# YouTube transcripts by search keyword, no API key needed

**Use case:** 

Type a topic and get plain-text transcripts of the top 10 YouTube videos for it, with title, channel, views and timestamps. No YouTube API key, no quota, and no IP blocks: requests run on Apify infrastructure, not from your machine. Videos without captions are never charged. Switch the format to SRT or VTT if you need subtitle files.

## Input

```json
{
  "urls": [],
  "outputFormat": "text",
  "languages": [
    "en"
  ],
  "includeTranscript": true,
  "maxVideosPerSource": 10,
  "maxPagesPerSource": 10,
  "previewOnly": false,
  "channelUrls": [],
  "searchKeywords": [
    "ted talk productivity"
  ],
  "scrapeShorts": false,
  "chunkBy": "time",
  "chunkSeconds": 40,
  "preferManual": true,
  "incremental": true
}
```

## Output

```json
{
  "title": {
    "label": "Title"
  },
  "channelName": {
    "label": "Channel"
  },
  "channelUrl": {
    "label": "Channel URL"
  },
  "viewCount": {
    "label": "Views"
  },
  "publishedAt": {
    "label": "Published"
  },
  "durationSeconds": {
    "label": "Duration (s)"
  },
  "language": {
    "label": "Language"
  },
  "isAutoGenerated": {
    "label": "Auto-generated"
  },
  "availableLanguages": {
    "label": "Available languages"
  },
  "transcriptQuality": {
    "label": "Quality"
  },
  "transcriptAvailable": {
    "label": "Transcript"
  },
  "translatedTo": {
    "label": "Translated to"
  },
  "thumbnailUrl": {
    "label": "Thumbnail"
  },
  "keywords": {
    "label": "Keywords"
  },
  "videoId": {
    "label": "Video ID"
  },
  "url": {
    "label": "Video URL"
  },
  "inputUrl": {
    "label": "From input"
  },
  "scrapedAt": {
    "label": "Scraped at"
  }
}
```

## About this Actor

This example demonstrates how to use [YouTube Transcript Scraper - Bulk Channels, No Repeat Charges](https://apify.com/garnet_puppet/youtube-transcript-scraper.md) with a specific input configuration. Visit the [Actor detail page](https://apify.com/garnet_puppet/youtube-transcript-scraper.md) to learn more, explore other use cases, and run it yourself.


## How to integrate an Actor?

This Task's input is already configured above. Use it as-is rather than inventing a new one.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For full API examples (JavaScript, Python, CLI, MCP, OpenAPI), see this Task's Actor page: https://apify.com/garnet_puppet/youtube-transcript-scraper.md

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).