Youtube MCP Server

MCP server for retrieving YouTube video transcripts for Claude Code

Local serverstdio

What is the Youtube MCP server?

Most developer tooling work still happens through a UI a human drives. Youtube MCP server moves it into the conversation instead. MCP server for retrieving YouTube video transcripts for Claude Code.

The short version

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that retrieves transcripts from YouTube videos for Claude Code. This server allows you to easily extract video transcripts without manually downloading or copying content, making it perfect for analyzing video content, summarizing talks, or extracting information from educational videos.

  • Get Video Transcripts — Extract full transcripts from any YouTube video with available captions
  • Multiple URL Formats — Support for all common YouTube URL formats (youtube.com, youtu.be, etc.)
  • Timestamp Support — Include or exclude timestamps in transcript output
  • Language Selection — Request transcripts in specific languages when available
  • Error Handling — Graceful handling of videos without transcripts or invalid URLs
  • Efficient Context Usage — Get only the transcript without loading unnecessary video metadata

Getting it running

@fabriqa.ai/youtube-transcript-mcp on npm is all you need. Most clients run it directly, so configuration is a few lines and a restart.

What it needs from you

Configuration is passed through the environment: VIDEO_ID. Treat anything key-shaped as a real credential — scope it to the minimum the server needs, and rotate it if it ever lands in a shared config.

Things to watch

  • It runs with your machine's permissions. That is convenient and also the reason to think about what you point it at before you approve a tool call.
  • Keep per-call confirmation enabled while you learn its behaviour; it is the cheapest safeguard you have.

How it compares

Plenty of developer tooling servers cover similar ground. The differences that matter in practice are scope of access and how much setup stands between you and a working tool call. It is maintained by hancengiz; worth a glance at recent repository activity before you build anything load-bearing on it.

SyncDev reviews every entry in this directory against the project's own documentation before publishing, and revisits them as servers change.

How to install the Youtube MCP server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "youtube-transcript": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "@fabriqa.ai/youtube-transcript-mcp@latest"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Configuration as documented by the project. Restart the client after saving.

Configuration

VariableDescriptionRequired
VIDEO_IDConfiguration value read at startup.Optional

Frequently asked questions

It connects Youtube to MCP-compatible AI assistants such as Claude and Cursor. Instead of copying data back and forth by hand, the assistant works with Youtube directly.