$ GET /v1/youtube/video

YouTube Video APIFull metadata in one call.

Name: YouTube Transcript API & Video Data Extraction
Author: VCyon

Extract comprehensive video metadata from YouTube including titles, descriptions, thumbnails, view counts, channel information, and engagement metrics. Perfect for content management, analytics, and video discovery applications.

complete metadatareal-time data

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request

curl 'https://api.vcyon.com/v1/youtube/video?videoId=dQw4w9WgXcQ' \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY'

response

{
  "title": "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up",
  "viewCount": 1445963252,
  "channel": { "name": "Rick Astley" }
}

01 / overview

Overview

VCyon’s YouTube Video API provides structured, real-time access to YouTube video and channel metadata via a simple REST endpoint. Retrieve titles, descriptions, thumbnails in multiple sizes, engagement metrics, channel info, categories, tags, and more, all returned in predictable JSON.

The API is optimized for production applications like content management, analytics, SEO, and discovery tools. Use a Bearer token with each request. Responses use standard HTTP status codes so you can implement robust error handling and retries where appropriate.

02 / features

Comprehensive YouTube video data extraction

Our YouTube Video API provides complete access to video metadata, engagement metrics, and channel information for building powerful applications.

Complete Video Metadata

Extract comprehensive video information including title, description, duration, view count, like count, and publication date.

Full metadata extraction
Real-time data
Structured JSON format

High-Quality Thumbnails

Access multiple thumbnail sizes and resolutions for optimal display across different devices and platforms.

Multiple resolutions
Various aspect ratios
Direct image URLs

Channel Information

Get detailed channel data including channel name, ID, subscriber count, and channel URL for comprehensive analysis.

Channel metadata
Subscriber counts
Channel verification status

Engagement Metrics

Access view counts, like counts, comment counts, and other engagement metrics for content analysis and insights.

View statistics
Engagement data
Performance metrics

Content Classification

Extract video categories, tags, and content classification data for better content organization and discovery.

Category information
Tag extraction
Content classification

Global Accessibility

Access video data from any region with support for different languages and localized content information.

Multi-region support
Language detection
Localized metadata

03 / data fields

YouTube Video API data fields

Complete reference of all data fields available through our YouTube Video API endpoint.

field	type	description
id	string	Unique YouTube video identifier
title	string	Video title
description	string	Video description text
thumbnails	array	Array of thumbnail objects with URLs and dimensions
category	string	Video category (Music, Education, etc.)
tags	array	Array of video tags/keywords
duration	number	Video duration in seconds
channel	object	Channel information including name, ID, and URL
viewCount	number	Total view count
likeCount	number	Total like count
publishedAt	string	Publication date in ISO 8601 format
transcriptLanguages	array	Available transcript languages

04 / examples

YouTube Video API code examples

Get started quickly with our comprehensive code examples in multiple programming languages.

code

// Extract YouTube video information with JavaScript
const response = await fetch('https://api.vcyon.com/v1/youtube/video?videoId=dQw4w9WgXcQ', {
  headers: {
    'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_API_KEY',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  }
});

const videoData = await response.json();

// Access video information
console.log('Title:', videoData.title);
console.log('Channel:', videoData.channel.name);
console.log('Views:', videoData.viewCount.toLocaleString());
console.log('Duration:', videoData.duration, 'seconds');
console.log('Published:', new Date(videoData.publishedAt));

// Access thumbnails
videoData.thumbnails.forEach(thumbnail => {
  console.log(`Thumbnail: ${thumbnail.width}x${thumbnail.height} - ${thumbnail.url}`);
});

// Check available transcript languages
if (videoData.transcriptLanguages.length > 0) {
  console.log('Available transcripts:', videoData.transcriptLanguages);
}

05 / use cases

YouTube Video API use cases

Discover how businesses and developers are using our YouTube Video API to build innovative applications and solve real-world problems.

Content Management Systems

Build video libraries, content catalogs, and media management platforms with comprehensive video metadata.

common applications

Video libraries
Content catalogs
Media databases
Asset management

Analytics & Insights

Analyze video performance, track trends, and generate insights for content strategy and marketing decisions.

common applications

Performance tracking
Trend analysis
Competitive research
Content strategy

Social Media Tools

Create social media management tools, content schedulers, and engagement tracking applications.

common applications

Social schedulers
Engagement tracking
Content curation
Viral analysis

Educational Platforms

Build learning management systems, course catalogs, and educational content discovery platforms.

common applications

Course catalogs
Learning platforms
Educational search
Content discovery

Marketing & SEO

Optimize video content for search engines, track competitor content, and improve video marketing strategies.

common applications

SEO optimization
Competitor analysis
Content marketing
Video SEO

Research & Development

Conduct academic research, market analysis, and data science projects using comprehensive video datasets.

common applications

Academic research
Market studies
Data science
Trend research

06 / reference

YouTube Video API documentation

Complete API reference, parameters, response formats, and integration guides for the YouTube Video API.

full documentation

api endpoint

GET/v1/youtube/video

Extract comprehensive video metadata and information

parameters

videoIdrequired

YouTube video ID (11 characters)

response format

{
  "id": "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
  "title": "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up",
  "description": "The official video...",
  "thumbnails": [
    {
      "url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/.../maxres.jpg",
      "width": 1280,
      "height": 720
    }
  ],
  "category": "Music",
  "tags": ["Rick Astley", "80s"],
  "duration": 212,
  "channel": {
    "id": "UCuAXFkgsw1L7xaCfnd5JJOw",
    "name": "Rick Astley",
    "url": "https://www.youtube.com/@RickAstley"
  },
  "viewCount": 1445963252,
  "likeCount": 15234567,
  "publishedAt": "2009-10-25T06:57:33Z",
  "transcriptLanguages": ["English", "Spanish"]
}

07 / faq

YouTube Video API FAQ

Common questions about our YouTube Video API service

What is the YouTube Video API?

The YouTube Video API is a professional service that extracts comprehensive metadata from YouTube videos including titles, descriptions, thumbnails, view counts, channel information, and engagement metrics. It provides developers with structured access to video data for building applications.

What video information can I extract with the YouTube Video API?

You can extract complete video metadata including title, description, thumbnails (multiple sizes), duration, view count, like count, channel information, publication date, category, tags, and available transcript languages. All data is returned in structured JSON format.

How current is the video data from the YouTube Video API?

Our YouTube Video API provides real-time data that is updated regularly. View counts, like counts, and other engagement metrics reflect the most current information available from YouTube's platform.

Can I get thumbnail images in different sizes?

Yes, our YouTube Video API returns multiple thumbnail sizes including default (120x90), medium (320x180), high (480x360), standard (640x480), and maxres (1280x720) when available. Each thumbnail includes the direct URL, width, and height.

Does the YouTube Video API work with private or unlisted videos?

Our YouTube Video API can only extract data from publicly available videos. Private, unlisted, or restricted videos cannot be accessed through our service as they require special permissions or authentication.

What are the rate limits for the YouTube Video API?

Rate limits depend on your subscription plan: Free tier allows 60 requests/minute, Professional plan allows 300 requests/minute, and Enterprise plans offer custom rate limits. All plans include generous monthly credit allowances.

Can I use the YouTube Video API for commercial applications?

Yes, our YouTube Video API is designed for commercial use. We offer different pricing tiers to accommodate various business needs, from startups to enterprise applications. All plans include commercial usage rights.

How do I handle videos that have been deleted or made private?

If a video has been deleted, made private, or is otherwise unavailable, our YouTube Video API will return an appropriate error response with details about why the video cannot be accessed. You should implement error handling in your application to manage these cases gracefully.

08 / start

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