# YouTube Channel Scraper Pro (with transcripts) (`missingreports/youtube-channel-scraper-pro`) Actor Scrape any YouTube channel's videos plus metadata (views, likes, duration, publish date) and optional auto-generated transcripts. Perfect for content research, competitor analysis and building RAG datasets. - **URL**: https://apify.com/missingreports/youtube-channel-scraper-pro.md - **Developed by:** [MissingReports](https://apify.com/missingreports) (community) - **Categories:** Social media, Videos, SEO tools - **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing from $0.00075 / result This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events. Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows. In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours, and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store. In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server. Actors are written with capital "A". ## How to integrate an Actor? If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects. You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready. The best way to integrate Actors is as follows. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md). For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below. For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt). # README ## YouTube Channel Scraper Pro Scrape YouTube channels, videos, playlists, and search results. Alternative YouTube API with no limits or quotas. Extract views, likes, comments, duration, publish date, subscriber counts, and full transcripts. Built on top of Apify SDK — run it on the Apify platform or via API. ### What data can you scrape from YouTube? - 📺 Video title and description - 👀 View count and 💬 comment count - 👍 Likes and 🔗 video URL - ⏱️ Duration and 📅 publish date - 📈 Channel subscribers and 📍 channel location - 📝 Full transcript / subtitles (optional) ### Use cases for YouTube data - **Competitor analysis** — benchmark channels by views, engagement, and posting cadence - **SEO & content research** — mine titles, descriptions, and transcripts for keyword ideas - **Lead generation** — find active channels and creators in any niche - **AI training data** — build datasets from transcripts, captions, and metadata for RAG and fine-tuning - **Trend monitoring** — track what's gaining traction across channels and playlists ### How it works 1. Enter one or more **channel handles**, **video URLs**, or **search keywords**. 2. Set **max videos** and toggle **include transcript**. 3. Run the Actor. Results stream to the default dataset as structured JSON, ready to export as CSV or Excel. The scraper renders pages in a headless browser and uses Apify's proxy pool, so your machine and IP are never used. ### Input Configure the options in the Actor input UI, then **Run**. See the Input tab for the full schema. ### Output Structured results are saved to the default dataset (JSON / CSV / Excel export available). ### Monetization Set a price (free trial + per-result) in the Apify Console, then make the Actor public in the Apify Store. # Actor input Schema ## `channelHandles` (type: `array`): YouTube handles without '@', e.g. 'Fireship', 'veritasium'. ## `channelUrls` (type: `array`): Full channel or @handle URLs as an alternative to handles. ## `maxVideos` (type: `integer`): Maximum videos to scrape per channel. ## `includeTranscript` (type: `boolean`): Fetch the auto-generated transcript for each video (slower but richer). ## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`): YouTube rate-limits hard. Use residential proxies for transcripts. ## Actor input object example ```json { "channelHandles": [ "Fireship" ], "maxVideos": 30, "includeTranscript": false, "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": true } } ```` # API You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup. ## JavaScript example ```javascript import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client'; // Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token // Replace the '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "channelHandles": [ "Fireship" ], "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": true } }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("missingreports/youtube-channel-scraper-pro").call(input); // Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any) console.log('Results from dataset'); console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`); const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems(); items.forEach((item) => { console.dir(item); }); // 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs ``` ## Python example ```python from apify_client import ApifyClient # Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token # Replace '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "channelHandles": ["Fireship"], "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": True }, } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("missingreports/youtube-channel-scraper-pro").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "channelHandles": [ "Fireship" ], "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": true } }' | apify call missingreports/youtube-channel-scraper-pro --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=missingreports/youtube-channel-scraper-pro", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "YouTube Channel Scraper Pro (with transcripts)", "description": "Scrape any YouTube channel's videos plus metadata (views, likes, duration, publish date) and optional auto-generated transcripts. Perfect for content research, competitor analysis and building RAG datasets.", "version": "0.1", "x-build-id": "wOswXhuFnBJh8Buos" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/missingreports~youtube-channel-scraper-pro/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-missingreports-youtube-channel-scraper-pro", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/missingreports~youtube-channel-scraper-pro/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-missingreports-youtube-channel-scraper-pro", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/missingreports~youtube-channel-scraper-pro/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-missingreports-youtube-channel-scraper-pro", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "channelHandles": { "title": "Channel handles", "type": "array", "description": "YouTube handles without '@', e.g. 'Fireship', 'veritasium'.", "items": { "type": "string" } }, "channelUrls": { "title": "Channel URLs", "type": "array", "description": "Full channel or @handle URLs as an alternative to handles.", "items": { "type": "string" } }, "maxVideos": { "title": "Max videos per channel", "minimum": 1, "maximum": 2000, "type": "integer", "description": "Maximum videos to scrape per channel.", "default": 30 }, "includeTranscript": { "title": "Include transcript", "type": "boolean", "description": "Fetch the auto-generated transcript for each video (slower but richer).", "default": false }, "proxyConfiguration": { "title": "Proxy configuration", "type": "object", "description": "YouTube rate-limits hard. Use residential proxies for transcripts." } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```