Agent skill

YouTube Transcript Fetcher

by ZeroPointRepo in ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

Fetches the transcript of a YouTube video through TranscriptAPI.com so the agent can summarize, quote, translate or fact-check what was said.

MITAuto-check passedKnowledge Management

Install YouTube Transcript Fetcher

skills CLI
$ npx skills add ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills --skill transcript -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills transcript --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/transcript .claude/skills/transcript && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
transcript
GitHub stars
1k
Used in
1 other repo
Token cost
~1.1k tokens
SKILL.md length
239 words
Files
3 (incl. references)
Skills in repo
12
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Fetches the transcript of a YouTube video through TranscriptAPI.com so the agent can summarize, quote, translate or fact-check what was said.

  • Summarizing a YouTube video from a pasted link
  • SKILL.md covers Setup, Required Headers, GET /api/v2/youtube/transcript and Errors, plus 2 more sections
  • Reaches transcriptapi.com and youtube.com; needs TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
  • Pulling exact quotes with timestamps from a video

What it does

Whenever the spoken content of a YouTube video is needed, this skill calls the transcript endpoint at TranscriptAPI.com with a video URL or 11-character ID. Full, short and Shorts links all work. By default it asks for text output with timestamps and video metadata, and the JSON format is available on request. Requests carry a bearer key from the `TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY` variable, with a reference file explaining how to get and store one.

Every request must also send a User-Agent naming the agent, because a bare default is blocked by Cloudflare with a 403. The skill lists the error codes and what to do: 401 means a bad key, 402 means no credits, 404 usually means captions are off, 408 gets one retry after two seconds and 429 means wait and retry. It only reads transcripts and does not handle uploads or account management.

When your agent uses it

  • Summarizing a YouTube video from a pasted link
  • Pulling exact quotes with timestamps from a video
  • Translating or fact-checking claims made in a video
  • Using a video as the source for research or study notes

Example prompts

  • “Summarize this talk and give me the key quotes with timestamps: https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ”
  • “Get the transcript of that YouTube video and translate the first section into Spanish.”
  • “Fact-check the claims in this video using its transcript.”

Requirements

  • A TranscriptAPI key stored in TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
  • Internet access to transcriptapi.com
  • Compatibility (from SKILL.md): Requires internet access to reach transcriptapi.com. No additional runtimes or dependencies needed.

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 4f7994b. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md (its code samples are json and http).

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    Hosts in commands or code, which the agent is likely to contact:

    • transcriptapi.com
    • youtube.com
    • i.ytimg.com

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names these keys or tokens, usually read from environment variables:

    • TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

  • Compatibility

    Requires internet access to reach transcriptapi.com. No additional runtimes or dependencies needed.

    From compatibility in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

Context cost

YouTube Transcript Fetcher loads about 1.1k tokens when it runs, and up to ~3.1k if it reads all its reference files. Until then it costs about 83 tokens; SKILL.md has 239 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~83
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.1k
With references · SKILL.md plus every file in references/, read only if the agent opens them
~3.1k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills at commit 4f7994b, republished under its MIT licence (© ZeroPointRepo). 239 words, ~1,137 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/transcript/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 2 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.
name
transcript
description
Use when the spoken content of a YouTube video is needed — even if not explicitly requested: pasted video links or IDs, requests to summarize, quote, transcribe, translate, fact-check, or extract anything from a video. Also use for research or learning when a video is the source. Not for uploads or account management.
compatibility
Requires internet access to reach transcriptapi.com. No additional runtimes or dependencies needed.
version
1.5.1
user-invocable
true

Transcript

Fetch video transcripts via TranscriptAPI.com.

Setup

If $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY is not set, read references/auth-setup.md and follow the instructions there to get and store the key.

Required Headers

Every request needs two headers:

  • Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
  • User-Agent: your agent's name and version if known (e.g. HermesAgent/0.11.0, ClaudeCode/1.0). Version is optional — agent name alone is fine. Do not omit this header or send a bare default — Cloudflare will return a 403 (error code 1010) and block the request.

GET /api/v2/youtube/transcript

http
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/transcript?video_url=VIDEO_URL&format=text&include_timestamp=true&send_metadata=true
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
ParamRequiredDefaultValues
video_urlyes—YouTube URL or 11-char video ID
formatnojsonjson, text
include_timestampnotruetrue, false
send_metadatanofalsetrue, false

Accepts: full URLs (youtube.com/watch?v=ID), short URLs (youtu.be/ID), shorts (youtube.com/shorts/ID), or bare video IDs.

Default: Always use format=text&include_timestamp=true&send_metadata=true unless user specifies otherwise.

Response (format=json):

json
{
  "video_id": "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
  "language": "en",
  "transcript": [
    { "text": "We're no strangers to love", "start": 18.0, "duration": 3.5 },
    { "text": "You know the rules and so do I", "start": 21.5, "duration": 2.8 }
  ],
  "metadata": {
    "title": "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up",
    "author_name": "Rick Astley",
    "author_url": "https://www.youtube.com/@RickAstley",
    "thumbnail_url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/maxresdefault.jpg"
  }
}

Response (format=text):

json
{
  "video_id": "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
  "language": "en",
  "transcript": "[00:00:18] We're no strangers to love\n[00:00:21] You know the rules...",
  "metadata": {...}
}

Errors

CodeMeaningAction
401Bad API keyCheck key or re-setup
402No creditsTop up at transcriptapi.com/billing
403/1010Cloudflare blockAdd or fix User-Agent header
404No transcriptVideo may not have captions enabled
408TimeoutRetry once after 2s
429Rate limitedWait and retry

Tips

  • For long videos, summarize key points first, offer full transcript on request.
  • Use format=json when you need precise timestamps for quoting specific moments.
  • Use include_timestamp=false for clean text suitable for translation or analysis.
  • 1 credit per successful request. Errors don't cost credits.
  • Free tier: 100 credits, 300 req/min.

Copy-paste examples

Every request in this file as a ready-to-run one-liner: references/curl-examples.md

© ZeroPointRepo, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

SKILL.md and 2 other files (references) in skills/transcript of ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills.

  • SKILL.md
  • references/auth-setup.md
  • references/curl-examples.md

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 4f7994b

Used in 1 other repository

We found 2 copies of this SKILL.md (exact, near-identical or edited) in other folders, from 1 other GitHub owner. This page covers the copy in ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills, which our catalogue first saw on October 7, 2026.

Compare with similar skills

YouTube Transcript Fetcher next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

YouTube Transcript Fetcher compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
YouTube Transcript Fetcher this skillZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills1k1 repos~1.1kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Youtube Transcriptbadlogic/pi-skills2.6k1 repos~179Automated safety check: PassMIT
Video Lenskar2phi/video-lens112—~8.2kAutomated safety check: NotesMIT
Youtube Transcript Extractor API Skillbrowser-act/skills6.1k1 repos~1.2kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
YouTube Transcript ReformatterPrismer-AI/PrismerCloud1.6k2 repos~905Automated safety check: PassMIT
Multi-Source to NotebookLM Processorjoeseesun/qiaomu-anything-to-notebooklm6.2k—~3.6kAutomated safety check: PassMIT

Similar skills

  • Youtube Transcript

    badlogic/pi-skills

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    2.6k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~179 tokens
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  • Video Lens

    kar2phi/video-lens

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  • YouTube Transcript Reformatter

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    1.6k GitHub starsUsed in 2 repos~905 tokens
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  • Youtube Fetcher

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More from ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

All 12 skills in this repo
  • YouTube Captions Fetcher

    ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

    Fetches timestamped captions or plain-text transcripts for any YouTube video through the TranscriptAPI service, for reading, quoting, translating or accessibility.

    1k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~1.1k tokens
    Auto-check passed
  • YouTube Subtitle Fetcher

    ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

    Fetches timestamped subtitles for any YouTube video through TranscriptAPI, as clean text for reading and translation or timed JSON.

    1k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~1.1k tokens
    Auto-check passed
  • YouTube TranscriptAPI

    ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

    Pulls YouTube transcripts, searches videos and channels and browses playlists through the TranscriptAPI service with a single API key.

    1k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~3k tokens
    Auto-check passed
  • YouTube Video Transcript

    ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

    Fetches YouTube transcripts through TranscriptAPI.com so an agent can summarize, quote or translate a video from a link or ID.

    1k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~1.1k tokens
    Auto-check passed
  • YouTube Data via TranscriptAPI

    ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

    Fetches YouTube transcripts, video metadata, channel info, search results and playlists through the TranscriptAPI.com service, with no Google API quota or OAuth setup.

    1k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~2.3k tokens
    Auto-check passed
  • YouTube Channel Tools

    ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills

    Browses YouTube channels through TranscriptAPI: resolves handles to channel IDs, lists recent uploads and pages through a channel's videos.

    1k GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~3.3k tokens
    Auto-check passed

Works with

Questions about YouTube Transcript Fetcher

What does YouTube Transcript Fetcher do?

Fetches the transcript of a YouTube video through TranscriptAPI.com so the agent can summarize, quote, translate or fact-check what was said. com with a video URL or 11-character ID. Full, short and Shorts links all work.

When should I use YouTube Transcript Fetcher?

YouTube Transcript Fetcher fits situations like: summarizing a YouTube video from a pasted link; pulling exact quotes with timestamps from a video; translating or fact-checking claims made in a video; using a video as the source for research or study notes.

How do I install YouTube Transcript Fetcher in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills --skill transcript -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/transcript in ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills) into .claude/skills/transcript in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install YouTube Transcript Fetcher in Codex?

Run `npx skills add ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills --skill transcript -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/transcript in ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills) into .agents/skills/transcript in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use YouTube Transcript Fetcher in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills --skill transcript -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/transcript, .gemini/skills/transcript, .github/skills/transcript and .opencode/skills/transcript in your project.

What does YouTube Transcript Fetcher need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, YouTube Transcript Fetcher needs credentials named TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY. Our summary lists: A TranscriptAPI key stored in TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY; Internet access to transcriptapi.com. Compatibility (from SKILL.md): Requires internet access to reach transcriptapi.com. No additional runtimes or dependencies needed..

Does YouTube Transcript Fetcher access the network?

SKILL.md names 3 domains. In commands or code: transcriptapi.com, youtube.com and i.ytimg.com; the agent is likely to contact these when it follows the instructions. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is YouTube Transcript Fetcher safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does YouTube Transcript Fetcher use?

YouTube Transcript Fetcher is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does YouTube Transcript Fetcher use?

About 1.1k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 4.5k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full. Its references folder adds about 1.9k tokens, read only when the agent opens those files.

What are the alternatives to YouTube Transcript Fetcher?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with YouTube Transcript Fetcher: Youtube Transcript (badlogic/pi-skills, 2.6k stars), Video Lens (kar2phi/video-lens, 112 stars), Youtube Transcript Extractor API Skill (browser-act/skills, 6.1k stars) and YouTube Transcript Reformatter (Prismer-AI/PrismerCloud, 1.6k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains YouTube Transcript Fetcher?

ZeroPointRepo (a GitHub organization) maintains it in ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills, which has 1,025 GitHub stars. The repository holds 12 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 6, 2026.

Source: ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.