# Youtube Transcript Scraper. $2/1k results⚑ (`vistics/youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results`) Actor Extract transcripts from any YouTube video in seconds. Supports auto-generated & manual captions, timestamps, JSON & plain text output. Perfect for content creators, researchers, SEO & NLP projects. 🎬 - **URL**: https://apify.com/vistics/youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results.md - **Developed by:** [Ilong Mamman](https://apify.com/vistics) (community) - **Categories:** Social media, Developer tools, Automation - **Stats:** 142 total users, 13 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 35 bookmarks - **User rating**: 5.00 out of 5 stars ## Pricing $2.00 / 1,000 results 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 Transcript Scraper ### πŸ“Œ Introduction The **YouTube Transcript Scraper** is a robust tool for extracting transcripts from YouTube videos. Whether you need auto-generated captions or user-uploaded subtitles, this scraper delivers accurate, structured transcript data for any video with available captions. --- ### 🎯 What Does This Tool Do? - Extracts transcripts from YouTube videos using a full URL - Supports both auto-generated and manually created captions. - Outputs transcripts in both JSON and plain text formats for easy integration and analysis. --- ### πŸš€ Key Features - Retrieve transcripts from any YouTube video with captions - Accepts only full URLs - Outputs in JSON and plain text - Includes timestamps for each transcript segment - Fast and reliable extraction - Json output for easy intrgration - Minimal setup required --- ### πŸ” Use Cases - **Content Creators:** Generate subtitles or repurpose video content. - **Researchers:** Perform sentiment analysis, NLP, or content analysis. - **Accessibility:** Provide readable transcripts for hearing-impaired users. - **SEO & Summarization:** Create searchable summaries and improve discoverability. - **Education:** Collect lecture or tutorial transcripts for study and reference. --- ### πŸ“₯ Inputs #### What does the scraper accept? - **YouTube Video URL** (e.g., `https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ`) > **Note:** The video must have captions enabled (either user-uploaded or auto-generated). --- ### πŸ”’ Restrictions - Only works with videos that have available transcripts. - Some videos (e.g., live streams, private videos) may not provide transcripts. --- ### βœ… Example Input ```json { "videoUrl": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ", "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzEbj3w8bDY" ] } ```` *** ### πŸ“€ Outputs #### What does the scraper return? - **JSON**: Structured transcript with timestamps and text. - **Plain Text**: Clean, readable transcript. ##### Example Output (JSON) ```json { "videoUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ", "title": "Never Gonna Give You Up", "transcript": [ { "timestamp": "0:00", "text": "We're no strangers to love" }, { "timestamp": "0:05", "text": "You know the rules and so do I" }, { "timestamp": "0:10", "text": "A full commitment's what I'm thinking of" } ] } ``` ##### Example Output (Plain Text) ``` 0:00 We're no strangers to love 0:05 You know the rules and so do I 0:10 A full commitment's what I'm thinking of ``` *** ### βš™οΈ How to Use 1. Log in or Sign up on [Apify Platform](https://apify.com). 2. Create a new task and select "YouTube Transcript Actor". 3. Enter the YouTube video URL(s) in the startUrls field. 4. Choose whether to include timestamps (includeTimestamps: "toggle ON" or "toggle OFF"). 5. Start the task and receive your transcript in JSON format. *** ### πŸ› οΈ Troubleshooting | Issue | Possible Cause | Solution | |----------------------|---------------------------------------|---------------------------------| | Transcript not found | Video has no captions | Try another video | | Invalid URL/ID | Input is incorrect or missing | Check and re-enter the input | | Empty transcript | YouTube restricted the transcript | Try another video or region | *** ### πŸ”— Additional Resources - [YouTube API Documentation](https://developers.google.com/youtube/v3/docs) - [Apify Platform](https://apify.com/) - [My Profile](https://apify.com/vistics) *** ### πŸ™Œ Acknowledgments This tool was built with the support of the open-source community and the YouTube API. Special thanks to all contributors! πŸŽ‰ # Actor input Schema ## `timestamps` (type: `boolean`): If true, returns transcript array with timestamps. If false, returns joined text only. ## `startUrls` (type: `array`): List of YouTube video URLs to scrape transcripts from ## Actor input object example ```json { "timestamps": false, "startUrls": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SieELGaJV8k" ] } ``` # 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 = { "startUrls": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SieELGaJV8k" ] }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("vistics/youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results").call(input); // Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any) console.log('Results from dataset'); console.log(`πŸ’Ύ 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); }); // πŸ“š Want to learn more πŸ“–? Go to β†’ 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 = { "startUrls": ["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SieELGaJV8k"] } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("vistics/youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("πŸ’Ύ Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # πŸ“š Want to learn more πŸ“–? Go to β†’ https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "startUrls": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SieELGaJV8k" ] }' | apify call vistics/youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=vistics/youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Youtube Transcript Scraper. $2/1k results⚑", "description": "Extract transcripts from any YouTube video in seconds. \nSupports auto-generated & manual captions, timestamps, \nJSON & plain text output. Perfect for content creators, \nresearchers, SEO & NLP projects. 🎬", "version": "0.0", "x-build-id": "ArChzqaLdNjpyJwFt" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/vistics~youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-vistics-youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$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/vistics~youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-vistics-youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results", "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/vistics~youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-vistics-youtube-transcript-scraper-2-1k-results", "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", "required": [ "startUrls" ], "properties": { "timestamps": { "title": "Include timestamps", "type": "boolean", "description": "If true, returns transcript array with timestamps. If false, returns joined text only.", "default": false }, "startUrls": { "title": "Start URLs", "type": "array", "description": "List of YouTube video URLs to scrape transcripts from", "items": { "type": "string" } } } }, "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 } } } } } } } } } } ```