YouTube tools

Public YouTube data. Each call costs what the data provider charges for it, and the cost line under each tool below gives the number. A question YouTube cannot answer has no tool, rather than a tool that returns nothing.

#Get a YouTube channel

youtube_get_channel

One YouTube channel: subscribers, total views and when it joined.

Use when: sizing a channel before a sponsorship, checking a handle, reading a channel description.

Not for: its videos, use youtube_get_videos. Videos by topic, use youtube_search_videos.

Returns: Record. platform, kind, id, handle, name, url, bio, verified, followers, following, posts_count, likes, views, location, website, employees, industry, created_at. A field the platform does not publish is null. kind is channel, followers is the subscriber count.

Cost: 1 credit. Cached 24 hours.

Also takes provider, max_credits, dry_run: see common parameters.

{
  "handle": "@ThePatMcAfeeShow"
}

#Get a channel's videos

youtube_get_videos

The videos on one YouTube channel, newest or most viewed first.

Use when: "what does this channel publish", judging cadence and view counts before a sponsorship.

Not for: one video in full, use youtube_get_video. What is said in it, use youtube_get_transcript.

Returns: List, one page per call. rows[]: platform, id, url, author, author_name, created_at, text (cut at 2000 characters), likes, comments, shares, views, media, duration_s, is_ad. A number the platform does not publish is null. A listing carries views and length; likes and comments come with youtube_get_video.

Cost: 1 credit per page. Cached 6 hours.

Also takes cursor, provider, max_credits, dry_run: see common parameters.

{
  "handle": "@ThePatMcAfeeShow",
  "sort": "popular"
}

#Get a YouTube video

youtube_get_video

One YouTube video with its views, likes, comments and length.

Use when: a row is worth the detail, or you have a URL and nothing else.

Not for: what is said in it, use youtube_get_transcript. The comments, use youtube_get_comments.

Returns: Record. rows[]: platform, id, url, author, author_name, created_at, text (cut at 2000 characters), likes, comments, shares, views, media, duration_s, is_ad. A number the platform does not publish is null.

Cost: 1 credit. Cached 6 hours.

Also takes provider, max_credits, dry_run: see common parameters.

{
  "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EWaxmWgQMI"
}

#Get a video's comments

youtube_get_comments

The comments on one YouTube video, most liked first.

Use when: reading what an audience said, finding the objections under a review or a tutorial.

Not for: the video itself, use youtube_get_video. What is said in it, use youtube_get_transcript.

Returns: List, one page per call. rows[]: platform, id, post_id, author, created_at, text (cut at 2000 characters), likes, replies, depth. depth is the reply level. meta.cursor pages the next set. created_at is approximate: the platform shows an age such as "3 weeks ago", so it is exact only to that unit.

Cost: 1 credit per page. Cached 6 hours.

Also takes cursor, provider, max_credits, dry_run: see common parameters.

{
  "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EWaxmWgQMI"
}

#Search YouTube videos

youtube_search_videos

YouTube videos matching a keyword, ranked by YouTube's own search.

Use when: "what videos cover X", finding review and tutorial coverage of a product or a competitor.

Not for: one channel's own videos, use youtube_get_videos. Text pages about X, use seo_get_serp.

Returns: List, one page per call, ranked. rows[]: platform, id, url, author, author_name, created_at, text (cut at 2000 characters), likes, comments, shares, views, media, duration_s, is_ad. A number the platform does not publish is null. meta.cursor pages the next set. created_at is approximate: the platform shows an age such as "3 weeks ago", so it is exact only to that unit.

Cost: 1 credit per page. Cached 6 hours.

Also takes cursor, provider, max_credits, dry_run: see common parameters.

{
  "query": "best crm for agencies",
  "since": "year"
}

#Get a video's transcript

youtube_get_transcript

The transcript of one YouTube video, as text.

Use when: reading a video instead of watching it, pulling claims, chapters or quotes out of long content.

Not for: the video's numbers, use youtube_get_video. The comments, use youtube_get_comments.

Returns: Record. platform, url, language, text (the full transcript, uncut). NoData when the video has no captions.

Cost: 1 credit. Cached 30 days.

Also takes provider, max_credits, dry_run: see common parameters.

{
  "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EWaxmWgQMI"
}