YouTube Channel Streams API
Channel Live tab only — liveStatus per row; 0 credits when hasLiveTab is false.
GET request to /v1/youtube/channel-streams that responds with clean JSON and costs 2 credits. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh. Start with 100 free credits — no credit card.What is the YouTube Channel Streams API?
Reads YouTube's Live tab (not Videos). Channels without a Live tab (common for non-streamers) return totalReturned:0 and hasLiveTab:false instead of silently echoing Videos — billed 0 credits (tab check only; no stream fetch). When the Live tab exists, each row is player-enriched with exact viewCount, ISO publishedAt + publishedTimeText, thumbnailUrl, type stream|upcoming, and liveStatus live|upcoming|past. durationSeconds/durationFormatted are null when YouTube reports 0 (live/unknown) — never 00:00:00. Flat 2 credits on the native path when streams are fetched.
What you get
- Live tab only — never Videos fallthrough
- hasLiveTab false when the channel has no Live tab
- liveStatus: live | upcoming | past on every row
- 0 credits when hasLiveTab is false; flat 2 when streams are fetched
- Honest duration — null when unknown, never 00:00:00
Try it
Fill in the parameters below and copy a ready-to-run request, or open the live Playground to run it against your account (no API key paste).
Parameters
curl "https://api.captapi.com/v1/youtube/channel-streams?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2F%40MrBeast" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer capt_live_..."
# or: -H "x-api-key: capt_live_..."Edit the parameters and the code updates instantly. Switch languages and hit copy.
Example response
{
"success": true,
"data": {
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/@MrBeast",
"totalReturned": 2,
"streams": [
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaMdXZMvT3w",
"title": "Survive 30 Days On An Island With Your Ex, Win $250,000",
"publishedAt": "2026-05-16T16:00:01.000Z",
"viewCount": 89925200,
"durationSeconds": 2349,
"thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/AaMdXZMvT3w/maxresdefault.jpg",
"channelName": "MrBeast"
},
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpQSUjNsNm0",
"title": "7 Days Stranded in The Arctic",
"publishedAt": "2026-05-30T16:00:02.000Z",
"viewCount": 91519007,
"durationSeconds": 1935,
"thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/GpQSUjNsNm0/maxresdefault.jpg",
"channelName": "MrBeast"
}
]
}
}Billing metadata is returned in response headers: X-Captapi-Credits (credits charged), X-Captapi-Cache (hit or miss), and X-Captapi-Source. Failed requests (4xx/5xx) are never charged. See the full list of error codes in the error reference.
Response structure
A successful call returns success and a data object with the following fields:
Top-level fields
urlCanonical URL of the item.totalReturnedNumber of items returned in this response.
Streams
Each item in streams contains:
urlCanonical URL of the item.titleTitle of this streams item.publishedAtPublish date (ISO 8601) when the platform exposes an absolute timestamp.viewCountView count.durationSecondsLive stream or VOD length in seconds when YouTube exposes it.thumbnailUrlThumbnail image URL.channelNameName of the channel.
Parameters
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| url | string | Yes | YouTube channel URL, @handle, bare handle, or UC... channel ID, e.g. https://youtube.com/@handle or @mkbhd. The URL platform must match this endpoint's platform. Do not pass cross-platform URLs, e.g. YouTube to TikTok, Instagram to Facebook, LinkedIn to X/Twitter, or Pinterest to Rumble. |
| limit | integer | No | Max items to return (default 20, max 200). Flat 2 credits when hasLiveTab is true; 0 credits when hasLiveTab is false. |
| cache | boolean | No | Set true to serve from the 24h response cache (0 credits on hit). Default false — always fetch fresh. |
Authentication: send your key as Authorization: Bearer capt_live_.... A typical call costs 2 credits. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh.
youtube_channel_streams via @captapi/mcp. Set it up →How it works
- 1. Sign up — get 100 free credits, no card required.
- 2. Create a key from your dashboard.
- 3. Send one request to
/v1/youtube/channel-streamsand parse the JSON response.
Use cases
Content Pipelines
Ingest a channel's catalog in bulk.
Monitoring
Detect new uploads automatically.
Archiving
Snapshot a creator's library — metadata plus CDN media URLs (re-fetch before mediaUrlsExpireAt).
Analytics
Aggregate performance across many videos.
Frequently asked questions
What does the YouTube Channel Streams API do?+
The YouTube Channel Streams API lets you list items in bulk with metadata from a public YouTube channel streams using one GET request to /v1/youtube/channel-streams. It returns clean JSON — no OAuth or infrastructure setup required.
How many credits does the YouTube Channel Streams API cost?+
Each successful call costs 2 credits. Pass cache=true to serve from the 24h cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Selected profile endpoints also accept cacheMaxAge=1d|3d|7d|14d|30d. Failed or empty results are never charged.
Do I need a YouTube API key or OAuth?+
No. A single Captapi key works across every platform Captapi supports — YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X, Reddit, Threads, Bluesky, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Rumble, Spotify, Kwai, and more. We handle proxies, rate limits, retries, and authentication for you.
Is the YouTube Channel Streams API suitable for production use?+
Yes. It is a stable REST endpoint with predictable JSON and automatic retries. Pass cache=true to serve from the 24h cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Selected profile endpoints also accept cacheMaxAge=1d|3d|7d|14d|30d. Use it for analytics, monitoring, and content automation.
More YouTube APIs
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