YouTube Thumbnail Downloader

🖼️ Get public YouTube thumbnails from known links

YouTube Thumbnails is for creators, content researchers, and developers who already have public YouTube video references. Add a list of video links or bare video IDs and get a dataset row for each successful thumbnail retrieval. Each row includes the source reference, video ID, requested and delivered quality, a direct thumbnail URL, and pixel dimensions. You can also add public video context or links for other available qualities.

Use it to collect thumbnails for content reviews, creative research, video audits, and other workflows that need source-backed image links.

Try these workflows

• Find a direct image link for a public video with YouTube Thumbnail URL.
• Check a Shorts thumbnail's pixel dimensions with YouTube Shorts Thumbnail Size.
• Get a thumbnail download link from a public video with YouTube Thumbnail Download.
• Look up one public video thumbnail with YouTube Thumbnail.
• Read the width and height of a selected thumbnail with YouTube Thumbnail Size.

📦 YouTube thumbnail rows at a glance

Returned data

• The submitted video reference and its canonical video ID.
• The quality you requested and the quality that was delivered.
• A direct source-hosted thumbnail URL and its width and height in pixels.
• Optional public title, channel, and publication date data.
• Optional direct links for other available thumbnail qualities.

The image link points to the source thumbnail, so Actor-hosted storage is not the delivery path. If a reference is unavailable, the run reports that item and continues with the other submitted references.

▶️ Run a YouTube thumbnail download

Quick start

1. Add one or more public YouTube links or bare video IDs.
2. Choose the thumbnail quality to request.
3. Turn on quality fallback if a lower quality is acceptable when the requested one is missing.
4. Turn on video context or other quality links when you need them.
5. Start the run and open the default dataset.

⚙️ Input

Add one or more public YouTube video references. The Actor accepts common watch, short-link, Shorts, embed, live, legacy, and YouTube Kids links when they resolve to a video. Bare video IDs are also accepted.

Input fields

Field	Type	What it does
videoReferences	array of strings	Lists public YouTube links or bare video IDs to process.
videoReferences[]	string	One public YouTube link or bare video ID.
quality	string	Chooses the requested quality: maxresdefault, sddefault, hqdefault, mqdefault, or default. The default is hqdefault.
allowQualityFallback	boolean	When true, tries a lower quality if the requested quality is not available. The result reports the quality delivered. The default is false.
includeVideoContext	boolean	When true, adds the public video title, channel, and publication date. The default is false.
includeAvailableQualities	boolean	When true, adds direct links for other available thumbnail qualities. The default is false.

Example default input

This example uses the default input values.

{
  "videoReferences": [
    "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ"
  ],
  "quality": "hqdefault",
  "allowQualityFallback": false,
  "includeVideoContext": false,
  "includeAvailableQualities": false
}

🧾 Output

Each successful dataset row uses the shape below. The two optional groups can be included when their matching input choices are on.

Dataset link

The Actor output includes a link to the default dataset.

Field	Type	What it does
dataset	URL string	Opens the default dataset that contains the thumbnail rows.

Output fields

Field	Type	What it does
videoReference	string	The YouTube link or video ID that led to the row.
videoId	string	The canonical YouTube video ID.
requestedQuality	string	The thumbnail quality requested for the video.
deliveredQuality	string	The thumbnail quality delivered for the video.
thumbnailUrl	URL	A direct URL to the selected thumbnail on YouTube.
dimensions	object	The selected thumbnail's pixel dimensions.
dimensions.width	integer	The thumbnail width in pixels.
dimensions.height	integer	The thumbnail height in pixels.
videoContext	object, optional	Public video context when requested.
videoContext.title	string	The public video title.
videoContext.channel	string	The public channel that posted the video.
videoContext.publishedAt	date-time string	The date and time when the video was published.
availableQualities	array, optional	Direct links to other available thumbnail qualities when requested.
availableQualities[].quality	string	The other available thumbnail quality.
availableQualities[].url	URL	A direct URL to the thumbnail at that quality.

Example complete row

This genuine row shows video context and other available quality links. It is not shortened.

{
  "videoReference": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ",
  "videoId": "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
  "requestedQuality": "maxresdefault",
  "deliveredQuality": "maxresdefault",
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/maxresdefault.jpg",
  "dimensions": {
    "width": 1280,
    "height": 720
  },
  "videoContext": {
    "title": "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up (Official Video) (4K Remaster)",
    "channel": "Rick Astley",
    "publishedAt": "2009-10-25T06:57:33.000Z"
  },
  "availableQualities": [
    {
      "quality": "sddefault",
      "url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/sddefault.jpg"
    },
    {
      "quality": "hqdefault",
      "url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/hqdefault.jpg"
    },
    {
      "quality": "mqdefault",
      "url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/mqdefault.jpg"
    },
    {
      "quality": "default",
      "url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/default.jpg"
    }
  ]
}

💳 Pricing

This Actor uses pay-per-event pricing. The primary event is youtube-thumbnail-retrieved and costs $0.0027 for one successful public thumbnail retrieval with its direct source URL. This event applies only when the Actor successfully retrieves a public thumbnail and its direct source URL.

🔌 Integrations

Dataset and API

Open the output in the default Apify dataset. You can start runs with the Apify API or read the saved dataset through the API.

Video guide

This video shows an Apify integration workflow:

❓ FAQ

What happens if the requested quality is not available?

With quality fallback off, that item fails when the requested quality is unavailable. With fallback on, the Actor tries a lower available quality and puts the delivered quality in deliveredQuality.

How can I see which quality was delivered?

Read deliveredQuality in the row. It shows the quality of the thumbnail URL in thumbnailUrl.

Can I get more than one quality link?

Yes. Turn on includeAvailableQualities to add direct links for other qualities that are available for the video.

Can I add public video context?

Yes. Turn on includeVideoContext to add the public title, channel, and publication date.

Why did a reference not produce a thumbnail?

A public thumbnail may be unavailable, or the video may be private, deleted, login-gated, or otherwise unable to provide a usable public thumbnail. The run reports the unavailable item and continues with the other references.

Can I submit Shorts or bare video IDs?

Yes. The input accepts Shorts links and bare 11-character video IDs, along with the other common public YouTube video link forms.

Does the Actor search for videos?

No. Add the public video links or IDs you want to process. The Actor does not search YouTube or discover videos from channels, feeds, or keywords.

Do I need a YouTube API key or login?

No. The Actor uses public thumbnail access and does not ask for a customer-supplied YouTube API key or source login.

Does the Actor store the image?

No. The result gives you a direct source-hosted thumbnail URL. Actor-hosted storage is not the delivery path.

Can I process several videos in one run?

Yes. Add a list of video references. Each successful reference gets its own dataset row.

📝 Changelog

0.0: Initial release

🆘 Support

For issues, questions, or feature requests, file a ticket and I'll fix or implement it in less than 24h 🫡

🔗 Related Actors

Owned actors

• YouTube Shorts Downloader: Get media links and metadata, including thumbnails, from known public Shorts.
• YouTube Description Extractor: Collect public video descriptions, thumbnails, titles, and source links for content review.

Other thumbnail tools

• YouTube Thumbnail Scraper & Downloader: Compare another tool for extracting and downloading thumbnails from YouTube videos.
• YouTube Thumbnail Downloader: Choose common thumbnail qualities for downloads from multiple video URLs.
• YouTube Thumbnail Downloader: Download thumbnails in bulk with quality fallback and metadata.

Made with ❤️ by Maxime Dupré