# TranscriptYT: YouTube Transcript API

> YouTube Transcript API for developers. Get any public video's transcript as JSON, text, SRT, or VTT in 150+ languages, with AI transcription fallback.

TranscriptYT is a REST API (and MCP server) that returns the transcript of any public YouTube video. Authenticate with an API key from https://transcript-yt.com/dashboard/keys as `Authorization: Bearer ts_live_...`.

## API

- [API documentation](https://transcript-yt.com/docs): full reference for every endpoint below
- [OpenAPI 3.1 spec](https://transcript-yt.com/openapi.json): machine-readable schema for code generation and agent tools
- [Python SDK](https://pypi.org/project/transcriptyt/): pip install transcriptyt, [LangChain loader and tools](https://pypi.org/project/langchain-transcriptyt/): pip install langchain-transcriptyt, [JavaScript client](https://www.npmjs.com/package/transcriptyt): npm i transcriptyt
- `GET https://transcript-yt.com/v1/transcript?url=<youtube url or video id>`: transcript with timestamped segments, full text, and video metadata. Optional `language`, `translate_to` (150+ languages), `format` (json, text, srt, vtt, csv, md), `timestamps`, `paragraphs`, `chunkSize`, `includeSegments`, `captionType` (any, manual, auto), `originalLanguage`, `mode` (auto, captions, ai), `startTime`/`endTime` (seconds), `search`. 1 credit; videos without captions are AI-transcribed at 1 credit per started minute of audio.
- `POST https://transcript-yt.com/v1/transcripts` with `{"urls": [...]}` (up to 50), or `{"playlist": "<playlist or channel url>", "limit": 50}`, plus any option above: per-video results, each billed like a single request.
- `GET https://transcript-yt.com/v1/playlist?url=<playlist or channel url>&limit=100`: video IDs, titles, and durations of a playlist or a channel's uploads. Free.
- `GET https://transcript-yt.com/v1/search?q=<query>&channel=<optional channel url or @handle>&limit=20`: search YouTube videos, or within one channel. Free.
- `GET https://transcript-yt.com/v1/summary?url=<youtube url or video id>`: AI summary, key points, and timestamped notes from the video's transcript. 2 credits for most videos (1 for the transcript, 1 for the summary up to ~25 minutes); long videos cost about 1 more per further 45 minutes.
- `GET https://transcript-yt.com/v1/languages?url=...`: available caption tracks plus every `translate_to` target. Free.
- `GET https://transcript-yt.com/v1/usage`: plan and remaining credits. Free.
- Failed requests are never billed.

## MCP server for AI agents

- Endpoint: https://transcript-yt.com/mcp (streamable HTTP, same API key)
- Tools: `get_transcript`, `list_languages`, `list_playlist_videos`, `search_youtube`, `summarize_video`, `get_usage`
- Setup for Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, VS Code, and Claude Desktop: https://transcript-yt.com/docs#mcp

## Free tools

No sign-up for a few videos a day. All tools: https://transcript-yt.com/tools

- [YouTube Transcript Generator](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-transcript): The full transcript of any video, with timestamps, in 150+ languages.
- [YouTube Video Summarizer](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-summarizer): A short AI summary, key points, and timestamped notes.
- [YouTube Chapter Generator](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-chapter-generator): Timestamps and chapter titles ready to paste into your description.
- [YouTube to Blog Post](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-to-blog-post): Turn a video into a structured, SEO-ready article.
- [YouTube to Text](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-to-text): Plain text of what's said in a video, ready to copy.
- [Chat with YouTube Video](https://transcript-yt.com/chat-with-youtube-video): Ask questions and get answers with timestamps.
- [YouTube Tag Extractor](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-tag-extractor): See the tags and hashtags any video uses.
- [YouTube Transcript Search](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-transcript-search): Find every moment a word or phrase is said in a video.
- [YouTube Thumbnail Downloader](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-thumbnail-downloader): Download a video's thumbnail in HD and every other size.
- [YouTube Subtitle Downloader](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-subtitle-downloader): Captions as SRT, VTT, TXT, CSV, or JSON.
- [YouTube Description Generator](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-description-generator): Titles, a description, hashtags, and tags written from your video.
- [YouTube Quiz Generator](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-quiz-generator): Multiple-choice questions and flashcards from any lesson.
- [YouTube Playlist Transcript](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-playlist-transcript): Browse a playlist and open any video's transcript.
- [YouTube Channel ID Finder](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-channel-id-finder): The UC… channel ID, uploads playlist, and RSS feed for any channel.
- [YouTube Word Counter](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-word-counter): Word count, speaking speed, and reading time of a video.
- [YouTube Transcript Translator](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-transcript-translator): Translate a transcript into 150+ languages, side by side.
- [YouTube Quote Finder](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-quote-finder): The most quotable lines, word for word, with timestamps.
- [YouTube Video Stats](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-video-stats): Views, publish date, category, captions, and description of any video.
- [YouTube Channel Transcripts](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-channel-transcripts): Every upload on a channel, with its transcript a click away.
- [YouTube Keyword Density Checker](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-keyword-density): The words and phrases a video repeats most.
- [YouTube SRT Downloader](https://transcript-yt.com/youtube-srt-download): Download a video's captions as an .srt file.

## Pricing

- Free: 100 transcripts free, one-time
- Micro: $3/month, 1,000 transcripts
- Starter: $9/month, 4,000 transcripts
- Growth: $29/month, 15,000 transcripts
- Scale: $79/month, 50,000 transcripts

## Status

- [API status](https://transcript-yt.com/status): live status and 90-day daily success rate, measured from real API traffic

## Guides

- [YouTube Transcript API: A Practical Guide for Developers](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcript-api-guide): Learn how to retrieve public YouTube captions, select languages, and return clean transcript data in JSON, text, SRT, or VTT.
- [JSON, SRT, or VTT? Choosing the Right YouTube Caption Format](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-captions-json-srt-vtt): A developer's guide to choosing JSON, plain text, SRT, or VTT when extracting public YouTube captions.
- [How to Build a Searchable Video Library with Transcripts](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/build-searchable-video-library-transcripts): Use timestamped transcripts to make a library of public YouTube videos searchable, navigable, and easier to reuse.
- [YouTube Transcript API vs. YouTube Data API: Which Do You Need?](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcript-api-vs-youtube-data-api): Compare a YouTube transcript API with the official YouTube Data API captions endpoints: permissions, outputs, and when to use each.
- [YouTube Transcript API vs. Whisper: Captions or Speech-to-Text?](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcript-api-vs-whisper): Understand the difference between retrieving existing public YouTube captions and generating a new transcript with speech-to-text such as Whisper.
- [How to Get YouTube Transcripts in Python (with an API)](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcript-api-python): Fetch any YouTube video's transcript in Python with requests: timestamped JSON, SRT and VTT files, translations, and production-safe error handling.
- [How to Get YouTube Transcripts in JavaScript and Node.js](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcript-api-javascript-node): Fetch YouTube transcripts from Node.js, Next.js, or the browser with fetch: typed JSON responses, subtitle downloads, translation, and error handling.
- [How to Let Claude, Cursor, and Codex Read YouTube Videos](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcript-mcp-server): Connect a YouTube transcript MCP server to Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, Codex, or VS Code so your AI agent can read any video you paste.
- [How to Summarize YouTube Videos with AI (Claude or OpenAI API)](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/summarize-youtube-videos-with-ai): Build a YouTube video summarizer in a few lines of Python: fetch the transcript with an API, then summarize it with Claude or GPT.
- [YouTube Transcripts for RAG: Load Videos into LangChain and Vector Search](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcripts-rag-langchain): Turn YouTube videos into searchable, citable chunks for retrieval-augmented generation, with timestamps that link back to the exact moment in the video.
- [How to Get the Transcript of a YouTube Video (4 Ways)](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/how-to-get-youtube-video-transcript): Four ways to get a YouTube video's transcript: YouTube's built-in Show transcript button, a free online tool, an AI assistant, and an API for bulk or automated use.
- [How to Download All Transcripts from a YouTube Channel or Playlist](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/download-all-transcripts-youtube-channel-playlist): Bulk-download every transcript from a YouTube channel or playlist with two API calls: list the videos free, then fetch transcripts 50 at a time as JSON, text, or SRT.
- [How to Get YouTube Transcripts in n8n](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcripts-n8n): Fetch YouTube transcripts in n8n with one HTTP Request node, loop over a whole channel, and give an n8n AI Agent the ability to read YouTube videos over MCP.
- [How to Pull YouTube Transcripts into Google Sheets](https://transcript-yt.com/blog/youtube-transcripts-google-sheets): Add a =TRANSCRIPT() formula to Google Sheets with a few lines of Apps Script: paste YouTube links in one column and get their transcripts in the next.

## Comparisons

- [Supadata Alternative: TranscriptYT vs. Supadata](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-supadata): How a YouTube-focused transcript API compares to Supadata's multi-platform transcript and web-scraping API.
- [TranscriptAPI.com Alternative: TranscriptYT vs. TranscriptAPI.com](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-transcriptapi): Comparing two YouTube-focused transcript APIs: core transcript extraction versus a broader channel/playlist/search toolkit.
- [youtube-transcript-api Alternative: Hosted API vs. the Python Library](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-youtube-transcript-api-python): Hosted API or self-hosted open-source library? How TranscriptYT compares to the popular youtube-transcript-api pip package.
- [youtube-transcript.io Alternative: TranscriptYT vs. youtube-transcript.io](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-youtube-transcript-io): Comparing TranscriptYT's YouTube Transcript API with youtube-transcript.io on pricing, free tier, output formats, and developer features.
- [Apify YouTube Transcript Scraper Alternative: Dedicated API vs. Apify Actors](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-apify-youtube-transcript-scraper): Should you scrape YouTube transcripts with an Apify actor or call a dedicated transcript API? Pricing, latency, formats, and integration compared.
- [ScrapeCreators Alternative: TranscriptYT vs. ScrapeCreators](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-scrapecreators): Comparing TranscriptYT with ScrapeCreators' YouTube transcript endpoint on price per 1,000, free credits, output formats, videos without captions, and batch support.
- [SearchAPI Alternative: TranscriptYT vs. SearchAPI YouTube Transcripts](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-searchapi): TranscriptYT vs. SearchAPI's YouTube Transcripts engine: monthly minimums, price per 1,000 transcripts, formats, translation, and AI transcription compared.
- [Tactiq YouTube Transcript Alternative: TranscriptYT vs. Tactiq](https://transcript-yt.com/compare/vs-tactiq): Comparing the free YouTube transcript tools from TranscriptYT and Tactiq: download formats, languages, translation, AI summaries, and API access.