Name: YouTube Data MCP
Author: kirbah

LABSCO SUMMARY

The same YouTube answers at a fraction of the context and the quota.

Two costs get in the way of using the YouTube API from an agent, and both are dealt with here. The raw payload is largely eTags, thumbnail sets and localisation the model will never read — channel statistics come back at 86 tokens here against 673 raw — and the daily 10,000-unit quota vanishes quickly when an agent repeats itself, which the optional MongoDB cache prevents by serving repeats for nothing. Transcripts cost no quota at all, which is why the server is worth running before you have decided whether to get a key.

What it is

A YouTube Data API v3 client that trims the response before it reaches the model. Video details, search, channel statistics, top videos, trending, categories, comments and transcripts, each reshaped down to the fields something has to reason over.

What you get

Video details for several videos at once — metadata, statistics, engagement ratios, content details — with the API's nested eTags, thumbnail sets and localisation blocks stripped out
Video and channel search with filters on order, type and channel
Transcripts for several videos at once: the full text, or just the key segments — the intro hook and the closing call to action
Channel statistics: subscriber count, view count, video count, creation date
A channel's top-performing videos with engagement ratios, and trending videos by region and category
The video categories available for a region
Comments with sorting, a result limit, and a few replies per comment
Channels that consistently outperform within a niche, which needs the MongoDB connection configured
A cache layer that serves a repeated request for 0 quota units instead of spending them twice

Requirements

Node.js 20.0.0 or newer, run with npx -y @kirbah/mcp-youtube over stdio. It starts with no configuration at all, and in that state transcripts work — everything else needs a YouTube Data API v3 key in YOUTUBE_API_KEY. Quota is the real constraint: the daily allowance is 10,000 units, getVideoDetails, getChannelStatistics and getTrendingVideos cost 1 unit a call, getTranscripts costs 0, searchVideos costs 100 and getChannelTopVideos 101. That is why a MongoDB connection string in MDB_MCP_CONNECTION_STRING is worth adding — a cached repeat costs nothing — and it is also what the outlier-channel tool needs to run at all.

Setup effort

One command — npx -y @kirbah/mcp-youtube

See installation options

USE CASES

01

Reading what a video actually says

Pull the transcript for one or several videos — key segments, or the full text when you need it — with no key and no quota spent.

getTranscripts

02

Sizing up a channel

Read its statistics, then its top-performing videos with their engagement ratios.

getChannelStatisticsgetChannelTopVideos

03

Finding videos on a topic without burning the quota

Search with filters — the most expensive call here — then take lean details for the results that matter.

searchVideosgetVideoDetails

04

Seeing what is landing right now

Pull trending videos for the region and category, using the category list to get the id first.

getTrendingVideosgetVideoCategories

05

Reading the room under a video

Fetch comments sorted and limited, with a few replies on each.

getVideoComments

06

Finding who consistently outperforms in a niche

Run the outlier-channel search, which needs the MongoDB connection in place.

findConsistentOutlierChannels

1 tool

Counted once with only startup setup. Other versions, modes or optional credentials may expose a different list.

`getTranscripts`

Retrieves specific, meaningful segments of a video's transcript. By default, it returns the intro 'hook' and the final 'outro' or call to action. It can also return the full transcript text. Use this to efficiently analyze a video's key messaging.

BEFORE YOU INSTALL

What to know first

Tools you get

1 tool when we connected; the project documents 9. Without a YouTube API key only getTranscripts is available; adding a key unlocks the rest. findConsistentOutlierChannels also requires MDB_MCP_CONNECTION_STRING.

Requires

npx on PATH
Node.js >=20.0.0

Optional

YOUTUBE_API_KEY in your environment
MDB_MCP_CONNECTION_STRING in your environment

INSTALLATION

Connect your client

Server setup

TERMINAL

npx -y @kirbah/mcp-youtube

MCP Clients

Claude Desktop

CLAUDE DESKTOP · JSON

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "youtube": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@kirbah/mcp-youtube"
      ],
      "env": {
        "YOUTUBE_API_KEY": "<YOUR_YOUTUBE_API_KEY>",
        "MDB_MCP_CONNECTION_STRING": "mongodb+srv://<YOUR_DB_USER>:<YOUR_DB_PASSWORD>@cluster0.abc.mongodb.net/youtube_niche_analysis"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor

CURSOR · JSON

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "youtube": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@kirbah/mcp-youtube"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Any MCP client — Windows

ANY MCP CLIENT — WINDOWS · TERMINAL

cmd /k npx -y @kirbah/mcp-youtube

YouTube Data MCP