# YouTube transcript: run it free, or from your agent

Timestamped text for any public YouTube video, one call per link.

## Prompt

Use looot to get the transcript of this YouTube video: [paste the link]. 1. Set up https://looot.ai/skill.md. 2. Search the catalog for a YouTube transcript endpoint and check its price before you call. 3. Run the cheapest one that fits. 4. Return the timestamped text, a three line summary and the total cost.

## What it needs

A YouTube video link

## What comes back

- start time
- text of each caption line
- video id
- language when the provider returns it

## Endpoints and providers

- scrapecreators: scrapecreators-youtube-video-transcript
- dataforseo: dataforseo-youtube-video-subtitles-advanced
- anysite: anysite-api-youtube-video-subtitles
- searchapi-io: searchapi-io-youtube-transcripts

## What it costs

The tool on the web page runs live at no cost to you and is limited per hour. The results come from public data through looot. For heavier or repeated use, run the same job from your own looot account: looot bills per call and charges nothing while your agent is idle. The live price comes from the catalog and shows on the web page.

## Research

Search a stack of talks for one phrase instead of watching them.

## Repurpose

Turn one video into posts, a newsletter or a thread.

## Subtitles

Start from a timed text file, then review it before you publish.

## Summaries

Have your agent boil a long video down to the three points that matter.

## How do I get a YouTube transcript?

Copy the prompt above, paste it into your agent and add the video link. The agent calls a transcript endpoint and returns the timestamped text.

## Is there a free YouTube transcript generator here?

Yes. Paste a video link in the box at the top of this page and it returns the timestamped text. Each run costs you nothing and is limited per hour. The data is public and comes through looot. For lists or repeated use, your agent runs the same job on your own looot account at the per-call price shown above.

## How do I download a YouTube transcript as a .txt file?

Ask your agent to save the result. A line such as save the transcript to transcript.txt, one timestamp and one line per row, is enough.

## Can I get transcripts for a whole YouTube channel?

Yes, in two steps. The agent lists the channel's videos with a channel endpoint from the catalog, then makes one transcript call per link. Each call is billed on its own.

## What languages does the YouTube transcript tool support?

It returns the caption tracks a video has. Whether you can pick a language depends on the endpoint, so your agent reads the endpoint's parameters in the catalog before it calls.

## Do auto-generated captions work?

When the video has them, yes. Auto-generated text can get names and jargon wrong, so check anything you quote.

## What if the video has no captions?

Then there is no text to return. Ask your agent to check the result and tell you which links came back empty before you count the cost.

## Is there a YouTube video summarizer?

Your agent summarizes the transcript with its own model. The prompt above already asks for a three line summary.

## Can I scrape YouTube comments?

The catalog lists comment endpoints for YouTube from several providers. Ask your agent to search the catalog for them and show the price first.

## How many transcripts can my agent pull at once?

One call covers one link, and the agent can loop over a list. The limit you will notice first is your balance. The agent shows the total cost before it runs a big list.

## Do I need a YouTube API key?

No. One looot connection covers every provider in the catalog, so there is no Google console to set up.

## Can I use a transcript to make subtitles?

The timestamps give you the timing to start from. Review the text and fix the timing before you publish, since auto-generated captions are not always accurate.

## Related tools

- /free-tools/tiktok-profile-viewer
- /free-tools/google-maps-scraper
- /free-tools/facebook-ad-library-search

## Last reviewed

2026-10-03. The price per call is read live from the catalog on the web page.