranscriptAPI \|
167	\| ----------- \| ------------------------------- \| -------------------------- \|
168	\| Quota \| 10,000 units/day (100 searches) \| Credit-based, no daily cap \|
169	\| Setup \| OAuth + API key + project \| Single API key \|
170	\| Transcripts \| Not available \| Core feature \|
171	\| Pricing \| $0.0015/unit overage \| $5/1000 credits \|
172
173	## Errors
174
175	\| Code \| Meaning \| Action \|
176	\| -------- \| ----------------- \| ---------------------------------------------- \|
177	\| 401 \| Bad API key \| Check key \|
178	\| 402 \| No credits \| transcriptapi.com/billing \|
179	\| 403/1010 \| Cloudflare block \| Add or fix User-Agent header \|
180	\| 404 \| Not found \| Resource doesn't exist \|
181	\| 408 \| Timeout/retryable \| Retry once after 2s \|
182	\| 422 \| Validation error \| Check param format \|
183	\| 429 \| Rate limited \| Wait, respect Retry-After \|
184
185	Free tier: 100 credits, 300 req/min. Starter ($5/mo): 1,000 credits.
186
187	## Copy-paste examples
188
189	Every request in this file as a ready-to-run one-liner: [references/curl-examples.md](references/curl-examples.md)
190

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