Discover
Research questions and formats that attract an audience.
Scrape YouTube video data and transcripts without its API
Search videos by topic, export metrics and, when available, turn subtitles into text for content research, competitive analysis and AI workflows.
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Direct answer
How do you download YouTube video data and transcripts?
Use YouTube Scraper with a query or URL, cap the first batch and enable subtitles. The Dataset can combine title, channel, views, date, duration, URL and available transcript text without setting up a YouTube Data API key.
Start with 50 videos and keep AI summaries and descriptions off until subtitle coverage and language are verified.
- Actor
streamers/youtube-scraper- Input
- URL, query and scope limits
- Output
- Video, channel, metrics, date and subtitles
- Best for
- Video research and transcripts
- Checked
- July 24, 2026
Actor used
YouTube Scraper
Built by Streamers. Video research and transcripts.
Check the official listing4.86 / 5188 reviews
97.9Ktotal users
9.1Kmonthly users
2,057bookmarks
Public listing signals observed July 24, 2026; they can change.
Copy-ready setup
Small input for validation
{
"searchQueries": ["best CRM software"],
"maxResults": 50,
"downloadSubtitles": true,
"subtitlesLanguage": "en",
"subtitlesFormat": "plaintext",
"sortingOrder": "date",
"aiVideoSummary": false
}- 01
Define a focused query
Use the same wording your audience would type into YouTube.
- 02
Cap the first batch
Fifty videos are enough to measure relevance, cost and missing fields.
- 03
Check subtitle coverage
Not every video provides subtitles or the requested language.
- 04
Scale by channel or topic
Schedule equivalent searches only after validating the sample.
Fields to review
What to check before using the Dataset
| Field | Use and check |
|---|---|
title | classify the video topic |
viewCount | compare reach over the same time window |
date | separate recent and historical videos |
subtitles | search claims, mentions or quotes |
Cost
Estimate the main Free event
Channel date filters and AI features add billable events.
Free estimate$0.40
Main event before add-ons and plan credits.
| Public rates by tier | USD |
|---|---|
| Free | $4.00 per 1,000 videos |
| Bronze | $3.00 per 1,000 |
| Gold | $2.40 per 1,000 |
Channel date filters and AI features add billable events.
Added value
Why this Actor can justify trying Apify
Compare
Turn subtitles into a searchable RAG knowledge base.
Automate
Compare channels without confusing lifetime views with recent performance.
FAQ
Before you scale
Does it need a YouTube API key?
No. The Actor works from public pages, although availability and fields can change.
Does every video return a transcript?
No. The video must have subtitles available in a supported language.
How much do AI add-ons cost?
On Free, each AI summary or description currently costs $0.015 per video in addition to the base result.
First run
Validate a small sample before automating
Confirm relevance, fields and cost with the input above.