# YouTube Transcript MCP Server (`nyxar_dev/youtube-transcript-mcp`) Actor

Extract transcripts, timestamps, and searchable text from any YouTube video for AI agents. Supports multiple languages, keyword search within transcripts, and timestamped output. Built on Model Context
Protocol (MCP) for seamless integration with Claude, GPT, and other AI tools.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/nyxar\_dev/youtube-transcript-mcp.md
- **Developed by:** [Nyxar Dev](https://apify.com/nyxar_dev) (community)
- **Categories:** AI, MCP servers, Developer tools
- **Stats:** 3 total users, 2 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

Pay per usage

This Actor is paid per platform usage. The Actor is free to use, and you only pay for the Apify platform usage, which gets cheaper the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-usage

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## YouTube Transcript MCP Server

Extract **transcripts, timestamps, and searchable text** from any YouTube video via MCP. This server connects to YouTube's caption system and returns clean, structured transcript data for any compatible client.

### What does YouTube Transcript MCP Server do?

This MCP server connects to YouTube's caption system, enabling you to:

- **Extract full transcripts** from any YouTube video with captions enabled
- **Get timestamped transcripts** for precise moment-by-moment reference
- **Search within transcripts** to find exactly when specific topics are discussed

Running on the Apify platform gives you automatic scaling, zero infrastructure management, and pay-per-use pricing.

### Why use YouTube Transcript MCP Server?

- **Research & summarization**: Process hours of video content in seconds
- **Content repurposing**: Extract video content for blog posts, newsletters, or social media
- **Meeting notes**: Pull transcripts from recorded meetings and presentations
- **Education**: Search lecture videos for specific topics or concepts
- **Competitive analysis**: Analyze competitor YouTube content at scale
- **Multilingual support**: Fetch transcripts in any available language

### How to use YouTube Transcript MCP Server

1. Get your Apify API token from [Apify Console](https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations)
2. Add this MCP server to your client's configuration
3. Start fetching YouTube transcripts

#### MCP client configuration

Add to your MCP client config (e.g. `claude_desktop_config.json`):

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "youtube-transcript": {
            "type": "url",
            "url": "https://your_username--youtube-transcript-mcp.apify.actor/mcp",
            "headers": {
                "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"
            }
        }
    }
}
```

### Tools

#### `get_transcript`

Returns the full plain-text transcript of a YouTube video. Ideal for summarization, analysis, and content extraction.

**Input:**

- `videoUrl` (required) — YouTube URL or video ID
- `lang` (optional) — Language code (e.g. "en", "es", "fr")

#### `get_transcript_with_timestamps`

Returns the transcript with `[MM:SS]` timestamps on each line. Great for referencing specific moments in a video.

**Input:**

- `videoUrl` (required) — YouTube URL or video ID
- `lang` (optional) — Language code

#### `search_transcript`

Searches the transcript for a keyword or phrase and returns only the matching segments with timestamps.

**Input:**

- `videoUrl` (required) — YouTube URL or video ID
- `query` (required) — Search term or phrase
- `lang` (optional) — Language code

### Output example

```json
{
    "content": [
        {
            "type": "text",
            "text": "[0:18] We're no strangers to love\n[0:22] You know the rules and so do I\n[0:27] A full commitment's what I'm thinking of"
        }
    ]
}
```

### Pricing

Each transcript fetch costs **$0.03**. There are no monthly fees or minimum charges — you only pay when a tool is called.

| Usage | Estimated cost |
|-------|---------------|
| 10 transcripts/day | ~$9/month |
| 100 transcripts/day | ~$90/month |
| 1,000 transcripts/day | ~$900/month |

### Supported URL formats

- `https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID`
- `https://youtu.be/VIDEO_ID`
- `https://youtube.com/embed/VIDEO_ID`
- Raw video ID (11 characters)

### Limitations

- Only works with videos that have captions/subtitles enabled
- Auto-generated captions may contain errors
- YouTube may rate-limit requests from a single IP under heavy use

### FAQ

**Is this legal?**
This server accesses publicly available YouTube caption data. It does not download or redistribute video content.

**What if a video has no transcript?**
The tool returns a clear error message indicating no transcripts are available.

**Can I get auto-generated captions?**
Yes — if a video only has auto-generated captions, those are returned by default.

# Actor input Schema

## Actor input object example

```json
{}
```

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("nyxar_dev/youtube-transcript-mcp").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("nyxar_dev/youtube-transcript-mcp").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{}' |
apify call nyxar_dev/youtube-transcript-mcp --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,nyxar_dev/youtube-transcript-mcp"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/vV3DnQYGyY0Y0IrGX/builds/4T9h18glad0GfhBZU/openapi.json