YouTube Shorts Summarizer API
AI summary of a YouTube Short — rejects long-form videos (≤3 min only).
GET request to /v1/youtube/shorts/summarize that responds with clean JSON and costs 3 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 Shorts Summarizer API?
Same summarizer as YouTube Summarizer (captions → GPT), scoped to Shorts (≤3 minutes). Longer videos return HTTP 422. Caption-miss 404 matches /transcript diagnostics and charges 0 — never 3. Flat 3 credits only when a summary is returned.
What you get
- 2–3 paragraph AI summary
- 4–8 bullet key points and detected topics
- Overall sentiment and tone
- Built on the transcript under the hood
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/shorts/summarize?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fshorts%2FegvLKQe6I4I" \
-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/shorts/egvLKQe6I4I",
"videoId": "egvLKQe6I4I",
"title": "Don't Pop the Balloon",
"summary": "MrBeast challenges people not to pop a balloon in a high-stakes Short.",
"keyPoints": [
"Contestants must keep a balloon intact.",
"Quick comedy beat typical of YouTube Shorts."
],
"topics": [
"challenge",
"shorts"
],
"sentiment": "positive"
}
}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.videoIdPlatform video ID.titleTitle of the item.summaryAI-generated summary of the content.keyPointsThe most important takeaways.topicsDetected topics and themes.sentimentOverall tone (positive, neutral, negative).
Parameters
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| url | string | Yes | Public YouTube Shorts URL, e.g. https://youtube.com/shorts/ID (≤3 min). Long-form videos return HTTP 422 — use the matching /v1/youtube/… endpoint instead. 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. |
| language | string | No | Preferred caption language as an ISO code, e.g. "en". Defaults to auto-detect. |
| 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 3 credits. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh.
youtube_shorts_summarize 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/shorts/summarizeand parse the JSON response.
Use cases
Content Triage
Decide what's worth watching without watching it.
Newsletters & Digests
Auto-generate summaries for roundups and emails.
Research
Condense long videos into key points at scale.
SEO
Generate descriptions and meta content from videos.
Social
Draft captions and posts from video content.
Frequently asked questions
What does the YouTube Shorts Summarizer API do?+
The YouTube Shorts Summarizer API lets you generate an AI summary with key points and topics from a public YouTube Short using one GET request to /v1/youtube/shorts/summarize. It returns clean JSON — no OAuth or infrastructure setup required.
How many credits does the YouTube Shorts Summarizer API cost?+
Each successful call costs 3 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.
Which AI model powers the summaries?+
Summaries are generated with GPT-4o-mini for a strong balance of quality, speed, and cost, built on top of the transcript.
Why did I get 404 on a video with clear speech?+
This endpoint returns captions YouTube published — it does not run speech-to-text. Read detail.code: no_captions means tracks=0 (common on long live streams); language_not_available means tracks exist but not in your language (see availableLanguages). On no_captions, detail.suggestion points at /v1/youtube/audio-transcript with estimatedCredits. 404 never charges credits.
If I pass language=en and only Turkish captions exist, what happens?+
We try YouTube's timedtext translation into en. If that fails → 404 language_not_available with availableLanguages (not a silent Turkish transcript). On success, requestedLanguage and returnedLanguage are both set; isTranslated is true when YouTube translated.
Is the YouTube Shorts Summarizer 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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