YouTube Transcript API MCP Server

by catalyst-labs-dev Your server? Claim it

answering

YouTube Transcript API is answering right now. Last checked 13 min ago. Last commit 25 Oct 2026.

Transcripts + metadata from YouTube videos, Shorts, channels, playlists and search; text/SRT/VTT.

Uptime history 7 days of history

7 days agonow

100.0%

Uptime 24h

91 of 91 checks

—

Tools

hidden behind auth

344 ms

Response time

average over 24h

Stars

last commit 25 Oct 2026

Nothing serious here today

Today is the operative word: we check YouTube Transcript API every 15 minutes and re-read its code on every release. Watch it and you find out the day that stops being true.

Connect this server

Endpoint below is the one we actually reach during checks — not the one copied from a README. Last verified 13 min ago.

Claude Code Claude Desktop Codex Cursor VS Code

run in your terminal

claude mcp add youtube-transcript-api --transport http 'https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=catalyst-labs/youtube-transcript-api'

Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector, then paste this address

https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=catalyst-labs/youtube-transcript-api

~/.codex/config.toml

[mcp_servers.youtube-transcript-api]
url = "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=catalyst-labs/youtube-transcript-api"

.cursor/mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "youtube-transcript-api": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=catalyst-labs/youtube-transcript-api"
    }
  }
}

.vscode/mcp.json

{
  "servers": {
    "youtube-transcript-api": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=catalyst-labs/youtube-transcript-api"
    }
  }
}

This endpoint answered with an authorization challenge. The server is running, but you need an API key from its owner to call it.

Endpoints

URL	Transport	State	Latency	Checked
https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=catalyst-labs/youtube-transcript-api	streamable-http	needs key	356 ms	13 min ago

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YouTube Transcript API — questions

Answers built from our own checks of this server.

Why is there no tool list for YouTube Transcript API?

The server answered our handshake with an authorization challenge, so it is running — but it will not describe its tools to an anonymous client. To see them you need to connect with your own credentials. We record it as alive, not as broken: 100.0% of checks in the last 24 hours got a reply.

Is YouTube Transcript API working right now?

We send a real MCP handshake every 15 minutes. Over the last 24 hours 91 of 91 checks got a reply (100.0%), average response time 344 ms. The bar chart above shows every period we have measured.

How do I connect YouTube Transcript API?

Copy the ready config from this page. We generate it for Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Cursor and VS Code, each in the form that client actually reads. It is a remote server, so there is nothing to install — the client connects to the address. You will need your own key: it refuses anonymous clients.

Does YouTube Transcript API need an API key?

Yes. Every time we knock, YouTube Transcript API answers with an authorization challenge instead of its tool list — that is how we know it is running and gated rather than broken. Bring your own credentials and it will talk.

How fast is YouTube Transcript API?

It answers our handshake in 344 ms on average, which is faster than 45% of all working MCP servers we measure. The comparison comes from our own checks across the whole registry, every 15 minutes.

Is YouTube Transcript API open source?

We cannot say either way: written in Python and 0 stars on GitHub, but we could not determine the licence, and without one the code is not open source by default.