YouTube Public Data API
Collect supported public YouTube channel profiles, video details, channel videos, comments, Shorts, search results, and available transcripts through one normalized asynchronous workflow.
Available YouTube APIs
Choose direct channel or video lookup, channel-based video and Shorts collection, public comments, keyword search, or available transcript text.
What YouTube data can you retrieve?
SocQ converts supported public YouTube results into normalized records for enrichment, monitoring, research, content analysis, and reporting.
Channel profiles
Retrieve channel identity, descriptions, public images, verification, visible subscriber, video, and total-view counts.
Video and Shorts metadata
Collect titles, descriptions, channel context, thumbnails, duration, publication data, and visible engagement.
Public discussion
Collect publicly visible comment text, author context, likes, reply counts, video references, and parent-comment relationships.
Discovery and transcripts
Search public regular videos with supported filters and retrieve available plain-text caption content for known URLs.
SocQ vs YouTube Data API
SocQ focuses on supported public-data collection and normalized results. YouTube Data API is the appropriate choice for official OAuth, channel management, and authorized operations.
| Capability | SocQ | YouTube Data API |
|---|---|---|
| Primary use | Supported public-data collection and normalization | Official platform integration and authorized resources |
| Authentication | SocQ API key | Google OAuth or API credentials, depending on operation |
| Content management | Does not create, edit, delete, like, comment on, or manage YouTube content | Supports eligible authorized operations |
| Private or restricted data | Not supported | Limited to data allowed by granted authorization and platform policy |
| Response format | Normalized SocQ records | Native YouTube API resources |
How the YouTube API works
All seven endpoints share an asynchronous submit, poll, and cursor-pagination lifecycle.
1. Submit public inputs
POST supported channel URLs, video URLs, a search query, and endpoint-specific optional filters.
2. Poll the task
Use the returned task ID until processing succeeds or fails, applying backoff after temporary pressure responses.
3. Read and paginate
Read normalized records from data.results.items and follow next_cursor while has_more is true.
Authenticate with a SocQ API key. This request retrieves a public channel profile; select another endpoint for videos, comments, Shorts, search, or transcripts.
curl -X POST "https://api.socq.ai/v1/youtube/channels" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $SOCQ_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"urls":["https://www.youtube.com/@NASA"]}'
# Poll GET /v1/tasks/{task_id}
# Read GET /v1/tasks/{task_id}?limit=50Common YouTube API use cases
Creator and channel research
Combine public channel profiles, regular videos, and Shorts for directory enrichment and comparative analysis.
Content and response monitoring
Track selected video metadata, public comment discussions, and collection-time engagement snapshots.
Topic discovery
Search public videos by query and supported filters, then enrich known URLs or retrieve available transcript text.
Data pipelines
Send normalized records into warehouses, review tools, classifiers, search indexes, and reporting systems.
Limits and public-data policy
YouTube public results are dynamic and depend on current visibility, classification, regional availability, and public caption or comment access.
- Private, deleted, members-only, region-restricted, age-restricted, and otherwise inaccessible content may not produce records.
- Visible counters, search rankings, classifications, comments, and captions can change after collection.
- A requested result limit does not guarantee that many eligible public records exist.
- SocQ is not an official YouTube API and does not manage, create, modify, delete, like, or comment on YouTube content.
YouTube API frequently asked questions
Is SocQ the official YouTube API?
No. SocQ collects and normalizes supported public results. Use YouTube Data API for official OAuth, channel management, and authorized operations.
Do users need to connect YouTube accounts?
No customer YouTube OAuth is required for these supported public-data endpoints. Requests authenticate with a SocQ API key.
Which YouTube resources are available?
Channels, Videos, Channel Videos, Comments, Shorts, Search, and Transcripts are available, each with its own documented input and normalized result contract.
How is usage priced?
Each endpoint card shows its current per-result credit price, and the Playground estimates the submitted request from endpoint billing rules.