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YouTube Transcripts (via Apify)

by retracnversion 1.0.0i★ –iRuns in the cloud
Registry nameio.github.retracn/youtube-transcripts

Install

Overview

Description from the maker (original English)

YouTube transcripts for AI agents: text and timestamps for any video, channel or playlist.

PopNx MCP’s three pillars

These three are never merged into one score: opinions, measurements and popularity are different things.

What you can do with it

We have not written a plain-language summary for this one yet. Below are the facts we read from the registry.

  • Connection: Runs in the cloud
  • Transport: Streamable HTTP
  • Category: Marketing & social media
  • You need to fill in: Authorization

Install

Pick the AI app you use, then copy the settings.

Before you install

  • Basic checks: 1 of 1 passed
  • Runs on the maker’s server: what you ask it goes through their server.
  • You fill in yourself: Authorization

Values marked secret are keys to your account. Never share them or paste them into a chat.

You need

Which app do you use?

Pick your app above. We remember it, so next time the button says “Install in …”.

This address needs a key in a request header, which the add-connector menu cannot set. Use Claude Code, Cursor or VS Code instead.

Run this in your terminal

claude mcp add --transport http youtube-transcripts 'https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper' --header 'Authorization: Bearer {apify_token}'

Fill in the empty values before running it.

Open in Cursor

Or copy the settings yourself

Paste into .cursor/mcp.json in your project, or ~/.cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "youtube-transcripts": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer {apify_token}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.

Open in VS Code

Or copy the settings yourself

Paste into .vscode/mcp.json in your project

{
  "servers": {
    "youtube-transcripts": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer {apify_token}"
      }
    }
  }
}

Your browser asks to open the app, then the app shows the settings and asks you to confirm. Key values are left empty for you to fill in.

This address needs a key in a request header, which the add-connector menu cannot set. Use Claude Code, Cursor or VS Code instead.

Your choice stays on this device in a cookie; no account needed.

Values you fill in

  • Authorization secret required HTTP header
    Your Apify API token, sent as 'Bearer '. Get it at https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations (free account).

These settings are generated from the maker’s registry entry. If the README says otherwise, follow the README.

What it can do

We have not read this server’s tool list yet; we check endpoints in rotation.

Basic checksi

We check information anyone can see; we have not read the code. Checks that do not apply are left out of the count. · Checked Nov 7, 2026

  • ✓ Pass

    Maker matches the repo

    The registry name was verified with the GitHub account retracn, which owns the repo

  • … Not checked yet

    Still maintained

    We have not read this repo from GitHub yet

  • … Not checked yet

    Has a licence

    We have not read this repo from GitHub yet

  • … Not checked yet

    Endpoint responds

    Not checked yet; we check endpoints in rotation

  • … Not checked yet

    Sign-in with OAuth

    Not checked yet; we check endpoints in rotation

  • … Not checked yet

    No hidden instructions in tool descriptions

    Not checked yet; we read the tool list when we check the endpoint

Compared with others in Marketing & social mediai

  • More stars than 0% of the other 2972 servers in this category
  • Published to the registry more recently than 48% of the other 2972 servers in this category
  • Basic checks equal to or better than 100% of the other 2972 servers in this category

Compared with every active server in this category in the registry. Stars count only when the publisher owns the repo.

Common questions

Is YouTube Transcripts (via Apify) safe?

It passed 1 of 1 applicable basic checks. We have not read the code. Before adding a key or token, see what access the server asks for and use a key with only the permissions you need.

What keys or codes does it need?

You need to fill in: Authorization

Does it run on my computer or in the cloud?

It runs in the maker’s cloud. Connect over the internet with nothing to install, but what you send passes through the maker’s servers.

Is it still maintained?

The GitHub repo last changed –, and the latest version (1.0.0) reached the registry 32 days ago.

Which apps can use it?

Apps that support MCP, such as Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor and VS Code. It connects by URL, so apps that accept remote MCP servers work too, such as ChatGPT in developer mode.

What can I use instead?

In the same category: MCP YouTube Transcript, Google Analytics MCP, BibiGPT YouTube Video Summarizer

Alternatives

Servers in the same category from other makers, sorted by stars.

Reading a card:★ GitHub starsiThree pillars: reviews · checks · usageiUpdated = latest version published to the registryi

An MCP server retrieving transcripts of YouTube videos

Runs on your computer★ 495MITUpdated 10 days ago
Install

GA4 MCP server for AI agents: schema discovery, server-side aggregation, analysis-ready defaults.

Runs on your computer★ 244MITUpdated 9 days ago
Install

README from the maker

Open the README

Copied from the maker’s repo as written. PopNx MCP has not reviewed or endorsed it. HTML, images and scripts are removed. Links lead off this site.

YouTube Transcript Scraper & API: captions and subtitles

YouTube Transcript Scraper is an Apify Actor that returns the transcript of any YouTube video as plain text and timestamped segments, in any caption language, with the title, channel, views and duration. It accepts video, Shorts, channel and playlist URLs, costs $1.50 per 1,000 transcripts and charges nothing for videos without captions.

Price: $1.50 per 1,000 transcripts ($1.20 on Gold and above) · Run it: https://apify.com/automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper · Guide: https://retracn.github.io/automationnation-actors/youtube-transcript-scraper/

Quick facts

  • One row per video: transcript text, timestamped segments, language, auto-generated flag, all caption languages, title, channel, views, duration, description and tags.
  • Using youtube-transcript-api? The open-source youtube-transcript-cloud package (github.com/retracn/youtube-transcript-cloud) keeps its interface and runs on this Actor, so it works from AWS, GCP and other servers without RequestBlocked errors.
  • Videos, Shorts, channels and playlists (latest 15 videos).
  • Manual captions first, then auto-generated; best-effort translation.
  • Price: $1.50 per 1,000 transcripts; videos without captions are free.
  • Channels on autopilot: with Only new videos on, a scheduled run transcribes each new upload from a channel or playlist once. Guide: https://retracn.github.io/automationnation-actors/guides/auto-transcribe-youtube-channel/
  • Node.js on Vercel, Lambda or Render? The open-source youtube-transcript-cloud package (github.com/retracn/youtube-transcript-cloud-js) keeps the youtube-transcript npm API and errors and runs on this Actor, so transcripts work in production.

Example input

{

"videos": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc" ], "language": "en" }

Run it from code

REST API

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/automationnation~youtube-transcript-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \

-H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"videos": ["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc"], "language": "en"}'

Python — see examples/python_example.py

# pip install apify-client

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN") run = client.actor("automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper").call(run_input={ "videos": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc" ], "language": "en" }) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item.get("title"), item.get("channel"), item.get("wordCount"), item.get("transcriptLanguage"))

JavaScript — see examples/node_example.mjs

// npm install apify-client

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN' }); const run = await client.actor('automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper').call({ "videos": [ "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc" ], "language": "en" }); const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems(); for (const item of items) console.log(item.title, item.channel, item.wordCount, item.transcriptLanguage);

Use it with AI agents (MCP)

Hosted MCP server URL (Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other clients with remote MCP support):

https://mcp.apify.com?tools=automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper

Local config for Claude Desktop / Cursor — mcp/claude_desktop_config.json:

{

"mcpServers": { "youtube-transcript-scraper": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "-y", "@apify/actors-mcp-server", "--tools", "automationnation/youtube-transcript-scraper" ], "env": { "APIFY_TOKEN": "YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" } } } }

FAQ

Is there an official YouTube transcript API? The YouTube Data API only downloads captions for videos you own. YouTube Transcript Scraper returns public captions of any video.

Does it transcribe audio? No, it returns captions YouTube already has (manual or auto-generated); videos without captions come back as no_transcript and aren't charged.

Can it transcribe every new video from a channel automatically? Yes. Add the channel URL, turn on Only new videos and schedule it daily: each run transcribes only new uploads, and videos without captions yet are tried again next time.

More from AutomationNation

This repository holds usage examples. The scraper itself runs on the Apify platform; you need a free Apify account and API token. Examples are MIT licensed.

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