YouTube Search Results Scraper (Rank Tracker)

Capture YouTube search rankings for keywords — rank positions, video metadata, region + language. Repeatable snapshots for YouTube SEO, competitor tracking, and brand monitoring.

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Key Features

• Rank-First Schema: Accurate rank order (1..N) per query with page + section tagging
• Localization: 50 regions + 22 languages for geo-specific rank tracking
• Pagination: Up to 10 pages per query with stable rank continuation
• Shorts Detection: Heuristic identification of YouTube Shorts in search results
• HTTP-First: Fast, lightweight extraction — no browser overhead
• Partial Failure Handling: Individual query failures don't abort the entire run
• Run Summary: Per-query stats stored in key-value store for monitoring
• Pay-Per-Result: Only pay for rank results you get

Best for: YouTube creators, SEO agencies, brands, tool builders, and researchers tracking search rankings

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At a Glance

Feature	Value
Architecture	HTTP extraction (ytInitialData parsing)
Speed	~1-2s per query page
Output Fields	23 structured fields per result
Concurrency	Default 5, up to 20
Docker Image	apify/actor-node:22 (lightweight)
Proxy Required	No (optional for high-volume)

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How It Works

1. Enter Keywords — Provide search queries (e.g., "AI automation tools", "Claude Code")
2. Fetch Search Pages — HTTP request to YouTube with region/language params
3. Parse Results — Extract ytInitialData JSON embedded in HTML
4. Preserve Rank Order — Number results sequentially across pages
5. Detect Shorts — Heuristic tagging of Shorts results
6. Export Dataset — Structured ranked results ready for analysis

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Output

Table View

JSON View

{
  "retrievedAt": "2026-03-09T02:38:01.297Z",
  "query": "Claude Code",
  "regionCode": "US",
  "language": "en",
  "deviceMode": "desktop",
  "page": 1,
  "rank": 1,
  "resultType": "video",
  "videoId": "TUKYbUIXLOE",
  "videoUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUKYbUIXLOE",
  "title": "The 6 Levels of Claude Code (You're Stuck at Level 3)",
  "channelId": "UCoy6cTJ7Tg0dqS-DI-_REsA",
  "channelTitle": "Chase AI",
  "channelHandle": "@Chase-H-AI",
  "publishedAt": "4 hours ago",
  "durationText": "32:36",
  "viewCountText": "3,747 views",
  "isShorts": false,
  "badges": [
    "New",
    "4K"
  ],
  "snippet": "Master Claude Code, Build Your Agency, Land Your First Client...",
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TUKYbUIXLOE/hq720_custom_3.jpg?sqp=...",
  "positionInSection": "main_results",
  "runId": "UiezTCsC5M3FBb2tm"
}

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Output Schema (23 Fields)

Field	Type	Description
retrievedAt	String	ISO 8601 timestamp of extraction
query	String	Original search query
regionCode	String	Region code used for this search
language	String	Language code used for this search
deviceMode	String	Device mode (desktop or mobile)
page	Integer	Page number (1-based)
rank	Integer	Rank position (1-based, sequential across pages)
resultType	String	Result type: video, channel, or error
videoId	String	YouTube video ID
videoUrl	String	Full YouTube video URL
title	String	Title of the result
channelId	String	Channel ID
channelTitle	String	Channel display name
channelHandle	String	Channel @handle
publishedAt	String	Relative publish time (e.g., "4 hours ago")
durationText	String	Human readable duration (e.g., "32:36")
viewCountText	String	Human readable view count (e.g., "3,747 views")
isShorts	Boolean	Whether this is a YouTube Shorts video
badges	Array	Badges like New, 4K, LIVE
snippet	String	Short description snippet
thumbnailUrl	String	Best available thumbnail URL
positionInSection	String	Section: main_results, shorts_shelf, people_also_watch
runId	String	Apify run ID for lineage tracking

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Input Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
queries	Array	[]	Keywords to track rankings for (required)
maxResultsPerQuery	Integer	50	Max results per query (1-500)
maxPages	Integer	1	Pages to paginate per query (1-10)
regionCode	String	"US"	ISO-3166-1 country code (50 countries)
language	String	"en"	UI language code (22 languages)
safeSearch	String	"moderate"	Safe search: none, moderate, strict
includeShorts	Boolean	true	Include Shorts results when present
sortBy	String	"relevance"	Sort: relevance, upload_date, view_count, rating
deviceMode	String	"desktop"	Desktop or mobile simulation
maxConcurrency	Integer	5	Parallel query fetches (1-20)
useProxy	Boolean	false	Use Apify residential proxy
proxyCountryCode	String	""	Proxy exit country (e.g., "US", "GB")
minDelayMs	Integer	0	Delay between page fetches (ms)
maxRetries	Integer	3	Retries per request
requestTimeoutSecs	Integer	30	Timeout per HTTP request (seconds)
debug	Boolean	false	Verbose logging

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Quick Start

Example 1: Simple Rank Snapshot

Track rankings for a single keyword in the US.

{
  "queries": ["AI automation tools"],
  "maxResultsPerQuery": 50,
  "maxPages": 1,
  "regionCode": "US",
  "language": "en",
  "includeShorts": true,
  "sortBy": "relevance",
  "deviceMode": "desktop",
  "maxConcurrency": 5,
  "useProxy": false,
  "maxRetries": 3,
  "requestTimeoutSecs": 30
}

Example 2: Multi-Keyword Competitor Tracking

Track multiple keywords to compare search rankings across competitors.

{
  "queries": ["Codex", "Claude Code", "Gemini"],
  "maxResultsPerQuery": 50,
  "maxPages": 1,
  "regionCode": "US",
  "language": "en",
  "includeShorts": true,
  "sortBy": "relevance",
  "deviceMode": "desktop",
  "maxConcurrency": 5,
  "useProxy": false,
  "maxRetries": 3,
  "requestTimeoutSecs": 30
}

Example 3: High Volume with Proxy

Track many keywords with pagination. Use proxy for reliability.

{
  "queries": ["shopify dropshipping", "email marketing", "fitness workout", "meal prep"],
  "regionCode": "US",
  "language": "en",
  "maxPages": 3,
  "maxResultsPerQuery": 150,
  "includeShorts": true,
  "useProxy": true,
  "maxConcurrency": 10,
  "minDelayMs": 250
}

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Performance

Workload	Estimated Time
5 queries x 1 page	under 1 minute
25 queries x 1 page	2-5 minutes
10 queries x 3 pages	3-8 minutes

Architecture

• HTTP-First: Parses ytInitialData embedded in YouTube search page HTML — no headless browser needed
• Continuation API: Pagination via YouTube InnerTube API with continuation tokens
• Exponential Backoff: Smart retry on 429 / 5xx / transient errors (2s -> 4s -> 8s -> 16s -> 30s max)
• Resource Efficient: Lightweight Node.js 22 image, no Chrome/Puppeteer overhead
• Consent Handling: Automatic cookie-based bypass for YouTube consent pages

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Pricing

Pay-per-result model — you only pay for results extracted.

Event	Trigger	Count
rank-result	Each ranked result in dataset	1 per result

Proxy costs (if enabled) are billed to your Apify account separately.

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Use Cases

YouTube SEO

Track where your videos rank for target keywords. Monitor rank changes after publishing new content or optimizing metadata.

Competitor Tracking

Identify which competitors dominate search for key terms. Build weekly rank snapshots for client reporting and benchmarking.

Brand Monitoring

Monitor brand visibility across YouTube search. Detect when new competitors appear in your keyword space.

Tool Builders / SaaS

Build rank tracking dashboards and alerting systems. Integrate via Apify API for automated daily/weekly workflows.

Research

Study YouTube SERP composition, content clustering by query, and algorithm shifts across regions and languages.

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Best Practices

1. Start small — Test with 1-2 queries and maxResultsPerQuery: 20 to verify results before scaling up
2. Use specific keywords — "AI automation tools 2026" gives more targeted results than "AI"
3. Enable proxy for volume — Recommended for 50+ queries per run or frequent scheduled runs
4. Use pagination wisely — Each page adds ~20 results; 3 pages gives ~60 results per query
5. Schedule runs — Use Apify scheduling for daily/weekly rank snapshots to track trends
6. Export strategically — CSV for spreadsheets, JSON for programmatic access, Excel for reporting

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Data Export

Supported formats (via Apify platform):

• JSON
• CSV
• Excel
• HTML

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Compliance

• Extracts only publicly available YouTube search result data
• HTTP-first approach — no login or CAPTCHA bypass
• Respects rate limits with exponential backoff
• Intended for legitimate SEO research, competitive analysis, and rank monitoring
• Users are responsible for compliance with applicable laws in their jurisdiction

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Support

• Issues: Report via GitHub or Apify support
• Feature requests: Open an issue with your use case

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Built by Coregent Digital Studio — Production-ready YouTube rank tracking