# YouTube MCP Server
A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables Claude Desktop (and other applications) to interact with YouTube, providing search and transcript functionality.
## Features
- **Search YouTube Videos**: Search for videos with customizable result counts
- **Get Video Transcripts**: Extract transcripts from YouTube videos using URLs or video IDs
- **AI-Ready Integration**: Seamlessly integrates with Claude Desktop for YouTube content analysis
## Tools Available
### 1. `search_youtube_videos`
- **Purpose**: Search YouTube for videos based on a query
- **Parameters**:
- `search_term` (string): The search query
- `num_videos` (int): Number of videos to return (default: 5, max: 50)
- **Returns**: List of video information including titles, channels, descriptions, URLs, and metadata
### 2. `get_youtube_transcript`
- **Purpose**: Extract transcript from a YouTube video
- **Parameters**:
- `video_url_or_title` (string): YouTube video URL or video ID
- **Returns**: Full transcript with timestamps and metadata
### 3. `analyze_youtube_content_prompt`
- **Purpose**: AI prompt template for comprehensive YouTube content analysis
- **Parameters**:
- `search_term` (string): Topic to analyze
- `num_videos` (int): Number of videos to analyze
## Setup
### 1. Install Dependencies
```bash
# Create virtual environment
python3 -m venv .venv
# Activate virtual environment
source .venv/bin/activate
# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt
```
### 2. Get YouTube API Key
1. Go to [Google Cloud Console](https://console.developers.google.com/)
2. Create a new project or select existing one
3. Enable YouTube Data API v3
4. Create credentials (API Key)
5. Copy the API key
### 3. Configure Environment
```bash
# Copy example environment file
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env and add your YouTube API key
YOUTUBE_API_KEY=your_actual_api_key_here
```
### 4. Test the Server
```bash
# Activate virtual environment
source .venv/bin/activate
# Run the server
python youtube_server.py
```
## Integration with Claude Desktop
Add this configuration to your Claude Desktop MCP settings:
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"youtube": {
"command": "local/path/to/uv",
"args": [
"run",
"--directory",
"/Path/to/your/project",
"youtube_server.py"
],
"env": {
"YOUTUBE_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
}
}
}
```
## Usage Examples
Once integrated with Claude Desktop, you can:
- "Search for videos about machine learning and get transcripts"
- "Find the latest videos on climate change and analyze their content"
- "Get the transcript of this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=..."
- "Compare different perspectives on AI ethics from YouTube videos"
## Error Handling
- **Missing API Key**: Server will warn and search functionality will be limited
- **Invalid Video IDs**: Clear error messages for transcript requests
- **API Limits**: Respects YouTube API quotas and rate limits
- **Missing Transcripts**: Handles videos without available captions
## Dependencies
- `fastmcp`: MCP server framework
- `google-api-python-client`: YouTube Data API access
- `youtube-transcript-api`: Transcript extraction
## License
This project is open source and available under standard licensing terms.
