# YouTube Comments Scraper (`scrapeforge/youtube-comments-scraper`) Actor Extract comments and replies from any YouTube video. Scrape by video URL or channel. Get comment text, likes, replies, author info, and more. Fast bulk extraction — export to JSON, CSV, or Excel. - **URL**: https://apify.com/scrapeforge/youtube-comments-scraper.md - **Developed by:** [ScrapeForge](https://apify.com/scrapeforge) (community) - **Categories:** Social media, Videos - **Stats:** 1 total users, 0 monthly users, 0.0% runs succeeded, NaN bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing from $0.30 / 1,000 comments 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 a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases. 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.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.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/platform/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 Comments Scraper Extract comments and replies from any YouTube video. Fast, reliable, and no browser needed — pure HTTP-based extraction at scale. ### Features - **Fast extraction** — Direct API calls, no browser emulation needed - **Multiple input modes** — Paste video URLs, channel URLs, or @handles - **Reply support** — Optionally fetch replies to each comment - **Sort options** — Get top comments or newest first - **Low resource usage** — Minimal memory and bandwidth (JSON only, no page rendering) - **Automatic pagination** — Fetches all comments, even on videos with thousands - **Deduplication** — No duplicate comments in your dataset ### What data do you get? Each comment includes: | Field | Description | |-------|-------------| | `text` | Full comment text | | `likeCount` | Number of likes on the comment | | `replyCount` | Number of replies | | `publishedTime` | When the comment was posted (e.g., "2 hours ago") | | `isPinned` | Whether the comment is pinned by the creator | | `isHearted` | Whether the creator hearted the comment | | `videoId` | Source video ID | | `videoUrl` | Source video URL | | `author.name` | Commenter's display name | | `author.channelId` | Commenter's channel ID | | `author.channelUrl` | Commenter's channel URL | | `author.avatarUrl` | Commenter's profile picture URL | | `replies` | Array of reply comments (when enabled) | #### Sample output ```json { "commentId": "UgyBxGk...", "text": "This video is amazing! Great explanation.", "likeCount": 142, "replyCount": 5, "publishedTime": "2 days ago", "isPinned": false, "isHearted": true, "videoId": "dQw4w9WgXcQ", "videoUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ", "author": { "name": "John Doe", "channelId": "UCxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx", "channelUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx", "avatarUrl": "https://yt3.ggpht.com/..." }, "replies": [] } ```` ### Input | Field | Description | Default | |-------|-------------|---------| | `videoURLs` | List of YouTube video URLs | `[]` | | `channelURLs` | List of YouTube channel URLs or @handles | `[]` | | `commentsPerVideo` | Max comments per video. Set to `0` for all comments | `0` | | `maxRepliesPerComment` | Max replies to fetch per comment. Set to `0` to skip | `0` | | `sortBy` | Sort order: `top` or `newest` | `top` | | `proxy` | Proxy configuration (recommended) | Apify Proxy | #### Example input ```json { "videoURLs": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ" ], "commentsPerVideo": 500, "maxRepliesPerComment": 5, "sortBy": "top" } ``` #### Scraping comments from a channel ```json { "channelURLs": [ "https://www.youtube.com/@MrBeast" ], "commentsPerVideo": 100, "sortBy": "newest" } ``` ### Use cases - **Sentiment analysis** — Analyze audience reactions to products, campaigns, or creators - **Brand monitoring** — Track what people say about your brand across YouTube - **Competitor research** — Study engagement patterns on competitor content - **Influencer vetting** — Evaluate comment quality and authenticity before partnerships - **Trend detection** — Spot emerging topics and opinions in comment sections - **Academic research** — Collect data for social media studies and NLP projects - **Content strategy** — Understand what resonates with audiences by analyzing top comments ### How it works This scraper fetches comments in bulk without launching a browser or rendering any pages. It uses fast, efficient JSON requests under the hood. This means: - **No scroll delays** — Comments are fetched via pagination, not scrolling - **Minimal bandwidth** — Only JSON data is transferred, no HTML/CSS/JS/images - **Low memory** — Runs in 256MB, no browser overhead ### Export formats Export your data in JSON, CSV, Excel, XML, or HTML. Integrate via the Apify API, webhooks, or connect directly to Google Sheets, Slack, Zapier, Make, and more. ### Limitations - Only public video comments are accessible - Comments disabled by the creator cannot be scraped - Age-restricted videos may not be accessible without authentication - YouTube may rate-limit requests from the same IP — use proxy for best results ### Disclaimer This is an **unofficial** actor and is **not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by YouTube or Google**. It is developed and maintained independently. YouTube is a trademark of Google LLC. This actor accesses only publicly available data. Users are responsible for ensuring their use complies with YouTube's Terms of Service and all applicable laws. By using this actor, you agree that you are solely responsible for how you use the extracted data. # Actor input Schema ## `videoURLs` (type: `array`): List of YouTube video URLs to scrape comments from (e.g., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO\_ID) ## `channelURLs` (type: `array`): List of YouTube channel URLs or @handles. All recent videos from these channels will have their comments scraped. ## `commentsPerVideo` (type: `integer`): Maximum number of comments to scrape per video. Set to 0 for all comments. ## `maxRepliesPerComment` (type: `integer`): Maximum number of replies to fetch per comment. Set to 0 to skip replies. ## `sortBy` (type: `string`): Sort order for comments. ## `proxy` (type: `object`): Proxy settings. Recommended for avoiding rate limits. ## Actor input object example ```json { "videoURLs": [], "channelURLs": [], "commentsPerVideo": 0, "maxRepliesPerComment": 0, "sortBy": "top", "proxy": { "useApifyProxy": true } } ``` # Actor output Schema ## `comments` (type: `string`): Dataset containing all extracted comments with user data, timestamps, and replies # 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 = {}; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("scrapeforge/youtube-comments-scraper").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 = {} # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("scrapeforge/youtube-comments-scraper").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 '{}' | apify call scrapeforge/youtube-comments-scraper --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=scrapeforge/youtube-comments-scraper", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "YouTube Comments Scraper", "description": "Extract comments and replies from any YouTube video. Scrape by video URL or channel. Get comment text, likes, replies, author info, and more. Fast bulk extraction — export to JSON, CSV, or Excel.", "version": "1.0", "x-build-id": "Ik2vaitiNWgcfkpM3" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/scrapeforge~youtube-comments-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-scrapeforge-youtube-comments-scraper", "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": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/scrapeforge~youtube-comments-scraper/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-scrapeforge-youtube-comments-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$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": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/scrapeforge~youtube-comments-scraper/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-scrapeforge-youtube-comments-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$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": { "videoURLs": { "title": "YouTube Video URLs", "type": "array", "description": "List of YouTube video URLs to scrape comments from (e.g., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID)", "default": [], "items": { "type": "string" } }, "channelURLs": { "title": "YouTube Channel URLs", "type": "array", "description": "List of YouTube channel URLs or @handles. All recent videos from these channels will have their comments scraped.", "default": [], "items": { "type": "string" } }, "commentsPerVideo": { "title": "Comments per video", "minimum": 0, "type": "integer", "description": "Maximum number of comments to scrape per video. Set to 0 for all comments.", "default": 0 }, "maxRepliesPerComment": { "title": "Max replies per comment", "minimum": 0, "type": "integer", "description": "Maximum number of replies to fetch per comment. Set to 0 to skip replies.", "default": 0 }, "sortBy": { "title": "Sort comments by", "enum": [ "top", "newest" ], "type": "string", "description": "Sort order for comments.", "default": "top" }, "proxy": { "title": "Proxy configuration", "type": "object", "description": "Proxy settings. Recommended for avoiding rate limits.", "default": { "useApifyProxy": true } } } }, "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 } } } } } } } } } } ```