TubeToTranscript

TubeToTranscript MCP Server: YouTube Transcripts for Claude, Cursor & AI Agents

By TubeToTranscript, the free YouTube transcript generator. Website · API docs · Remote MCP endpoint · npm · Source

tubetotranscript-mcp is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that lets AI assistants read YouTube videos. Ask Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client to summarize a video, find a quote, or turn a lecture into notes, and it fetches the video's captions itself, with timestamps, title, channel, and language.

• Free, no API key, no account. Runs on your computer and reads the captions YouTube already has.
• Works with any video that has captions: watch links, Shorts, youtu.be links, embeds, or a bare video ID.
• Every caption language the video offers, including auto-generated tracks.
• Exports plain text, text with timestamps, SRT, and WebVTT subtitles.

Quick start

Point your MCP client at the package with npx. Nothing to install globally.

Claude Desktop

Add to claude_desktop_config.json (macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/, Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "tubetotranscript": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "tubetotranscript-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Add to .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "tubetotranscript": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "tubetotranscript-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Restart the client afterwards so it picks up the new server.

Claude Code

claude mcp add tubetotranscript -- npx -y tubetotranscript-mcp

What you can ask

Once connected, just paste a YouTube link into the chat:

• "Summarize this video in five bullet points: https://youtu.be/…"
• "When does the speaker talk about pricing? Give me the timestamps."
• "Turn this lecture into study notes and ten flashcards."
• "Which caption languages does this video have?"
• "Export the Spanish captions as an SRT file."

Tools

get_youtube_transcript

Returns the transcript with timed segments, title, channel, duration, and the available languages.

Parameter	Required	Description
url_or_video_id	yes	Video URL (watch, shorts, youtu.be, embed) or the 11-character ID
language	no	Language code such as en, es, fr. Defaults to English or the primary track

get_available_languages

Lists every caption and subtitle track available for a video.

Parameter	Required	Description
url_or_video_id	yes	Video URL or 11-character ID

export_youtube_transcript

Converts a transcript into a text or subtitle format.

Parameter	Required	Description
url_or_video_id	yes	Video URL or 11-character ID
format	yes	txt, txt_with_timestamps, srt, or vtt
language	no	Language code

Local or remote?

	Local (this package)	Remote (tubetotranscript.com/mcp)
Install	npx -y tubetotranscript-mcp	None, connect by URL
Transport	stdio	Streamable HTTP
API key	Not needed	Required (get a free key)
Where requests run	Your computer	TubeToTranscript's servers

Clients that take a remote URL, such as Cursor:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "tubetotranscript": {
      "url": "https://www.tubetotranscript.com/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" }
    }
  }
}

Without an AI client

The same transcripts are available on the web at TubeToTranscript, free and without signing up:

• YouTube Transcript Generator: paste a link, read, search, copy, or download
• YouTube Transcript for ChatGPT & Claude: transcript plus prompt, split for long videos
• YouTube Quote Finder: find when something was said
• YouTube to JSON and YouTube to Excel & CSV exports
• REST API: the same data over HTTP for scripts and apps

Requirements & limitations

• Node.js 18 or later (uses the built-in fetch).
• Reads only captions that YouTube already exposes. Videos with captions turned off return an error; this server does no speech-to-text of its own.
• Caption text can contain recognition errors. Check names, figures, and quotes against the video.

License

MIT. Made by TubeToTranscript.