POST /v1/youtube/videoYouTube Video Scraper API
A single YouTube video by URL or ID: title, description, exact views, likes, duration, publish date, category, keywords and channel.
- Cost
- 1 credit
- Failed requests
- Refunded
- Cache hits
- Free
- Response fields
- 16
- Limits
- Public videos only
What the YouTube Video Scraper API does
The YouTube Video Scraper API returns a single public YouTube video by URL or ID: title, full description, exact view count, like count, duration in seconds, publish date, category, up to 30 keywords (tags), the largest thumbnail, the uploading channel, a playability status and flags for live and family-safe content. Send a watch link, a youtu.be link or the 11-character video ID. Unlike the rounded figures in channel and playlist feeds, views and likes here are exact numbers, which makes it the endpoint for campaign reporting and performance tracking of individual videos. is_live is also true for recordings of finished live streams. There is no Google Cloud project or quota units involved. Each request costs 1 credit, and failed requests are refunded.
What you get
Top-level fields of the response. Every field is typed and documented; nullable fields are null when the platform does not show them.
| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
video_id | string | 11-char video ID |
link | string | Canonical watch URL |
title | string | Video title |
description | string | Full video description |
duration_seconds | integer | null | Duration in seconds |
view_count | integer | null | Exact view count |
like_count | integer | null | Like count from microformat |
published_at | string | null | Publish date from microformat (ISO) |
category | string | null | YouTube category name |
is_live | boolean | Video is/was live-stream content |
is_family_safe | boolean | null | Flagged family safe |
playability | string | null | Playability status, e.g. 'OK', 'LOGIN_REQUIRED' |
keywords | array<string> | Video tags, max 100 |
thumbnail_url | string | null | Largest thumbnail URL |
thumbnails | array<object> (4 fields each) | Every standard thumbnail size on i.ytimg.com, largest first (maxres is missing for some low-resolution uploads) |
channel | object | Uploading channel |
Request example
Send the API key as a Bearer token. The body is a small JSON object.
curl -X POST https://api.scrapeeverything.com/v1/youtube/video \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw"}'| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
url | No | YouTube video URL (a bare ID also works). |
id | No | 11-character video ID. |
video | No | Alias (URL or ID). |
What it costs
Each successful request costs 1 credit. Your first 100 credits are free. With credit packs, 1,000 requests to this endpoint cost:
Builder pack
$1.56
25,000 credits for $39.00
Growth pack
$1.19
100,000 credits for $119.00
Scale pack
$0.90
500,000 credits for $449.00
See pricing for all packs and rate limits.
Use cases
- Report exact views and likes on sponsored and campaign videos.
- Research the tags and categories that videos in a niche use.
- Check whether videos linked in your app are still playable with the playability field.
Limitations: Unofficial API: not affiliated with or endorsed by the platform. Public data only, as a logged-out visitor sees it. Counts can be YouTube's rounded figures; comments are top-level only; transcripts exist only for videos with captions.
- View and like counts are exact.
- is_live is also true for recordings of finished live streams.
Questions
Are view and like counts exact?
Yes. This endpoint returns exact view and like counts, unlike the rounded figures in channel and playlist feeds.
Are the video's tags included?
Yes. keywords returns the video's tags, up to 30.
What does is_live mean?
The video is or was live-stream content. It is also true for recordings of finished live streams.
How much does the YouTube Video Scraper API cost?
1 credit per successful request. Credits are bought in one-time packs and never expire. New accounts get 100 free credits. No payment details needed.
Am I charged for failed requests?
No. If the platform blocks the request, it times out or something fails on our side, the credits are refunded automatically. A definitive answer such as "this account does not exist" is billed because the lookup completed.
Can I re-read a result without paying again?
Yes. Send cache_days (1 to 14) and a repeat request for the same target within that window is served from your cache for free.
More YouTube endpoints
Start with 100 free credits.
Continue with Google, create an API key and send your first request in under a minute.