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YouTube · Guide

How to get YouTube playlist

TL;DR
To get YouTube playlist, sign up for a free Captapi key, then send one GET request to /v1/youtube/playlist with your input. You get clean JSON back in seconds for ~50 credits (1/result) per call — no OAuth, scraping or platform SDKs. Get a YouTube playlist's metadata plus its videos — title, description, and each video's URL, title, and position.
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How to get YouTube playlist (step by step)

  1. 1

    Get a free API key

    Create a free Captapi account (100 credits, no card) and generate an API key from the dashboard.

  2. 2

    Call the YouTube Playlist API

    Send an authenticated GET request to /v1/youtube/playlist with your input. No OAuth, no scraping setup.

  3. 3

    Read the JSON response

    Parse the clean JSON response. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh.

Code example

curl "https://api.captapi.com/v1/youtube/playlist?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fplaylist%3Flist%3DPLMC9KNkIncKtPzgY-5rmhvj7fax8fdxoj" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer capt_live_..."
# or: -H "x-api-key: capt_live_..."

What the response looks like

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "platform": "youtube",
    "url": "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMC9KNkIncKtPzgY-5rmhvj7fax8fdxoj",
    "title": "Pop Music Playlist - Timeless Pop Songs (Updated Weekly 2026)",
    "channelName": "ROSÉ",
    "totalReturned": 5,
    "videos": [
      {
        "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekr2nIex040",
        "title": "ROSÉ & Bruno Mars - APT. (Official Music Video)",
        "publishedAt": "1y ago",
        "viewCount": 2500000000,
        "durationSeconds": 174,
        "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ekr2nIex040/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEgCNACELwBSFXyq4qpAxIIARUAAIhCGAFwAcABBrgC9xg=&rs=AOn4CLDOxMZ68w4g4Q4NxGMybOB1PofIMg",
        "channelName": "ROSÉ"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPa7bsKwL-c",
        "title": "Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars - Die With A Smile (Official Music Video)",
        "publishedAt": "1y ago",
        "viewCount": 1700000000,
        "durationSeconds": 253,
        "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/kPa7bsKwL-c/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEgCNACELwBSFXyq4qpAxIIARUAAIhCGAFwAcABBrgC9xg=&rs=AOn4CLAcTzxEC0D1FIs3JGm9_4BbtOvEMg",
        "channelName": "Lady Gaga"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euCqAq6BRa4",
        "title": "DJ Snake - Let Me Love You (Official Music Video) ft. Justin Bieber",
        "publishedAt": "9y ago",
        "viewCount": 2000000000,
        "durationSeconds": 206,
        "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/euCqAq6BRa4/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEgCNACELwBSFXyq4qpAxIIARUAAIhCGAFwAcABBrgC9xg=&rs=AOn4CLAgsWEpI_bvmwOJrr_goE3elCWOXA",
        "channelName": "DJ Snake"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9PVRfjEBTI",
        "title": "Billie Eilish - BIRDS OF A FEATHER (Official Music Video)",
        "publishedAt": "1y ago",
        "viewCount": 886000000,
        "durationSeconds": 231,
        "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/V9PVRfjEBTI/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEgCNACELwBSFXyq4qpAxIIARUAAIhCGAFwAcABBrgC9xg=&rs=AOn4CLANC3Dkrh-z37HPX5RNlMtIeVBpkQ",
        "channelName": "Billie Eilish"
      },
      {
        "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4lU1N3oqYQ",
        "title": "Madison Beer - lovergirl (Official Music Video)",
        "publishedAt": "2mo ago",
        "viewCount": 2300000,
        "durationSeconds": 202,
        "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/q4lU1N3oqYQ/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEgCNACELwBSFXyq4qpAxIIARUAAIhCGAFwAcABBrgC9xg=&rs=AOn4CLAJPoekBp9aMPQLY0ZFJ9aanlyvFA",
        "channelName": "Madison Beer"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Billing metadata (credits charged, cache hit/miss) is returned in the X-Captapi-Credits and X-Captapi-Cache response headers.

Request parameters

NameTypeRequiredDescription
urlstring YesYouTube playlist URL, e.g. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=ID. 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.
limitintegerNoMax items to return (default 50, max 500). Billed per result.
fastbooleanNoSet true to use YouTube RSS for faster results with less detailed metadata. Leave false when viewCount/duration quality matters.
cachebooleanNoSet true to serve from the 24h response cache. Default false — always fetch fresh data.

Frequently asked questions

What does the YouTube Playlist API do?

The YouTube Playlist API lets you list items in bulk with metadata from a public YouTube playlist using one GET request to /v1/youtube/playlist. It returns clean JSON — no OAuth or infrastructure setup required.

How many credits does the YouTube Playlist API cost?

At the default limit this endpoint costs 50 credits (1 per result). Billing scales with how many results you request. Pass cache=true to serve from the 24h shared cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. 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 Playlist 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 shared cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Use it for analytics, monitoring, and content automation.

Ready to get YouTube playlist?

Start free with 100 credits — no credit card required.

Get your free API key