---
name: YouTube Channels
slug: youtube-channels-2
category: Automation
description: YouTube Channels helps an agent resolve @handles or channel URLs, browse uploads, search within a channel, and check recent posts. Use it when a YouTube creator or channel is the focus, not for account management.
github: "https://github.com/ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills/tree/main/skills/youtube-channels"
stars: 560
forks: 56
install: "npx degit https://github.com/ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills/tree/main/skills/youtube-channels ~/.claude/skills/youtube-channels"
installs_to: ~/.claude/skills/youtube-channels
source_path: skills/youtube-channels/SKILL.md
collection_size: 24
category_size: 1523
collection_url: "https://dirskills.com/collections/ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills"
added: 2026-08-25T05:14:46.297Z
last_synced: 2026-08-25T05:14:46.297Z
canonical_url: "https://dirskills.com/skills/youtube-channels-2"
---

# YouTube Channels

YouTube Channels helps an agent resolve @handles or channel URLs, browse uploads, search within a channel, and check recent posts. Use it when a YouTube creator or channel is the focus, not for account management.

**Install:**

```bash
npx degit https://github.com/ZeroPointRepo/youtube-skills/tree/main/skills/youtube-channels ~/.claude/skills/youtube-channels
```

## README

# YouTube Channels

YouTube channel tools via [TranscriptAPI.com](https://transcriptapi.com).

## Setup

If `$TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY` is not set, read [references/auth-setup.md](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.

## API Reference

Full OpenAPI spec: [transcriptapi.com/openapi.json](https://transcriptapi.com/openapi.json) — consult this for the latest parameters and schemas.

All channel endpoints accept flexible input — `@handle`, channel URL, or `UC...` channel ID. No need to resolve first.

## GET /api/v2/youtube/channel/resolve — FREE

Convert @handle, URL, or UC... ID to canonical channel ID.

```http
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/resolve?input=@TED
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
```

| Param   | Required | Validation                              |
| ------- | -------- | --------------------------------------- |
| `input` | yes      | 1-200 chars — @handle, URL, or UC... ID |

**Response:**

```json
{ "channel_id": "UCsT0YIqwnpJCM-mx7-gSA4Q", "resolved_from": "@TED" }
```

If input is already `UC[a-zA-Z0-9_-]{22}`, returns immediately.

## GET /api/v2/youtube/channel/latest — FREE

Latest 15 videos via RSS with exact stats.

```http
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/latest?channel=@TED
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
```

| Param     | Required | Validation                                |
| --------- | -------- | ----------------------------------------- |
| `channel` | yes      | `@handle`, channel URL, or `UC...` ID     |

**Response:**

```json
{
  "channel": {
    "channelId": "UCsT0YIqwnpJCM-mx7-gSA4Q",
    "title": "TED",
    "author": "TED",
    "url": "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsT0YIqwnpJCM-mx7-gSA4Q",
    "published": "2006-04-17T00:00:00Z"
  },
  "results": [
    {
      "videoId": "abc123xyz00",
      "title": "Latest Video Title",
      "channelId": "UCsT0YIqwnpJCM-mx7-gSA4Q",
      "author": "TED",
      "published": "2026-01-30T16:00:00Z",
      "updated": "2026-01-31T02:00:00Z",
      "link": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abc123xyz00",
      "description": "Full video description...",
      "thumbnail": { "url": "https://i1.ytimg.com/vi/.../hqdefault.jpg" },
      "viewCount": "2287630",
      "starRating": {
        "average": "4.92",
        "count": "15000",
        "min": "1",
        "max": "5"
      }
    }
  ],
  "result_count": 15
}
```

Great for monitoring channels — free and gives exact view counts + ISO timestamps.

## GET /api/v2/youtube/channel/videos — 1 credit/page

Paginated list of ALL channel uploads (100 per page).

```http
# First page
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/videos?channel=@NASA
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

# Next pages
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/videos?continuation=TOKEN
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
```

| Param          | Required    | Validation                                    |
| -------------- | ----------- | --------------------------------------------- |
| `channel`      | conditional | `@handle`, channel URL, or `UC...` ID         |
| `continuation` | conditional | non-empty (next pages)                        |

Provide exactly one of `channel` or `continuation`, not both.

**Response:**

```json
{
  "results": [{
    "videoId": "abc123xyz00",
    "title": "Video Title",
    "channelId": "UCsT0YIqwnpJCM-mx7-gSA4Q",
    "channelTitle": "TED",
    "channelHandle": "@TED",
    "lengthText": "15:22",
    "viewCountText": "3.2M views",
    "thumbnails": [...],
    "index": "0"
  }],
  "playlist_info": {"title": "Uploads from TED", "numVideos": "5000", "ownerName": "TED"},
  "continuation_token": "4qmFsgKlARIYVVV1...",
  "has_more": true
}
```

Keep calling with `continuation` until `has_more: false`.

## GET /api/v2/youtube/channel/search — 1 credit

Search within a specific channel.

```http
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/search?channel=@TED&q=climate+change&limit=30
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
```

| Param     | Required | Validation                                |
| --------- | -------- | ----------------------------------------- |
| `channel` | yes      | `@handle`, channel URL, or `UC...` ID     |
| `q`       | yes      | 1-200 chars                               |
| `limit`   | no       | 1-50 (default 30)                         |

## Typical workflow

```http
# 1. Check latest uploads (free — pass @handle directly)
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/channel/latest?channel=@TED
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0

# 2. Get transcript of recent video
GET https://transcriptapi.com/api/v2/youtube/transcript?video_url=VIDEO_ID&format=text&include_timestamp=true&send_metadata=true
Authorization: Bearer $TRANSCRIPT_API_KEY
User-Agent: YourAgent/1.0
```

## Errors

| Code     | Meaning                                                | Action                               |
| -------- | ------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------ |
| 400      | Invalid param combination                              | Both or neither channel/continuation |
| 402      | No credits                                             | transcriptapi.com/billing            |
| 403/1010 | Cloudflare block                                       | Add or fix User-Agent header         |
| 404      | Channel not found                                      | Check handle or URL                  |
| 408      | Timeout                                                | Retry once                           |
| 422      | Invalid channel identifier                             | Check param format                   |

Free tier: 100 credits, 300 req/min. Free endpoints (resolve, latest) require auth but don't consume credits.

## Copy-paste examples

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