YouTube Channel Scraper – Profiles, Counts & Links

Turn known YouTube handles or channel IDs into a public channel directory. YouTube Channel Scraper returns names, descriptions, subscriber and video counts, avatar and banner images, and available About information in one row per submitted channel.

Use it to qualify creators, enrich channel records, or compare public profile snapshots. No YouTube account or cookies are required.

At a glance	Details
📥 Input	Channel handles or UC IDs
📤 Output	Channel identity, description, audience figures, branding, links, and available About details
🔐 Login required	No
📄 Collection	One metadata lookup per input
💾 Delivery	One row per channel result, in one table

What the YouTube channel details scraper collects 🔎

The Actor combines the channel's public profile with its About information when available.

• Channel ID, handle, name, canonical URL, and vanity URL
• Description, keywords, external links, and RSS feed URL
• Subscriber, video, and view counts with the original displayed labels
• Avatar and banner URLs with available image sizes
• Country, displayed join date, and exposed country-availability metadata
• Verification, family-safety, and subscriber-count visibility flags

Counts describe the channel. The output does not contain the channel's individual videos or subscriber identities.

How to scrape YouTube channel details 🚀

1. Prepare the channel handles or IDs you want to collect.
2. Add them to inputList, one value per item.
3. Start the Actor.
4. Check status and export the fields needed for your workflow.

{
  "inputList": [
    "NASA"
  ]
}

YouTube channel details data fields and output 📦

Field group	Included data
Identity	ID, handle, name, canonical and vanity URLs
Profile	Description, keywords, external links, and RSS URL
Audience	Subscriber, video, and view counts with displayed text
Branding	Avatar and banner URLs with size variants
About and flags	Country, join-date text, availability metadata, and account flags

Complete illustrative success item. The fictional values below demonstrate the output and are not a live result:

{
  "input": "TrailJournal",
  "status": "success",
  "id": "UCabcdefghijklmnopqrstuv",
  "handle": "@TrailJournal",
  "name": "Trail Journal",
  "url": "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCabcdefghijklmnopqrstuv",
  "canonical_url": "https://www.youtube.com/@TrailJournal",
  "vanity_url": "https://www.youtube.com/@TrailJournal",
  "description": "Weekend walks, route guides, and quiet places.",
  "avatar_url": "https://example.com/trail-large.jpg",
  "avatar_thumbnails.url": [
    "https://example.com/trail-small.jpg",
    "https://example.com/trail-large.jpg"
  ],
  "avatar_thumbnails.width": [
    160,
    800
  ],
  "avatar_thumbnails.height": [
    160,
    800
  ],
  "banner_url": "https://example.com/trail-large.jpg",
  "banner_thumbnails.url": [
    "https://example.com/trail-small.jpg",
    "https://example.com/trail-large.jpg"
  ],
  "banner_thumbnails.width": [
    1060,
    2120
  ],
  "banner_thumbnails.height": [
    175,
    350
  ],
  "subscribers": 12000,
  "subscribers_text": "12K subscribers",
  "videos_count": 25,
  "videos_count_text": "25 videos",
  "views": 500000,
  "views_text": "500K views",
  "country": "United States",
  "joined_date": "Joined Jan 1, 2020",
  "keywords": [
    "hiking",
    "trail guides"
  ],
  "keywords_raw": "hiking \"trail guides\"",
  "external_links.title": [
    "Website"
  ],
  "external_links.url": [
    "https://example.com"
  ],
  "external_links.display_url": [
    "example.com"
  ],
  "external_links.icon_url": [
    "https://example.com/trail-large.jpg"
  ],
  "rss_url": "https://www.youtube.com/feeds/videos.xml?channel_id=UCabcdefghijklmnopqrstuv",
  "available_countries": [
    "US",
    "GB"
  ],
  "is_verified": false,
  "is_family_safe": true,
  "is_subscriber_count_hidden": false
}

The table and JSON use the same flat field names, including literal dotted keys. Avatar, banner, and external-link fields use aligned lists. For example, the first external_links.title matches the first external_links.url. Keywords and available countries remain ordinary ordered lists.

Optional values can be null, empty strings, false, or empty lists. Missing counts are normally null; numeric values parsed from abbreviated labels remain approximate. Failed rows preserve input and status and set the result-data fields to null.

Input requirements and coverage ⚙️

Parameter	Type	Default	Rules
inputList	array of strings	Required	One or more channel handles, with or without @, or UC channel IDs. Full channel URLs are not accepted. No fixed batch-size maximum.

Handles allow 1–100 Unicode word characters, periods, hyphens, or middle dots after an optional @. A channel ID must be UC followed by 22 letters, digits, underscores, or hyphens. Other valid values are treated as handles. Leading and trailing spaces are removed.

There is no pagination parameter. Each input starts its own lookup, so repeating an input can produce another row.

YouTube channel details use cases 🎯

Creator qualification

Compare channel descriptions, subscriber figures, country, and branding when reviewing a shortlist of creators.

Directory enrichment

Add channel IDs, canonical links, public websites, and RSS URLs to records that already contain handles.

Branding audits

Review channel names, descriptions, avatar images, and banners across a portfolio of known accounts.

Profile snapshots

Schedule a saved input list and compare exports for changes in public profile text and audience figures.

Pricing and billable channel rows 💰

Check the Actor's Pricing tab for the current pricing model and rate.

Under dataset-item pricing, each saved success or failed row can be billable. Automatic retry attempts do not independently add rows. A successful lookup saves one metadata row for its input. Invalid or unavailable inputs save failed rows, and repeated input entries can each produce a result.

Image variants and other list fields remain in their parent row and do not create separate dataset items.

YouTube Channel Details Scraper API and integrations 🔌

Use the Actor ID from the API tab as $ACTOR_ID and your Apify token as $APIFY_TOKEN.

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/$ACTOR_ID/runs?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"inputList":["NASA"]}'

The request starts a run. Retrieve the dataset when it finishes, or use a completion webhook to send results to your application. Apify schedules can repeat collection; exports and integrations support JSON, CSV, Excel, Google Sheets, Make, and Zapier workflows.

Reliability and limits ⚠️

Up to five requests run concurrently, with automatic retries for temporary failures. Invalid, unavailable, or unresolved inputs are visible as failed rows. YouTube can restrict public access or omit fields.

About fields depend on the information YouTube exposes. If a required About request fails, the channel can produce a failed row even when its main page is accessible. A hidden or missing subscriber label produces a null numeric count; the visibility flag reflects the absence of that label. Displayed join dates are preserved as text, and abbreviated counts such as 12K are converted estimates, not exact private analytics.

Frequently asked questions ❓

Can I submit a full channel URL?

No. Use a handle with or without @, or a UC channel ID.

Does it return the channel's videos?

No. It returns a channel profile and aggregate counts. Use Channel Videos, Shorts, or Streams for individual items.

Can it extract an email address?

The output includes published external links but has no dedicated email or phone field.

Are subscriber counts exact?

They are parsed from the public displayed label. A label such as 12K is a rounded figure, and hidden or missing counts can be null.

Why are About fields missing?

YouTube may omit country, join date, views, or external links from the accessible channel data.

Support, responsible use, and related actors 🛟

For support, share the run ID and a safe public example input through the Actor's support channel. Keep tokens and credentials out of messages.

Use public data and media within the privacy, copyright, and other obligations that apply to your project.