YouTube MCP Tools

Evidence-first YouTube research for modern MCP hosts and VS Code.

The project consolidates the supported YouTube MCP and extension workflows:

• search YouTube and inspect videos, channels, and playlists;

• retrieve, search, and cite caption transcripts;

• find timestamped transcript segments relevant to a research objective;

• analyze video content and create flashcards;

• research a topic into a transparent, curated video collection;

• turn selected, transcript-backed videos into host-grounded or direct-provider collateral;

• render accessible static HTML resource pages.

MCP tools

The server also exposes the youtube_research_to_collateral MCP prompt for hosts that support MCP prompts.

Capability layers

The server has a deliberate API-key boundary:

No API key required — transcript retrieval, transcript search, timestamped segment intelligence, research/collateral prompt construction, resource rendering, and local quota state.

YouTube API key required — YouTube discovery, authoritative video metadata, video analysis, flashcards, and live topic research.

This allows transcript-backed intelligence to work in constrained environments while keeping YouTube Data API operations explicit.

Related MCP server: YouTube MCP Server

Evidence-first collateral

The research workflow does not treat popularity or a hidden score as proof of quality. Each selected video carries explicit evidence for topic relevance, requested coverage, transcript availability, source identity, practical duration, and optional recency. The output includes selections, exclusions, and a verification date.

Collateral supports two intentional modes:

1. Host-managed generation returns a source-constrained prompt for Copilot, Claude, or another MCP host to write original articles, summaries, or study guides.

2. Direct-provider generation calls an explicitly configured provider through a small adapter interface. No provider credential or network integration is embedded in the core.

Both modes require timestamp citations to selected source videos and instruct the writer to paraphrase rather than reproduce transcript language.

Reference integration

defensibleDecisionDashboardBrief defines the first editorial profile: a decision-ready Power BI dashboard guide for The Defensible Decision. It will produce a curated video page and a companion study guide for the book's /resources/ section.

The reader-facing guide is published at Power BI Video Guide: From First Report to Defensible Decision. It pairs selected Power BI tutorials with the book's question-first sequence for building and reviewing a report.

VS Code extension

The maintained Marketplace extension source is in apps/vscode-extension. It retains the published fabioc-aloha.youtube-mcp-tools extension identifier and its existing search, analysis, transcript, flashcard, quota, and Activity Bar workflows. Its bundled MCP executable is built from this canonical server, so extension updates carry the same modern host integration as the npm distribution.

Development

npm ci
npm test

Install in MCP hosts

Local source installation

Build and run the server directly from a local checkout:

npm ci
Copy-Item .env.example .env
# Set YOUTUBE_API_KEY in .env when you need YouTube Data API features.
npm test

npm test builds the MCP executable at dist/mcp-server/index.js. Then add this server entry to an MCP host:

{
  "servers": {
    "youtube": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["C:\\absolute\\path\\to\\youtube-mcp-tools\\dist\\mcp-server\\index.js"]
    }
  }
}

The checkout includes the equivalent workspace configuration in .vscode/mcp.json; open the repository folder in VS Code to use it. Transcript tools work with no configuration. To use search, metadata, analysis, flashcards, or live topic research, add YOUTUBE_API_KEY through your host's secret or environment-variable facility. .env is ignored by Git; never commit a key.

npm package

Use the published youtube-mcp-tools@2.1.0 package without maintaining a checkout:

{
  "type": "stdio",
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "youtube-mcp-tools@2.1.0"]
}

Get a YouTube Data API key

Transcript retrieval and transcript search do not require a Google API key. You need a key for YouTube search, video metadata, analysis, flashcards, and live topic research.

1. In Google Cloud Console, create or select a project.

2. Open APIs & Services → Library, search for YouTube Data API v3, and enable it for that project.

3. Open APIs & Services → Credentials → Create credentials → API key.

4. Restrict the key's API restrictions to YouTube Data API v3. If the server runs from a stable egress address, also use an IP-address application restriction. Do not use a browser-referrer restriction for this local stdio server.

5. Store the key only in your MCP host's secret or environment-variable facility. For local development, copy .env.example to .env; .env is ignored by Git. The server loads it only when YOUTUBE_API_KEY is not already defined in the environment.

Never paste a key into an issue, source file, committed configuration, or a prompt. If a key is exposed, delete or rotate it in Google Cloud Console.

For Claude Code, add the local build with:

claude mcp add youtube --scope project --env YOUTUBE_API_KEY=your_key -- node dist/mcp-server/index.js

The server also exposes the youtube_research_to_collateral MCP prompt for hosts that support prompts.

GitHub Copilot CLI through Alex ACT Plugin Mall

GitHub Copilot CLI users can install the optional Mall plugin:

copilot plugin marketplace add fabioc-aloha/Alex_Skill_Mall
copilot plugin install youtube-research@alex-mall

The plugin declares the same youtube stdio server and uses the exact npm release. This is a Copilot-specific convenience route; Claude, Cursor, VS Code, and other MCP hosts should use the standard installation above.

Marketplace readiness

server.json is the official MCP Registry manifest. The package contains the matching mcpName ownership marker required by the registry.

The manual GitHub Actions workflow at .github/workflows/publish-release.yml publishes a pushed v<version> tag in order: npm package, then MCP Registry manifest. It uses npm trusted publishing and GitHub OIDC for the Registry; no repository secrets are required. Publish the VS Code companion VSIX separately through the Visual Studio Marketplace publisher portal.