# YouTube Transcript – Captions, Timestamps, Any Language (`rt-solutions/youtube-transcript`) Actor

Get the full transcript of any YouTube video: plain text ready for AI/LLMs plus timestamped segments, in the language you choose when available. Thousands of videos per run, no YouTube blocks, no API key.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/rt-solutions/youtube-transcript.md
- **Developed by:** [RT SOLUTIONS](https://apify.com/rt-solutions) (community)
- **Categories:** Videos, AI, Developer tools
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.50 / 1,000 transcripts

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
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.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## 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.

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 examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

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`).

# README

## YouTube Transcript – Captions, Timestamps, Any Language

Get the **full transcript of any YouTube video**: the complete plain text (ready to paste into ChatGPT, Claude or your RAG pipeline) **plus timestamped segments**, in the language you choose when the video has it.

Paste video URLs or IDs — thousands per run. No YouTube account, no API key, **no "Sign in to confirm you're not a bot" blocks**: captions come through a licensed data provider.

### Why this one

| | This Actor |
|---|---|
| Output | full text + timestamped segments + word count + duration |
| Languages | ask for `es`, `fr`, `de`… — if the video has no track in that language, you still get the original captions (flagged) |
| Reliability | no blocks or captchas, no residential proxies |
| No captions? | `status: "no_transcript"`, **not charged** |
| Price | **$5 per 1,000 videos**, down to $3.50 on paid plans |

### Input example

```json
{ "videos": ["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aircAruvnKk", "https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ"], "translateTo": "es" }
```

### Output example (real run, shortened)

```json
{
  "videoId": "aircAruvnKk",
  "title": "But what is a neural network? | Deep learning chapter 1",
  "language": "es", "requestedLanguage": "es", "requestedLanguageAvailable": true,
  "durationSeconds": 1106, "wordCount": 2940,
  "text": "Este es un tres, que esta escrito de manera descuidada y renderisado en una resolución extremadamente pequeña de 28X28 pixeles…",
  "segments": [{ "start": 4.22, "end": 5.4, "text": "…" }],
  "status": "ok"
}
```

For `dQw4w9WgXcQ` (no Spanish track) the same run returned the English captions with `"requestedLanguageAvailable": false`.

### Use cases

- **AI & RAG**: feed lectures, podcasts and tutorials into LLMs and vector databases.
- **Content repurposing**: turn videos into blog posts, newsletters, show notes and subtitles.
- **Research & monitoring**: search what competitors, creators or experts say across hundreds of videos.

### Pricing

**$5 per 1,000 transcripts** on the free plan, **$4.50** on Starter, down to **$3.50** on higher plans. Videos without captions and errors are not charged. "Fast" speed adds $0.002 per video. When you ask for a language the video does not have, fetching the original captions instead costs +$0.002 for that video (a second lookup).

### Apify free plan

On the **Apify free plan** you get **one free trial run** (up to 3 videos) with no setup. After that, add **your own DataForSEO API login** in the "Apify free plan" section (DataForSEO gives $1 of free credit at sign‑up), or use a paid Apify plan — no key needed and no limit. A blocked run stops immediately with a message and nothing is charged.

### Good to know

- Only videos with captions (uploaded or YouTube auto-generated) have a transcript.
- The "preferred language" picks an existing caption track; it does not machine-translate.

### Related tools

- [YouTube Comments Scraper](https://apify.com/rt-solutions/youtube-comments-scraper)
- [AI Brand Visibility Tracker](https://apify.com/rt-solutions/ai-brand-visibility-tracker)
- [Keyword Search Volume](https://apify.com/rt-solutions/keyword-search-volume)

# Actor input Schema

## `videos` (type: `array`):

Video URLs (watch, youtu.be, shorts, embed, live) or 11-character video IDs. Thousands per run.

## `translateTo` (type: `string`):

Language code (es, fr, de, ar…). If the video has captions in that language you get them; otherwise the original captions are returned and requestedLanguageAvailable = false.

## `includeSegments` (type: `boolean`):

Each caption line with start and end time. The full plain text is always included.

## `speed` (type: `string`):

Standard is fine for almost all uses.

## `maxConcurrency` (type: `integer`):

Videos processed at the same time.

## `dataForSeoLogin` (type: `string`):

After the one free trial run on the Apify free plan. Paid Apify plans need no key.

## `dataForSeoPassword` (type: `string`):

From app.dataforseo.com → API Access.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "videos": [
    "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aircAruvnKk"
  ],
  "includeSegments": true,
  "speed": "standard",
  "maxConcurrency": 20
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

One row per video: full text, segments, language.

## `overview` (type: `string`):

Main fields.

# 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 '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "videos": [
        "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aircAruvnKk"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("rt-solutions/youtube-transcript").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 '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "videos": ["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aircAruvnKk"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("rt-solutions/youtube-transcript").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "videos": [
    "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aircAruvnKk"
  ]
}' |
apify call rt-solutions/youtube-transcript --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,rt-solutions/youtube-transcript"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/Dwcf1o2gK4wXGZQE4/builds/XstpAYFQGLHvzdjJk/openapi.json