YouTube Thumbnail Downloader & Scraper

YOUTUBE THUMBNAIL DOWNLOADER  •  YOUTUBE THUMBNAIL API Get the whole picture, not the cropped one. Paste YouTube links and get every thumbnail back as a real image file, with the video title and channel on the same row. Shorts come back vertical, in their real shape, instead of squeezed into a wide frame with filler down both sides, and old uploads with no HD thumbnail still return an image. Any link shape works: watch pages, Shorts, youtu.be, embeds, or a bare video ID. No YouTube account, no login, no cookies, no API key. NO THUMBNAIL, NO CHARGE  SHORTS STAY VERTICAL

Copy to your AI assistant

Paste this into ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, or any LLM to start using this Actor right away.

atomus/youtube-thumbnail-downloader is an Apify Actor that downloads YouTube video thumbnails in bulk and returns them as both a direct image URL and a stored image file, one row per input link: url, videoId, status, title, channelName, channelUrl, quality (the size actually delivered), width, height, isShort, thumbnailUrl, imageFileUrl, and reason when a link did not work. On the default setting a Short comes back as its real 1080x1920 vertical image, instead of the 1280x720 one where the vertical video sits in a strip down the middle with filler on both sides, and an old upload with no HD thumbnail still returns a picture because the size walks down until one exists. Use it whenever someone needs YouTube thumbnails at scale without cookies, a login, or an API key - thumbnail A/B analysis, competitor research, building video galleries, dataset building, or republishing clips to vertical platforms. Run it with curl: curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/atomus~youtube-thumbnail-downloader/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=APIFY_TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"videoUrls":["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ","https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5mU6SRS2Bxo"],"quality":"best","fallbackToLowerQuality":true,"saveImages":true}'. Or in Python: ApifyClient("APIFY_TOKEN").actor("atomus/youtube-thumbnail-downloader").call(run_input={"videoUrls":[...],"quality":"best"}) then client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).list_items().items. Inputs: videoUrls (string[], required - watch URL, Shorts URL, youtu.be short link, live URL, embed URL, m.youtube.com, music.youtube.com, youtube-nocookie.com, the old /v/ form, or a bare 11-character video id), quality (enum: best, maxresdefault, sddefault, hqdefault, mqdefault, default - best is the default and is the only one that returns a Short vertically; the fixed sizes are 1280x720, 640x480, 480x360, 320x180 and 120x90 respectively and always come back wide or square), fallbackToLowerQuality (bool, default true), saveImages (bool, default true). Channel, playlist and profile links are rejected locally at no charge. Billing is one thumbnail-scraped event per thumbnail returned; a video with no thumbnail at any size is free, and so is a link that was not a YouTube video. Full input schema, every enum and default, and the complete output field list: GET https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/atomus~youtube-thumbnail-downloader/build/default

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YouTube MCP Server: use these Actors from ChatGPT, Claude or Cursor

Point your AI assistant at Atomus and it can pull video and social data on its own. No glue code, no scraping logic in your prompts.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "atomus": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=atomus/youtube-thumbnail-downloader,atomus/tiktok-scraper,atomus/twitter-scraper,atomus/bilibili-scraper,atomus/douyin-scraper",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" }
    }
  }
}

Then ask, in plain language:

"Grab the thumbnails for these twenty videos, tell me which ones are Shorts, and list the titles next to each image."

Pinning the tools= list is what keeps your assistant on these Actors instead of reaching for whatever scraper it finds first.

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How to download YouTube thumbnails

One video, best quality available

The default already does this. It takes the largest picture the video actually has, and walks down a size only if that one is missing.

{
  "videoUrls": ["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ"]
}

Shorts, without the filler down the sides

Nothing to configure. A Short returns 1080x1920 and the row is flagged isShort: true.

{
  "videoUrls": [
    "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5mU6SRS2Bxo",
    "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/LiH-P4rSkLI"
  ]
}

Ask any other thumbnail tool for these and you get a 1280x720 picture with the vertical video in a strip down the middle and blurred filler on both sides. Two thirds of the image is not the video.

A batch of links in whatever shape you have them

Mix formats freely. Watch pages, Shorts, short links and bare IDs can all sit in the same run.

{
  "videoUrls": [
    "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ&t=42s",
    "https://youtu.be/9bZkp7q19f0",
    "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5mU6SRS2Bxo",
    "https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kJQP7kOUFXs",
    "jNQXAC9IVRw"
  ],
  "saveImages": true
}

Every image the same size, for a grid or a video wall

When your layout needs identical dimensions, pick a fixed size instead of best. All of them are wide or square, so a Short will have filler at the sides. That is the trade you are making on purpose here.

{
  "videoUrls": ["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ"],
  "quality": "maxresdefault",
  "fallbackToLowerQuality": true
}

Just the links, no files

Turn the files off when you are feeding the URLs into something else and do not need the downloads.

{
  "videoUrls": ["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ"],
  "saveImages": false
}

---

Input

Field	Type	Default	What it does
videoUrls	string[]	required	YouTube video links, in any shape listed below. One per line.
quality	string	best	Which picture to take. best is the only value that returns a Short vertically. See the table under Output.
fallbackToLowerQuality	boolean	true	Use the next smaller size when the one you picked does not exist for that video.
saveImages	boolean	true	Save each thumbnail as a real image file with the run, not just its link.

Which links work

All of these are accepted, and you can mix them in one run:

Shape	Example
Normal video	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
Short	https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5mU6SRS2Bxo
Short link	https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ
Live	https://www.youtube.com/live/dQw4w9WgXcQ
Embed	https://www.youtube.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ
Mobile	https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
YouTube Music	https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
Privacy embed	https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ
Old style	https://www.youtube.com/v/dQw4w9WgXcQ
Bare video ID	dQw4w9WgXcQ

Extra bits in the link are fine: ?t=42s, &list=..., and a missing https:// all still work.

What does not work, and costs you nothing: a channel link (/@handle, /channel/UC..., /c/..., /user/...), a playlist link, or anything that is not a YouTube video. These are rejected before any request is made, and the row tells you which line it was.

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What data does the YouTube Thumbnail Downloader return?

One row per link you sent in.

The picture

Field	What it is
thumbnailUrl	Direct link to the image on YouTube's servers. It carries no token and does not expire.
imageFileUrl	Link to the image file saved with this run, when saveImages is on.
quality	The size actually delivered, which may differ from the one you asked for if the fallback stepped in.
width, height	Real pixel size of the image delivered.
isShort	true when the original frame is taller than it is wide.

The video

Field	What it is
url	The link exactly as you sent it, so you can join the results back to your list.
videoId	The 11-character YouTube video ID.
title	The video title.
channelName	The channel that published it.
channelUrl	Link to that channel.

What happened

Field	What it is
status	ok, not_found (no thumbnail at any size), invalid_url (not a YouTube video link), or skipped.
reason	Plain-language explanation, present only when something did not work.

Example row:

{
  "url": "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5mU6SRS2Bxo",
  "videoId": "5mU6SRS2Bxo",
  "status": "ok",
  "reason": null,
  "title": "World's Largest Tennis Match",
  "channelName": "MrBeast",
  "channelUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/@MrBeast",
  "quality": "original",
  "width": 1080,
  "height": 1920,
  "isShort": true,
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/5mU6SRS2Bxo/oar2.jpg",
  "imageFileUrl": "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/.../records/5mU6SRS2Bxo-original.jpg"
}

The sizes

Option	Real size	Shape
Best available (default)	1080x1920 on a Short, otherwise 1280x720	the video's real shape
Large	1280x720	wide
Medium	640x480	4:3
Small	480x360	4:3
Tiny	320x180	wide
Icon	120x90	4:3

---

How much does it cost to download YouTube thumbnails?

Pay per thumbnail returned: $8/1k → $2/1k by Apify plan.

You are charged once per thumbnail that actually came back. Three things are free, every time:

• a video with no thumbnail at any size (deleted, private, or it never had one)
• a link that was not a YouTube video, such as a channel or a playlist
• a link the run did not get to

There is no minimum per link and no charge for an empty result. That is unusual enough to be worth stating plainly: most scrapers bill a floor per input because their upstream data provider bills them per request whether or not anything comes back. This Actor has no such provider, so there is no floor to pass on.

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What do people use the YouTube Thumbnail Downloader for?

• Thumbnail A/B analysis: pull the thumbnails of your last 200 uploads next to their titles and see which framing, faces and colours line up with your best performers.
• Competitor research: grab every thumbnail from a list of rival videos and compare their visual pattern against yours.
• Republishing to vertical platforms: take Shorts thumbnails at their real 9:16 shape, ready for Reels or TikTok, with no cropping step.
• Video galleries and embeds: build a grid of video cards with a real image behind each one instead of hotlinking.
• Dataset building: thumbnails plus titles and channels, as structured rows, for computer-vision or content-analysis work.
• Archiving: keep the image alongside the metadata, so the record survives the video being taken down.
• Content audits at agencies: one run across a client's whole catalogue, exported with every title and channel attached.

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YouTube Thumbnail Downloader vs other thumbnail tools vs the official YouTube API

	This Actor	Other thumbnail downloaders	YouTube Data API
Shorts in their real vertical shape	Yes	No, padded into a wide frame	No
Old uploads with no HD thumbnail	Still returns an image	Often returns nothing	Returns what exists
Title and channel on the same row	Yes	Rarely	Yes, as a separate call
Link shapes accepted	10, mixed freely	Typically 3 or 4	Video IDs only
Downloads the image file	Yes	Sometimes	No, URLs only
API key or quota	None	None	Key required, daily quota
Empty result charged	No	Varies	Costs quota

The official API is the right tool when you already have a key and want the full metadata catalogue. It hands you thumbnail URLs but never the files, it has a daily quota, and it does not expose a Short's vertical frame at all.

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FAQ

What is a YouTube thumbnail downloader?

A tool that takes YouTube video links and returns the preview images YouTube shows for those videos, as files or as direct links, usually in bulk rather than one at a time.

Do I need a YouTube account, cookies, or an API key?

No. Nothing here requires a login, a cookie, or a key of any kind.

Why do Shorts look wrong in other thumbnail tools?

Because a Short is filmed vertically but the thumbnail those tools request is a wide 1280x720 frame. YouTube fits the vertical video into the middle of it and fills both sides, so most of the image is not the video. This Actor also fetches the original uploaded frame, checks that it really is the vertical one, and gives you that instead. A Short comes back at 1080x1920.

The video is old and has no HD thumbnail. Will it work?

Yes. When a size is missing the Actor walks down to the next one instead of giving up, so you get the largest picture that exists rather than an empty row. The first video ever uploaded to YouTube, from 2005, returns an image at 480x360.

Do the image links expire?

No. The links point at YouTube's image servers, carry no token and no signature, and keep working for as long as the video exists.

Can I get every size for one video?

Not in a single row. Run the same link again with a different quality if you need more than one.

What happens to a channel or playlist link?

It is rejected immediately, before any request is made, and you are not charged. The row tells you exactly which line it was, which matters when you pasted 500 of them.

How much does it cost?

Per thumbnail returned, $8/1k → $2/1k by Apify plan. Videos with no thumbnail and invalid links are free.

Can I use this from ChatGPT or Claude?

Yes. Use the MCP configuration near the top of this page, or paste the block under "Copy to your AI assistant" into any chat assistant.

Is it legal to download YouTube thumbnails?

The images are served publicly by YouTube without authentication. As with any scraped content, what matters is what you do with it: respect copyright, YouTube's terms, and applicable law. Thumbnails are the creator's work and are not yours to republish as your own.

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All Atomus scrapers

2.4M+ RESULTS DELIVERED

LinkedIn	Profile · Posts · Company posts · Post search · Reactions · Comments · Company · Employees
Lead gen	Leads Finder
Google Maps	Places & local businesses
TikTok	Videos · Comments
X (Twitter)	Tweets & profiles
RedNote 小红书	Notes, users & comments
Douyin 抖音	Profiles, videos & comments
Weibo 微博	Posts & profiles
Bilibili 哔哩哔哩	Videos & creators
YouTube	Thumbnails

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Support

Hey, I'm Chico, founder of Atomus. I built this Actor and I answer the messages about it. Something broke? A field you need isn't there? Not sure it fits what you're doing? Send me a message, most answers come the same day. 💬  DM me on LinkedIn    or hello@dendelabs.com

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⚠️ Disclaimer

This Actor is an independent tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by YouTube or Google. YouTube® is a registered trademark of its respective owner. All trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Thumbnails are the work of the creators who uploaded them and remain their property. Use the images and data this Actor returns in compliance with copyright law, applicable data protection laws (GDPR, CCPA) and YouTube's terms of service. Do not use them for spam, harassment, or unlawful purposes.