Locus product guide · Updated November 11, 2026

YouTube transcript API: official limits and real options

YouTube has no official API that returns the transcript of any video. The YouTube Data API's captions.download method costs 200 quota units and requires permission to edit the video, so it only works on videos you manage. For public videos, developers use the unofficial youtube-transcript-api Python library, which YouTube often blocks on cloud servers, or a paid service such as Supadata (1 credit per transcript, plans from $5 a month billed yearly) or Scrape Creators, which sells prepaid credit packs. Prices checked November 10, 2026.

Does YouTube have an official transcript API?

Only for your own videos. The YouTube Data API has two caption methods. captions.list returns the caption tracks on a video, but not the text, and costs 50 quota units. captions.download returns the text and costs 200 units.

Google states that captions.download requires the user to have permission to edit the video. The call needs OAuth with the youtube.force-ssl or youtubepartner scope. On someone else’s video it returns 403 forbidden.

A new project gets 10,000 quota units a day for most methods. One list call plus one download costs 250 units, so the default quota covers about 40 of your own videos a day.

What are the real options for getting YouTube transcripts?

Every route to a stranger’s transcript goes around the official API. The options differ in who runs the scraper, what it costs, and who deals with blocks. Prices checked November 10, 2026.

What are the real options for getting YouTube transcripts?
Option	Works on	Price	Main catch
YouTube Data API captions	Videos you can edit	Free within 10,000 quota units a day	Owner permission and OAuth required
youtube-transcript-api (Python)	Public videos with captions	Free, MIT license	Uses an undocumented endpoint. YouTube blocks most cloud provider IPs, so production use needs rotating residential proxies.
Supadata	YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and X videos	100 free credits a month. Basic $5 a month billed yearly for 300 credits, Pro $17 for 3,000. 1 credit per transcript.	Monthly credits do not roll over. AI-generated transcripts cost 2 credits per minute.
Scrape Creators	YouTube and other social platforms	100 free credits, then prepaid credit packs that cost less per credit as they get larger	Age-restricted videos return 403. Purchased credits never expire.
Gemini API with a YouTube URL	Public videos only	Preview feature that Google lists at no charge for now	The model writes the text from the video. Free-tier projects are capped at 8 hours of YouTube video a day.

How are YouTube transcripts priced through Locus Pro?

Per call, from one prepaid balance, with no Supadata or Scrape Creators account. Most listings charge a fixed price per transcript, and one sets its price live with a cap. The endpoints below come from the Locus catalog on November 10, 2026.

Every YouTube transcript endpoint in the catalog today is a third-party listing that Locus has not reviewed. Locus cannot promise these sellers stay available. The one reviewed speech option, Deepgram, transcribes an audio file from a public URL, so it needs the audio itself, not a YouTube page link.

How are YouTube transcripts priced through Locus Pro?
Locus endpoint	How it is priced	Status
Glim YouTube transcript	Fixed price per transcript	Third-party listing, not reviewed
Scrape Creators YouTube transcript	Fixed price per transcript	Third-party listing, not reviewed
Fiber AI YouTube transcript	Fixed price per transcript	Third-party listing, not reviewed
StableSocial YouTube transcript	Priced live at call time, with a cap	Unreviewed, send a ceiling
Deepgram transcribe (audio URL)	Per minute of audio	Reviewed vendor

When does a transcript endpoint through Locus Pro fit?

Locus fits a research agent that needs a handful of transcripts next to search, scraping and summaries, with no new account and a price ceiling on each call.

A one-off batch of a few hundred transcripts draws from the same balance as the agent’s other calls.

Once you pull thousands of transcripts a month, Scrape Creators can cost less per transcript with your own Scrape Creators account and API key.

What breaks YouTube transcript extraction?

Most failures come from the video, not the API.

No captions: some videos have neither uploaded nor automatic captions. Supadata can generate a transcript with AI at 2 credits per minute.
Language: Scrape Creators returns a null transcript when the requested language is not available.
Age checks: Scrape Creators returns 403 for age-restricted videos.
IP blocks: youtube-transcript-api warns that YouTube blocks most AWS, Google Cloud and Azure IPs, and can block a home IP that sends too many requests.
Quota: the official API spends 250 units per video, so batch jobs on your own channel need a quota increase.

How do I get transcripts through an agent without writing code?

Connect the agent to Locus Pro, then ask in plain words. Tell it: "Install Locus Pro by following https://paywithlocus.com/SKILL.md". Then ask: "Get the transcript of this YouTube video and summarize the main points."

The agent searches the catalog and reads the endpoint price for free. It then runs the call with a credit ceiling. If the endpoint is off for your workspace, the agent sends an access request first. The Free plan allows up to 5 tool calls a minute.

Which YouTube transcript option should I choose?

Start from whose videos they are and how many you need.

Your own channel: the YouTube Data API. It is free and official.
A script on your laptop for research: youtube-transcript-api, accepting that it can break.
Thousands of public videos a month: a Scrape Creators or Supadata account.
Videos without captions: Supadata AI transcripts, or download the audio you have rights to and send it to a speech-to-text API.
An agent that needs a few transcripts alongside other tools: Locus Pro, with a ceiling on each call.

Frequently asked questions

Can the YouTube Data API download captions from any video?

No. captions.download requires permission to edit the video. On other channels it returns 403. captions.list shows which tracks exist but not their text.

Why does youtube-transcript-api fail on my server?

YouTube blocks most IPs that belong to cloud providers such as AWS, Google Cloud and Azure. The library’s maintainer recommends rotating residential proxies, and warns that the endpoint it uses is undocumented and can change.

What if a video has no captions at all?

A caption scraper returns nothing. Supadata can generate a transcript with AI for 2 credits per minute of video. Gemini can also read a public YouTube URL directly.

How does an agent pay for a transcript through Locus Pro?

Per call, from prepaid credits, with no transcript vendor account. Most listings charge a fixed price per transcript, and each call can carry a credit ceiling.

Implementation references

Use these first-party references for current request contracts and account requirements. Tool availability, prices, and negotiated terms can change.

Sources

Third-party details were checked on November 11, 2026. Vendors change pricing and features often, so confirm on their site before you decide.