RedNote AI Transcript & Subtitle API – Xiaohongshu Video to Text

Use native Xiaohongshu subtitles first, fall back to AI transcription only when needed, and return clean text, timestamped segments, SRT, or WebVTT—with optional translation.

This version accepts complete public Xiaohongshu video-note URLs containing their matching xsec_token. Process up to 1,000 URLs per run and receive one structured Dataset record per input.

When a usable native subtitle exists, the Actor skips AI speech recognition automatically. Pay only for successful note resolution, AI transcription when actually used, and text translation when actually needed.

• Native subtitles first for faster, lower-cost results
• Optional AI fallback when no usable native subtitle exists
• One transcript, four output formats: plain text, timestamped segments, SRT, and WebVTT
• Optional translation preserves the original transcript
• AI-minute visibility whenever an AI transcription charge occurs, plus translation-unit visibility on completed translations
• Included note metadata and downloadable video media details when available
• Batch processing with isolated failures and duplicate-aware billing

✨ Key features

Native subtitles first

Use the video's own Xiaohongshu subtitle when available. Native success avoids AI transcription and its started-minute charge.

AI transcript fallback

When no native subtitle can be used, AI speech recognition runs only if allowAiTranscript is enabled.

Four transcript formats from one result

Return plain text, timestamped segments, SRT subtitles, and WebVTT subtitles from the same transcription. Selecting multiple formats does not create additional AI-minute charges.

Optional translation that preserves the source

Translate the completed speech transcript to a selected language while keeping the original transcript unchanged. Translation never overwrites the source-language result.

Structured note and media context

Get available note metadata and video media details alongside the transcript without separate metadata or video-URL switches.

Batch up to 1,000 inputs

Process large lists with bounded concurrency. One failed, deleted, inaccessible, image-only, or silent item does not stop the remaining inputs.

Duplicate-aware processing and billing

Every submitted input receives a Dataset record. Equivalent notes are processed and charged only once; later records are marked with duplicate and duplicateOf.

🚀 Quick start

Use the Actor in Apify Console:

1. Paste a complete Xiaohongshu video-note URL into urls.
2. Click Start.
3. Open the run's Dataset.
4. Read transcript.text.
5. Add subtitle formats or enable translation when needed.

The smallest valid input is:

{
  "urls": ["https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN"]
}

By default, the Actor returns text and segments, prefers native subtitles, allows AI fallback, includes available note and media details, and does not translate.

Supported RedNote / Xiaohongshu inputs

The Actor accepts complete HTTP or HTTPS Xiaohongshu video-note URLs in these forms:

• https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/{noteId}?xsec_token=...
• https://www.xiaohongshu.com/discovery/item/{noteId}?xsec_token=...
• https://www.xiaohongshu.com/red_video/{noteId}?xsec_token=...

The note ID is the 24-character hexadecimal value after /explore/, /discovery/item/, or /red_video/ in the complete URL.

Profile URLs, user pages, search pages, and unrelated Xiaohongshu pages are unsupported. Image-only notes can be submitted but cannot produce a transcript and return unsupported_note_type.

Supported paths are normalized to a canonical explore URL. Duplicate detection uses the canonical note ID.

Complete URL requirement

A complete URL must contain the matching xsec_token for its video note. Open the public note from Xiaohongshu search, feed, or sharing and copy the complete browser URL. There is no separate run-level token input.

Request URLs are sanitized before logging. The Dataset input field preserves the submitted URL, while normalizedUrl omits query parameters.

Input

Field	Type	Required	Default	Limits	Description
urls	string[]	Yes	None	1–1,000 items	Complete supported video-note URLs containing a valid matching xsec_token. Items are normalized and deduplicated by canonical note identity.
formats	string[]	No	['text', 'segments']	Unique values from text, segments, srt, vtt	Select transcript and translation representations. An empty array also falls back to text and segments.
allowAiTranscript	boolean	No	true	—	Use AI speech recognition only when no usable native subtitle is available. Native subtitles are always preferred.
translate	boolean	No	false	—	Add a translated copy while preserving the original transcript. No translation service or translation charge is used when disabled.
targetLanguage	string	No	en	One supported dropdown value	Translation target. Used only when translate is true; users select a language name in the Console.

The target-language dropdown includes English, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Czech, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Turkish, Arabic, Hebrew, Hindi, Bengali, Indonesian, Malay, Thai, Vietnamese, Filipino, Greek, Romanian, and Hungarian.

Available note metadata and video media details are included automatically.

Need subtitles? Add srt or vtt to formats.

Need translation? Enable it only when needed; the original transcript remains available.

Input examples

All transcript formats

{
  "urls": ["https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN"],
  "formats": ["text", "segments", "srt", "vtt"],
  "allowAiTranscript": true
}

Translate to English

{
  "urls": ["https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN"],
  "formats": ["text", "segments", "srt"],
  "allowAiTranscript": true,
  "translate": true,
  "targetLanguage": "en"
}

Plain transcript with included metadata and media

{
  "urls": ["https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN"],
  "formats": ["text"]
}

Native subtitles only, without AI fallback

{
  "urls": ["https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN"],
  "formats": ["text", "srt"],
  "allowAiTranscript": false,
  "translate": false
}

Batch input

{
  "urls": [
    "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=TOKEN_FOR_FIRST_NOTE",
    "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/red_video/6a84418900000000270212b1?xsec_token=TOKEN_FOR_SECOND_NOTE",
    "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a840ef900000000270231e6?xsec_token=TOKEN_FOR_THIRD_NOTE"
  ],
  "formats": ["text"]
}

Transcript formats

All selected formats are generated from the same completed transcript, whether it comes from a native subtitle or AI speech recognition. Asking for four formats does not create additional AI transcription.

text

Plain transcript text for LLM prompts, search, indexing, summaries, and content databases.

segments

Timestamped speech segments for quote extraction, timeline analysis, editing, and synchronization. start and end are measured in seconds.

srt

SubRip subtitle text generated locally from the returned segments. Timestamps use HH:MM:SS,mmm.

vtt

WebVTT subtitle text generated locally from the same segments. Suitable for web players and accessibility workflows; timestamps use HH:MM:SS.mmm.

Translation

Translation is optional and disabled by default.

• The source-language result always remains in transcript.
• The translated copy is returned in translation and never overwrites transcript.
• translation.language is the selected target language.
• Translation uses the same selected formats, including translated text, segments, SRT, and VTT when requested.
• Translated segments preserve the original segment timestamps and order.
• Only speech transcript content is translated; note title, caption, author, tags, and other metadata are not translated.
• Long transcripts are processed in ordered batches while preserving segment order.
• If Xiaohongshu already provides a native subtitle matching the target language, that track is reused without a translation-service charge.
• Translation works the same whether the transcript came from a native subtitle or AI speech recognition.
• If translation fails after transcription succeeds, the result remains successful with status: "partial_success", the original transcript is kept, and translation is null.
• A failed translation does not emit a translation charge.
• When both the recognized language and target are English, the original transcript is reused with language en, with no translation charge.

Successful actual translation is billed from the original transcript's Unicode character count:

translationUnits = max(1, ceil(originalTranscriptCharacters / 1,000))

Examples: 1–1,000 characters use 1 unit; 1,001–2,000 use 2 units; 2,001–3,000 use 3 units. English-to-English reuse uses 0 units.

Short output example

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "normalizedUrl": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "success": true,
  "status": "success",
  "noteId": "6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "media": {
    "durationSeconds": 61,
    "coverUrl": "https://sns-webpic.example/cover.webp",
    "nativeSubtitles": [{ "key": "source", "language": "zh-CN", "url": "https://sns-subtitle.example/source.srt", "isSource": true }]
  },
  "transcript": {
    "source": "native_subtitle",
    "language": "zh-CN",
    "text": "Example transcript text.",
    "segments": [
      { "start": 0, "end": 3.4, "text": "Example transcript text." }
    ]
  },
  "translation": null,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-22T03:00:00.000Z"
}

Output

Results are written to the default Dataset in input order. Every submitted input receives one record, including failures and duplicates.

success: true includes native or AI transcript success, AI no_speech, and no_transcript when the user disabled AI fallback and no native subtitle could be used.

Available note metadata and video media details are included automatically. Transcript representations follow formats, while translation is returned only when enabled and successfully completed. Unavailable fields are omitted unless the documented behavior uses null, such as translation.

Complete output field reference

Core processing

Field	Type	Availability	Meaning
input	string	Always	Exact submitted input value.
normalizedUrl	string	Processed transcript results	Canonical explore URL without tracking parameters.
success	boolean	Always	true for completed transcript processing, including no_speech and partial_success.
status	string	Always	Stable overall outcome. See Status values.
noteId	string	Processed transcript results	Canonical RedNote/Xiaohongshu note ID.
scrapedAt	string	Processed transcript results	UTC ISO 8601 result timestamp.

Content metadata

The content object is included in successful transcript records.

Field	Type	Availability	Meaning
content.title	string	Successful transcript results	Native note title; can be an empty string.
content.description	string	Successful transcript results	Native note description/caption.
content.author.userId	string	Successful transcript results	Xiaohongshu user ID; can be empty if unavailable.
content.author.nickname	string	Successful transcript results	Author display name.
content.author.avatarUrl	string	When available	Direct avatar URL.
content.author.profileUrl	string | null	Successful transcript results	Locally generated public profile URL, or null without a user ID.
content.author.redId	string	When available	Source-provided Red ID.
content.author.verified	boolean	When available	Source-provided verification flag.
content.engagement.likes	number	Successful transcript results	Normalized like count.
content.engagement.comments	number	Successful transcript results	Normalized comment count.
content.engagement.collects	number	Successful transcript results	Normalized collection/save count.
content.engagement.shares	number	Successful transcript results	Normalized share count.
content.tags	object[]	Successful transcript results	Native topic/tag list.
content.tags[].id	string	When available	Source tag ID.
content.tags[].name	string	Per tag	Tag name.

Media

Field	Type	Availability	Meaning
media.durationSeconds	number	Processed transcript results	Source media duration in seconds.
media.coverUrl	string	When available	Direct note/video cover URL.
media.videoUrl	string	When available	Downloadable video URL included with the transcript result.
media.nativeSubtitles	object[]	Processed video results	Normalized native subtitle tracks exposed by Xiaohongshu. May be empty.
media.nativeSubtitles[].key	string	Per native track	Subtitle group key such as source, zh-CN, or en-US.
media.nativeSubtitles[].language	string	When available	Track language reported by Xiaohongshu.
media.nativeSubtitles[].url	string	Per native track	Signed native subtitle URL; it can expire.
media.nativeSubtitles[].format	string | number	When available	Source-provided subtitle format value.
media.nativeSubtitles[].type	string | number	When available	Source-provided subtitle type value.
media.nativeSubtitles[].isSource	boolean	Per native track	true for the source-language group.

The Actor returns URLs; it does not permanently host the source video.

Transcript

Field	Type	Availability	Meaning
transcript.source	string	Transcript present	native_subtitle or ai_transcription.
transcript.language	string	When detected	Recognized source-language code.
transcript.text	string	When text selected	Plain source-language transcript. Can be empty for no_speech.
transcript.segments	object[]	When segments selected	Timestamped source-language segments.
transcript.segments[].start	number	Per segment	Start time in seconds.
transcript.segments[].end	number	Per segment	End time in seconds.
transcript.segments[].text	string	Per segment	Segment text.
transcript.srt	string	When srt selected	Locally generated SRT subtitle content.
transcript.vtt	string	When vtt selected	Locally generated WebVTT subtitle content.

Translation

translation is null when translation is disabled, no transcript exists, no_speech is returned, or translation fails. When present, it follows the selected formats.

Field	Type	Availability	Meaning
translation.source	string	Translation present	native_subtitle when a matching Xiaohongshu track is reused; otherwise translation.
translation.language	string	Translation present	Selected target-language code.
translation.text	string	text selected	Translated transcript text.
translation.segments	object[]	segments selected	Translated segments preserving source timestamps.
translation.segments[].start	number	Per segment	Original segment start in seconds.
translation.segments[].end	number	Per segment	Original segment end in seconds.
translation.segments[].text	string	Per segment	Translated segment text.
translation.srt	string	srt selected	SRT generated from translated segments.
translation.vtt	string	vtt selected	WebVTT generated from translated segments.

Duplicate and error fields

Field	Type	Availability	Meaning
duplicate	boolean	Duplicate inputs	true when the canonical note was already processed earlier in the run.
duplicateOf	string	Duplicate inputs	Original input value of the first matching record.
error.code	string	Failed or partial results	Stable machine-readable error code.
error.message	string	Failed or partial results	Safe user-facing explanation.

Status values

Status	Meaning	Transcript	Translation	Billing
success	A native or AI transcript completed with content.	Present	Present or null	URL processing; AI minutes only when AI fallback runs; translation only when text translation runs
no_speech	Media was processed but no speech was detected. Valid processed result.	Empty selected fields	null	Base + AI minutes
no_transcript	No usable native subtitle was available and AI fallback was disabled.	null	null	URL processing only
partial_success	Transcript succeeded but optional translation failed.	Preserved	null	URL processing; AI minutes only if AI was used; no translation charge
invalid_input	Input was empty, malformed, or could not become a note URL.	None	None	No charge
unsupported_url	Domain, protocol, or Xiaohongshu path is unsupported.	None	None	No charge
note_not_found	Canonical input was valid, but the note was missing or unavailable.	None	None	No charge
access_denied	Canonical input was valid, but the public request was denied.	None	None	No charge
page_fetch_failed	Canonical input was valid, but note data retrieval failed.	None	None	No charge
parse_failed	Canonical input was valid, but returned note data could not be parsed.	None	None	No charge
unsupported_note_type	The note is image-only or otherwise not a video.	None	None	No charge
media_not_found	No native transcript succeeded and no usable AI speech media was available.	None	None	URL processing only
transcription_failed	Speech recognition could not start or complete.	None	None	Base; AI minutes only if media submission began
transcription_timeout	Speech recognition timed out after media submission.	None	None	Base + AI minutes
internal_error	Unexpected per-input processing error.	None	None	Depends on the completed processing stage

Only statuses reachable in the current Transcript Actor are listed here.

Error codes

Error code	Status	Meaning
EMPTY_INPUT	invalid_input	The item was empty.
URL_NOT_FOUND	invalid_input	No supported note URL was found.
XSEC_TOKEN_REQUIRED	invalid_input	The full video-note URL did not include the required token.
INVALID_URL	invalid_input	Extracted URL syntax was invalid.
INPUT_REQUIRES_RESOLVABLE_URL	invalid_input	Input could not be converted into a public note URL.
UNSUPPORTED_PROTOCOL	unsupported_url	Protocol is not HTTP or HTTPS.
UNSUPPORTED_DOMAIN	unsupported_url	Domain is unsupported.
UNSUPPORTED_PATH	unsupported_url	URL is not a supported note page.
NOTE_NOT_FOUND	note_not_found	Note was missing or unavailable.
ACCESS_DENIED	access_denied	Public note request was denied.
PAGE_FETCH_FAILED	page_fetch_failed	Public note page could not be fetched after retries.
INITIAL_STATE_NOT_FOUND	parse_failed	Expected public note state was missing.
INITIAL_STATE_INVALID	parse_failed	Public note state was incomplete or invalid.
NOTE_DATA_INVALID	parse_failed	Note data had an unexpected structure.
NOT_A_VIDEO_NOTE	unsupported_note_type	The note contains no video to transcribe.
VIDEO_MEDIA_NOT_FOUND	media_not_found	No usable public speech media was found.
TRANSCRIPTION_FAILED	transcription_failed	Speech recognition could not process the media.
TRANSCRIPTION_TIMEOUT	transcription_timeout	Speech recognition timed out.
TRANSLATION_FAILED	partial_success	Transcript succeeded, but optional translation failed.
INTERNAL_ERROR	internal_error	Unexpected per-input processing error.

Output examples

AI fallback transcript with all formats

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "normalizedUrl": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "success": true,
  "status": "success",
  "noteId": "6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "media": {
    "durationSeconds": 61,
    "coverUrl": "https://sns-webpic.example/cover.webp"
  },
  "transcript": {
    "source": "ai_transcription",
    "language": "zh",
    "text": "大家好，今天我们来聊这个话题。",
    "segments": [
      { "start": 0, "end": 3.45, "text": "大家好，今天我们来聊这个话题。" }
    ],
    "srt": "1\n00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,450\n大家好，今天我们来聊这个话题。",
    "vtt": "WEBVTT\n\n00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.450\n大家好，今天我们来聊这个话题。"
  },
  "translation": null,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-22T03:00:00.000Z"
}

No speech

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "normalizedUrl": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "success": true,
  "status": "no_speech",
  "noteId": "6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "media": { "durationSeconds": 61 },
  "transcript": {
    "source": "ai_transcription",
    "text": "",
    "segments": []
  },
  "translation": null,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-22T03:00:00.000Z"
}

no_speech is a valid processed result, not a system failure. AI minutes are charged because the media was processed for speech recognition.

No native transcript with AI fallback disabled

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "normalizedUrl": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "success": true,
  "status": "no_transcript",
  "noteId": "6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "content": { "title": "Example video", "author": {}, "engagement": {}, "tags": [] },
  "media": { "durationSeconds": 61, "nativeSubtitles": [] },
  "transcript": null,
  "translation": null,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-24T03:00:00.000Z"
}

Translation success

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "normalizedUrl": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "success": true,
  "status": "success",
  "noteId": "6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "media": { "durationSeconds": 61 },
  "transcript": {
    "source": "ai_transcription",
    "language": "zh",
    "text": "大家好，今天我们来聊这个话题。"
  },
  "translation": {
    "source": "translation",
    "language": "en",
    "text": "Hello everyone. Today we are discussing this topic."
  },
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-22T03:00:00.000Z"
}

Translation failure with preserved transcript

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "normalizedUrl": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "success": true,
  "status": "partial_success",
  "noteId": "6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "media": { "durationSeconds": 61 },
  "transcript": {
    "source": "ai_transcription",
    "language": "zh",
    "text": "大家好，今天我们来聊这个话题。"
  },
  "translation": null,
  "error": {
    "code": "TRANSLATION_FAILED",
    "message": "The transcript was created, but its optional translation could not be completed."
  },
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-22T03:00:00.000Z"
}

Native subtitle with native target-language reuse

{
  "success": true,
  "status": "success",
  "transcript": {
    "source": "native_subtitle",
    "language": "zh-CN",
    "text": "原生中文字幕"
  },
  "translation": {
    "source": "native_subtitle",
    "language": "en-US",
    "text": "Native English subtitle"
  }
}

No AI-minute or translation event is charged when both tracks come from Xiaohongshu native subtitles.

Included video media details

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "normalizedUrl": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "success": true,
  "status": "success",
  "noteId": "6a87dbad0000000005030ca4",
  "media": {
    "videoUrl": "https://sns-video.example/video.mp4",
    "durationSeconds": 61,
    "coverUrl": "https://sns-webpic.example/cover.webp"
  },
  "transcript": {
    "source": "ai_transcription",
    "language": "en",
    "text": "Example transcript."
  },
  "translation": null,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-22T03:00:00.000Z"
}

Image-only note

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a840ef900000000270231e6?xsec_token=...",
  "success": false,
  "status": "unsupported_note_type",
  "error": {
    "code": "NOT_A_VIDEO_NOTE",
    "message": "This RedNote post does not contain a video to transcribe."
  }
}

Invalid input

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/user/profile/example",
  "success": false,
  "status": "unsupported_url",
  "error": {
    "code": "UNSUPPORTED_PATH",
    "message": "This Xiaohongshu URL is not a supported note page."
  }
}

Missing or inaccessible note

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a67603c000000000503be3f?xsec_token=...",
  "success": false,
  "status": "note_not_found",
  "error": {
    "code": "NOTE_NOT_FOUND",
    "message": "The RedNote note could not be found or is no longer publicly accessible."
  }
}

Transcription timeout after media submission

{
  "input": "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=...",
  "success": false,
  "status": "transcription_timeout",
  "error": {
    "code": "TRANSCRIPTION_TIMEOUT",
    "message": "Speech recognition timed out."
  }
}

API usage

The Actor slug is lance_api/xiaohongshu-video-ai-transcript-scraper-api.

JavaScript

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: process.env.APIFY_TOKEN });

const run = await client.actor('lance_api/xiaohongshu-video-ai-transcript-scraper-api').call({
  urls: ['https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN'],
  formats: ['text', 'segments'],
  translate: false,
});

const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items[0]?.transcript?.text);

Python

import os
from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient(os.environ["APIFY_TOKEN"])

run = client.actor("lance_api/xiaohongshu-video-ai-transcript-scraper-api").call(run_input={
    "urls": ["https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN"],
    "formats": ["text", "segments"],
    "translate": False,
})

items = client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).list_items().items
print(items[0].get("transcript", {}).get("text"))

cURL

This synchronous endpoint runs the Actor and returns the default Dataset items:

curl -X POST \
  "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/lance_api~xiaohongshu-video-ai-transcript-scraper-api/run-sync-get-dataset-items?format=json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "urls": ["https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6a87dbad0000000005030ca4?xsec_token=YOUR_TOKEN"],
    "formats": ["text", "segments"],
    "translate": false
  }'

In the returned JSON array, read [0].transcript.text.

💰 Simple, transparent pricing

Pay only for the processing you use: successful note resolution, AI transcription by started media minute when native subtitles cannot be used, and optional text translation by character volume.

RedNote note processing starts from $0.003 per successful canonical note ($3 per 1,000), while AI transcription starts from $0.002 per started media minute — $2 per 1,000 started media minutes with eligible Apify Store discounts.

Optional translation starts from $0.07 per started 1,000 Unicode characters. The available video URL and note metadata are included with the successful note result.

A 1,600-character transcript uses 2 translation units: $0.14 at the lowest eligible rate or $0.20 at the standard Free rate.

Standard Free pricing is:

• Note processing: $0.006 per successful canonical note — $6 per 1,000
• AI transcription: $0.005 per started media minute — $5 per 1,000 started media minutes
• Translation: $0.10 per started 1,000-character unit

Check the Actor's Pricing tab for the current rate available to your Apify plan.

What triggers each charge?

• url-processing: once after a canonical public video note is successfully resolved and enters normal transcript processing, including native transcript and no_transcript results. Invalid inputs, inaccessible notes, and image-only notes are not charged this event.
• ai-transcription-minute: one unit for each started media minute after usable media is ready for speech recognition. 0:01–1:00 = 1 minute, 1:01–2:00 = 2 minutes, and 61 seconds = 2 minutes. Once submitted, silence, music, no detected speech, timeout, or recognition failure can still consume the charged AI minutes.
• translation-1k-characters: charged only after actual text translation succeeds, using the original transcript's Unicode character count rounded up to started 1,000-character units. Same-language reuse, matching native subtitle reuse, and failed translation use 0 units.

If a usable native subtitle is available, the Actor skips AI transcription automatically, so no ai-transcription-minute event is emitted.

Duplicate-only records do not repeat any of the canonical item's charges. Choose one transcript format or all four—the AI transcription charge is the same.

Use cases

• RedNote video transcription: Convert spoken public video content into reusable text.
• Subtitle generation: Create SRT or WebVTT content for editing, review, or accessible playback.
• Content research: Build timestamped datasets for reviewing public RedNote/Xiaohongshu videos.
• Creator and competitor research: Collect authorized public speech and metadata for downstream analysis.
• Searchable transcript databases: Index transcript text and segments in your own search system.
• International content analysis: Add optional translated transcripts while retaining the original language.
• AI and RAG workflows: Supply source transcripts and timestamps as context for downstream LLM systems.
• API automation: Connect video-to-text processing to n8n, Make, Zapier, backend jobs, or data pipelines.

How it works

1. Resolve and validate the public RedNote video.
2. Use the video's native subtitle when one can be downloaded and parsed.
3. If no usable native subtitle exists, optionally fall back to AI speech recognition.
4. Generate the selected text, segments, SRT, and WebVTT representations from one unified transcript.
5. Optionally translate the completed native or AI transcript while preserving timestamps.
6. Include available video, native subtitle, and structured note metadata.
7. Save one normalized Dataset record per submitted input.

🤖 Use with AI agents

Use this Actor through the Apify MCP Server from ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, Codex, or another MCP-compatible client. MCP runs use the same Actor pricing as normal Apify runs.

Example prompt:

Use the Apify Actor lance_api/xiaohongshu-video-ai-transcript-scraper-api to transcribe these public RedNote/Xiaohongshu video notes. Return the original language, plain transcript text, timestamped segments, and SRT subtitles. Translate to English only when requested.

FAQ

Which RedNote/Xiaohongshu URLs are supported?

Supported note paths are /explore/{id}, /discovery/item/{id}, and /red_video/{id}.

Can I submit note IDs directly?

No. Submit a complete supported video-note URL.

Can I process up to 1,000 notes?

Yes. urls accepts 1–1,000 items, and every submitted item receives one Dataset record.

What transcript formats are available?

Plain text, timestamped segments, srt, and vtt.

Are native subtitles used before AI transcription?

Yes. A usable Xiaohongshu native subtitle is always preferred and does not create an AI-minute charge. AI runs only as a fallback when allowAiTranscript is enabled.

Can I disable AI transcription?

Yes. Set allowAiTranscript to false. If no native subtitle can be used, the result returns status: "no_transcript" with note and media metadata preserved.

Do four transcript formats cost four times?

No. All selected formats are generated from one completed transcript. Native subtitles create no AI-minute charge, and selecting multiple formats does not add AI transcription charges when AI fallback is used.

What happens when a video has only music or silence?

It can return success: true and status: "no_speech" with empty transcript content. AI minutes are still charged because the media was processed.

How are AI minutes calculated?

Each started media minute is one unit: up to 60 seconds is 1, 61–120 seconds is 2, and so on. The implementation uses max(1, ceil(durationSeconds / 60)).

How is translation charged?

Only successful actual translation is charged. Units are the original transcript's Unicode character count rounded up per started 1,000 characters. English-to-English reuse is free.

Does translation replace the original transcript?

No. transcript always remains the source-language result; translation is an additional object.

What happens if translation fails?

The original transcript remains available, status becomes partial_success, translation is null, and no translation event is charged.

Do I pay for an image-only note?

It does not emit a successful-note, AI-minute, or translation charge.

Is the downloadable video URL included?

Yes, when RedNote provides an accessible video stream. It is included with the successful note result and has no separate video URL event.

Are media URLs permanent?

No. RedNote/Xiaohongshu CDN URLs can contain temporary signatures and can expire. Copy permitted media to your own storage when you need long-term access.

Do I need xsec_token?

Yes. Each submitted video-note URL must contain its valid matching token.

Can AI agents use this Actor?

Yes. Use lance_api/xiaohongshu-video-ai-transcript-scraper-api through the Apify API or Apify MCP Server.

Limitations

• Publicly accessible content only; no login automation or access-control bypass
• Image-only notes cannot produce transcripts
• Deleted, unavailable, or restricted notes can fail
• Profile, user, and search pages are unsupported
• xsec_token values can expire or become invalid
• Native subtitle URLs are signed CDN URLs and can expire; the Actor can try another native track or use AI fallback when enabled
• Background music, noise, overlapping speakers, accents, and audio quality can affect recognition
• Silence or music-only media can return no_speech
• Returned CDN media URLs can expire or stop working
• Note metadata can be empty, null, or omitted when unavailable
• The Actor does not permanently host the source media
• Platform or speech-recognition changes can temporarily affect results

Public data and responsible use

Use this Actor only for lawful access to public content. Respect RedNote/Xiaohongshu terms, Apify terms, copyright, privacy, and applicable law. Do not use it for harassment, spam, unlawful profiling, attempts to obtain non-public information, or access-control bypass.

Support

For help, contact lanceapi2026@hotmail.com and include:

• Apify Run ID
• The submitted public video-note URL, with the query string removed if you do not want to share the token
• Returned status, error.code, and error.message
• Expected result and actual result

Do not send Apify tokens, cookies, sessions, API keys, or passwords.