tubeagentkit/youtube-mcp

A remote MCP server for YouTube: transcripts, video and channel search, channel browsing, in-channel search, and playlist extraction.
API key or OAuth 2.1 sign-in. Free tier, no card required.
Seven tools, one hosted endpoint, no local install, for Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, and 15+ other MCP-compatible clients.
**Quick taste:**
The agent chains search_channel_videos and get_youtube_transcript on its own. No code on your side.
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Why this MCP
| | This MCP | Typical single-purpose YouTube MCP |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting | ✅ Remote (no local install, no build step) | ❌ Local stdio process to manage |
| Tools | ✅ 7 (transcript, search, channel latest/search/videos, playlist, credits) | ❌ Usually 1 (transcript only) |
| YouTube search (video *and* channel) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Full channel upload history, paginated | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| In-channel search | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Auth | ✅ API key **and** OAuth 2.1 (DCR + CIMD) | ❌ Usually neither |
| Agent-friendly errors | ✅ Stable error codes, human-readable messages | ❌ Bare HTTP codes |
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Install as an Agent Plugin
This repo root is also an Agent Plugins 1.0.0 package. It bundles the MCP server with a youtube skill that tells the agent which tool to use when, what each one costs, and how to avoid wasting credits.
In VS Code, run **Chat: Install Plugin From Source** and paste https://github.com/tubeagentkit/youtube-mcp. Other clients that support Agent Plugins can point at this repo or a local clone. For Cursor there is a separate plugin repo.
The package holds no credentials. Check the manifests against the published schemas yourself:
ChatGPT and Codex
The same plugin.json carries the ChatGPT/Codex plugin directory listing under extensions.com.openai (other clients ignore it). scripts/build-openai-zip.sh checks it against OpenAI's field limits and builds the upload ZIP in dist/, with only plugin.json, mcp.json, skills/ and assets/.
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Quick Install
> **Requirements:** a free getyoutubetranscript.com account (sign up — 100 credits, no card) and an API key from your dashboard — **or** just connect via OAuth and skip the key entirely (see Authentication below).
> **Tip:** clients that support MCP OAuth can skip the headers block in the snippets below and sign in through the browser instead.
> **Tip:** to stop repeating "use the transcript tool", add a standing instruction to your client's rules or custom instructions, for example: *"When I share a YouTube link, fetch its transcript with the youtube-transcript MCP before answering."*
Claude Code (CLI)
Claude Desktop / Claude Web (OAuth)
1. Settings → **Connectors** → **Add custom connector**
2. Name: YouTube Transcript · URL: https://getyoutubetranscript.com/api/mcp
3. Click **Add**, then **Connect** and sign in via browser — no API key needed.
Cursor
Settings → Features → MCP → Add New MCP Server — Type: SSE/HTTP, URL: https://getyoutubetranscript.com/api/mcp.
Or edit ~/.cursor/mcp.json:
VS Code
ChatGPT
Enable Developer Mode, then Settings → Connected Apps → Add → URL https://getyoutubetranscript.com/api/mcp. Leave Client ID/Secret blank for Dynamic Client Registration, or use OAuth sign-in directly.
Windsurf
Add to ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json:
Cline
Zed
Roo Code
Amp
Augment Code
Kilo Code
In .kilocode/mcp.json:
JetBrains AI Assistant
Settings → Tools → AI Assistant → MCP:
30-second example
The agent calls get_youtube_transcript and summarizes the result. If you connected via OAuth, there's no key to configure at all — just approve the connection once.
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Run locally (stdio)
Prefer a local process? server/ is an open-source stdio MCP server with the same 7 tools, built on the official MCP TypeScript SDK. It calls the public REST API with your API key.
Then point your client at it, e.g. Claude Desktop / Cursor:
Live integration test (uses only free tools): GYT_API_KEY=sk_live_... npm test --prefix server