YouTube Channel Scraper - Extract Video Metrics & Channel Data

Extract YouTube channel metrics, video performance data, and search results without API keys or quota limits. Get subscriber counts, views, likes, publish dates, descriptions, and thumbnails from any YouTube channel.

What is YouTube Channel Scraper?

YouTube Channel Scraper is a no-code tool for extracting comprehensive data from YouTube channels and videos without requiring a YouTube Data API key. While the official YouTube API imposes strict daily quotas of 10,000 units per day and requires complex OAuth setup, this scraper uses YouTube's internal InnerTube API to bypass these limitations entirely. You can analyze unlimited channels and videos, sort results by views or date, and search YouTube by keywords—all without hitting quota limits or managing API credentials.

This actor is designed for marketers, content creators, researchers, and data analysts who need detailed YouTube metrics for competitive analysis, influencer research, content strategy, or market research. Whether you're tracking competitor performance, identifying trending videos in your niche, or building datasets for data journalism, this scraper provides all essential channel and video metadata in structured JSON format ready for analysis or export to spreadsheets, databases, or visualization tools.

The scraper handles both direct channel URLs (including @handles and vanity URLs) and keyword searches. For each channel, it extracts subscriber counts, total video counts, descriptions, and profile images. For each video, it retrieves view counts, like counts, publish dates, full descriptions, durations, and high-resolution thumbnails. You can configure the number of videos to scrape per channel and sort them by relevance, newest first, or most popular, making it easy to focus on the content that matters most to your analysis.

Data Fields

Channel Output Fields

Field	Type	Description
type	String	Always "channel" for channel records
channelId	String	YouTube channel ID (browseId)
name	String	Channel display name
description	String	Channel description text
channelUrl	String	Full URL to the channel page
externalId	String	External channel identifier
subscribers	String	Subscriber count as displayed (e.g., "1.2M subscribers")
totalVideos	String	Total video count as displayed (e.g., "347 videos")
keywords	String	Channel keywords/tags
avatar	String	URL to channel profile picture (highest resolution)

Video Output Fields

Field	Type	Description
type	String	Always "video" for video records
videoId	String	YouTube video ID
videoUrl	String	Full URL to the video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=...)
title	String	Video title
views	String	View count as displayed (e.g., "1.2M views")
publishedDate	String	Publish date as displayed (e.g., "Jan 15, 2026")
likes	String	Like count as displayed (e.g., "45K likes")
description	String	Full video description text
duration	String	Video length (e.g., "10:35")
channelName	String	Name of the channel that uploaded the video
channelUrl	String	Full URL to the channel page
thumbnailUrl	String	URL to maximum resolution thumbnail

Tutorial: How to Scrape YouTube Channels

Step 1: Open the Actor

Go to the YouTube Channel Scraper page on Apify and click "Try for free."

Step 2: Enter Channel URLs

Add one or more YouTube channel URLs to the "Channel URLs" field. You can use any format:

• Handle format: https://www.youtube.com/@MrBeast
• Channel ID format: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX6OQ3DkcsbYNE6H8uQQuVA
• Legacy format: https://www.youtube.com/c/MrBeast

Step 3: Add Search Queries (Optional)

If you want to search YouTube for specific topics, add keywords to the "Search Queries" field (e.g., "web scraping tutorial," "Python automation 2026").

Step 4: Set Maximum Videos

Choose how many videos to scrape per channel or search query. The default is 20, but you can set any number from 0 to 100 or more depending on your needs.

Step 5: Choose Sort Order

Select how to sort videos:

• Relevance: YouTube's default ordering
• Newest: Most recently uploaded videos first
• Most Popular: Highest view count first

Step 6: Start the Scraper

Click "Start" to run the actor. For 2-3 channels with 20 videos each, the run typically completes in 1-2 minutes.

Step 7: Export Your Data

Once finished, download results as JSON, CSV, Excel, or export directly to Google Sheets, databases, or analytics tools via integrations.

Input Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description	Default
channelUrls	Array	No	List of YouTube channel URLs to scrape (handles, channel IDs, or vanity URLs)	[]
searchQueries	Array	No	List of search keywords to find videos and channels	[]
maxVideos	Integer	No	Maximum number of videos to scrape per channel or search query	20
sortBy	String	No	Sort order for videos: "relevance", "date", or "views"	"relevance"

Note: You must provide at least one channelUrls entry OR one searchQueries entry. You can use both simultaneously.

Example Input

{
  "channelUrls": [
    "https://www.youtube.com/@Fireship",
    "https://www.youtube.com/@TechLead",
    "https://www.youtube.com/@ThePrimeTimeagen"
  ],
  "searchQueries": [
    "JavaScript frameworks 2026",
    "AWS vs Azure comparison"
  ],
  "maxVideos": 15,
  "sortBy": "views"
}

Example Output

Channel Record

{
  "type": "channel",
  "channelId": "UCsBjURrPoezykLs9EqgamOA",
  "name": "Fireship",
  "description": "High-intensity ⚡ code tutorials and tech news to help you ship your app faster. New videos every week covering the topics every programmer should know.",
  "channelUrl": "http://www.youtube.com/@Fireship",
  "externalId": "UCsBjURrPoezykLs9EqgamOA",
  "subscribers": "3.2M subscribers",
  "totalVideos": "487 videos",
  "keywords": "javascript programming coding web development tutorial",
  "avatar": "https://yt3.googleusercontent.com/ytc/AIf8zZTpc-yVJQ5g6V5mIhRgbKs_XK7F8z2N_xP5eHbE=s800-c-k-c0x00ffffff-no-rj"
}

Video Record

{
  "type": "video",
  "videoId": "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
  "videoUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ",
  "title": "100+ JavaScript Concepts you Need to Know",
  "views": "2,847,394 views",
  "publishedDate": "Jan 23, 2026",
  "likes": "127,849 likes",
  "description": "Learn the top 100+ JavaScript concepts every developer should know. This ultimate JavaScript roadmap covers everything from variables and functions to closures, promises, async/await, and beyond.\n\nTimestamps:\n0:00 Intro\n0:45 Variables\n2:15 Functions\n...",
  "duration": "12:42",
  "channelName": "Fireship",
  "channelUrl": "http://www.youtube.com/@Fireship",
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/maxresdefault.jpg"
}

Search Result (Channel)

{
  "type": "channel",
  "channelId": "UC8butISFwT-Wl7EV0hUK0BQ",
  "title": "freeCodeCamp.org",
  "subscribers": "9.8M subscribers",
  "videoCount": "1,847 videos"
}

Legal and Ethical Use

This scraper extracts publicly available data from YouTube using the same internal API that the YouTube website uses. All scraped data is already publicly accessible without login. The scraper does not bypass any authentication, paywalls, or access restrictions. It simply automates the process of collecting public information that any user could manually gather by browsing YouTube.

When using this tool, you are responsible for complying with YouTube's Terms of Service and any applicable laws in your jurisdiction. Use scraped data responsibly and ethically. Do not use this tool for spam, harassment, copyright infringement, or any activity that violates YouTube's policies. For commercial use cases involving large-scale data collection, consider reviewing YouTube's Terms of Service and consulting with legal counsel to ensure compliance.

Pricing

This actor runs on the Apify platform. Pricing is based on compute units (CU) consumed during the run:

• Small runs (1-3 channels, 20 videos each): 0.01-0.03 CU ($0.001-$0.003)
• Medium runs (10 channels, 50 videos each): 0.10-0.20 CU ($0.01-$0.02)
• Large runs (50 channels, 100 videos each): 0.50-1.00 CU ($0.05-$0.10)

Apify provides a free tier with $5 of credit per month, which is enough for hundreds of small scraping runs. For high-volume usage, paid plans start at $49/month with higher compute limits. The actor does not use a browser, so it runs efficiently and consumes minimal compute resources.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a YouTube API key?

No. This scraper uses YouTube's internal InnerTube API, which does not require authentication or API keys. You can start scraping immediately without any setup.

How is this different from the YouTube Data API?

The official YouTube Data API has strict quota limits (10,000 units/day) and requires a Google Cloud project with OAuth credentials. This scraper bypasses those limitations by using YouTube's internal API, giving you unlimited access to public data without quotas or authentication.

Can I scrape private or unlisted videos?

No. This scraper only accesses publicly available data that any user can see without logging in. Private and unlisted videos are not accessible through this tool.

What's the maximum number of videos I can scrape?

There is no hard limit, but very large runs (1000+ videos) may take longer and consume more compute units. For best performance, consider splitting large jobs into multiple smaller runs or using pagination if available.

Can I schedule this scraper to run automatically?

Yes. Apify supports scheduled runs via cron expressions. You can set up daily, weekly, or custom schedules to automatically track channel growth, new video uploads, or trending topics over time.

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For questions or feature requests, visit the Issues page or contact support via the Apify platform.