@ctxforge-dev/mcp-youtube

YouTube MCP Server by CTX Forge

Extract transcripts, search videos, and summarize YouTube content from any MCP client.

Notice: This MCP leverages commonly available APIs and/or widely known and publicly used alternate approaches to deliver the required functionality. Use of this MCP and its designed approach is at the discretion of the user.

Overview

YouTube MCP Server gives AI assistants direct access to YouTube data through the Model Context Protocol. Extract full transcripts with timestamps, search for videos, pull channel and playlist metadata, and generate AI-powered summaries -- all through natural language prompts in your preferred client. No YouTube API key required for core functionality.

Features

• youtube_transcript -- Extract full transcripts with timestamps from any YouTube video
• youtube_video_info -- Get video metadata including title, description, duration, views, and channel details
• youtube_search -- Search YouTube and return structured results with video metadata
• youtube_channel_info -- Get channel metadata, statistics, and recent uploads
• youtube_playlist -- Retrieve all videos in a playlist with metadata
• youtube_summarize -- AI-powered video summarization with multi-provider support (Gemini CLI, Claude CLI, Ollama)
• extract_text -- Process text through AI using the multi-provider fallback chain

Quick Start

npx (recommended)

npx @ctxforge-dev/mcp-youtube

Docker

docker run -p 3017:3017 ctxforgedev/mcp-youtube

Manual

git clone https://github.com/ctxforge-dev/mcp-youtube.git
cd mcp-youtube
npm install
npm start

Setup Wizard

npx @ctxforge-dev/mcp-youtube setup

Claude Desktop Configuration

Add the following to your Claude Desktop config file (claude_desktop_config.json):

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

For Claude Code, add via the CLI:

claude mcp add youtube -- npx @ctxforge-dev/mcp-youtube

Configuration

| Variable | Required | Default | Description | |----------|----------|---------|-------------| | MCP_YOUTUBE_PORT | No | 3017 | Server port | | OLLAMA_HOST | No | http://localhost:11434 | Ollama URL for AI summarization | | OLLAMA_MODEL | No | qwen2.5:7b | Ollama model for summarization | | GEMINI_CLI_PATH | No | gemini | Path to Gemini CLI binary | | CLAUDE_CLI_PATH | No | claude | Path to Claude CLI binary | | SUMMARIZER_TIMEOUT_MS | No | 120000 | Summarization timeout (ms) |

No API keys are required for transcript extraction, search, or metadata retrieval. AI summarization (optional) uses the Gemini CLI, Claude CLI, or local Ollama -- no API keys are sent to this server.

Example Usage

Once connected, try these prompts in Claude or any MCP client:

Extract a transcript:

Get the transcript for https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

Summarize a video:

Summarize this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID

Search and summarize:

Search YouTube for "MCP server tutorial" and summarize the top result

List playlist contents:

Get all videos from this playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAYLIST_ID

Docker Deployment

# Build and start
docker compose up -d

# Check health
curl http://localhost:3017/healthz

# View logs
docker compose logs -f

# Stop
docker compose down

API / Health Check

| Endpoint | Method | Description | |----------|--------|-------------| | /healthz | GET | Returns server status and version | | /health | GET | Alias for /healthz | | /sse | GET | MCP SSE transport endpoint | | /tools | GET | List available MCP tools |

Verify the server is running:

curl http://localhost:3017/healthz

License

This project is licensed under FSL-1.1-MIT (Functional Source License, Version 1.1, MIT Future License).

You are free to use, modify, and deploy this software for any purpose that does not compete with CTX Forge's commercial offerings. After two years from each release date, that version converts to the MIT license automatically. See the LICENSE file for full terms.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome. Please read CONTRIBUTING.md before submitting a pull request.

Links

• Website: ctxforge.dev
• GitHub: github.com/ctxforge-dev

Other CTX Forge Products

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• Beehiiv MCP -- Beehiiv newsletter management

Disclaimer

This package is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by YouTube or Google LLC. YouTube is a trademark of Google LLC. All YouTube trademarks and brand features are the property of Google LLC.