YouTube MCP server for AI assistants
vidIQ's YouTube MCP server is a hosted MCP endpoint that connects ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, and other AI assistants to live YouTube data, no YouTube API key needed. Included in every plan, even Free.
Real YouTube Prompts. Real vidIQ Data.
Ask vidIQ MCP anything about your channel, competitors, or trends - and get answers backed by creator intelligence.
The Only YouTube MCP Server Built on 135M+ Channels
Real YouTube intelligence, built for creators - not generic data endpoints.
Uses your vidIQ account
If your channel is already linked to vidIQ, your AI tool can read its analytics as soon as you sign in. No Google Cloud project or YouTube API key to set up.
Data built for creators
Keyword search volume, outlier scores, and competitor stats from the same data 30M+ creators use in vidIQ.
Quick setup
Add vidIQ from the ChatGPT or Claude listing, or paste one server URL into any other MCP client. Then sign in with your vidIQ account.
You approve every change
Sign-in uses OAuth, so your AI tool never sees your vidIQ password. Edits to your videos wait for your approval, and API keys stay read-only and revocable anytime.
Ask in plain English
Ask a question the way you'd ask a colleague. Your AI tool picks the vidIQ tools to run and explains what the data shows.
Works with the AI tools you use
MCP is an open standard. Use vidIQ in ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, Perplexity, Grok, Codex, Gemini CLI, OpenClaw, or any client that can add a remote MCP server.
Set Up the YouTube MCP in 60 Seconds
Pick your AI tool and follow the steps.
- 1
Open the vidIQ listing in Claude's Connector Directory.
- 2
Click Connect, then sign in or create your vidIQ account to authorize access.
- 3
In a conversation, open + → Connectors, turn on vidIQ, and start your prompt with "Use vidIQ to…"
Claude's Connector Directory
Add to Claude (opens in a new tab)Official directory listing - no server URL required
Paste it in Claude under Customize → Connectors → Add custom connector. It's not a browser link.
Ready-to-use YouTube MCP prompts
Copy a prompt, replace the [placeholders] with your niche, topic, or channel, and paste it into your AI tool with vidIQ connected.
52 tools and counting
46 core tools below, plus 6 free utility tools
keyword_research
Find keywords your competitors are sleeping on
outliers
Spot videos that blew up for a reason
generate_clips
Turn a long video into vertical clips
generate_thumbnail
Generate a thumbnail from a prompt
generate_titles
Generate high-CTR title ideas
subscriber_insights
Find your best time to post and who else your fans watch
video_transcript
Read any video without watching it
trending_videos
See what formats are blowing up right now
Plus 6 free utility tools: credits balance, your connected channels, async job tracking, voice library, and feedback. Tool calls draw from your vidIQ plan’s shared credit pool.
vidIQ MCP vs other YouTube MCP servers
Most YouTube MCP servers are open-source projects you run yourself, often with your own YouTube Data API key. vidIQ is hosted, so there's nothing to install, and it adds creator data the public API doesn't provide.
Swipe the table to compare all five servers
| Feature | vidIQ MCPvidIQ | YouTube MCP ServerZubeidHendricks | Youtube-MCPIA-Programming | YouTube Transcript Serverkimtaeyoon83 | YouTube MCPComposio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hosting | Hosted by vidIQ. Add it from the ChatGPT or Claude listing, or paste one URL. | Self-hosted. Run it with npx, npm, or Docker. | Self-hosted. Clone the repo and run it with Python 3.8+ and uv. | Self-hosted. Run it locally with npx. | Hosted by Composio. |
| Tools | 50+ for research, your channel, packaging, and production | 10 | 4 | 1, plus an optional video analysis tool | 57 |
| YouTube API key or Google Cloud project | Not needed. It runs on vidIQ data, not your YouTube Data API key. | Needed. At least one YouTube Data API key. | No YouTube API key. Needs a Google API key for embeddings. | Not needed. | Not needed. Composio provides a managed OAuth app; your own is optional. |
| Quota and usage limits | No YouTube API quota. Tool calls use your vidIQ plan's credits. | Your YouTube Data API quota. It switches to a backup key when one runs out. | Not documented | Not documented | Free Hobby plan: 100,000 tool calls a month, up to 20,000 through managed apps like YouTube. |
| Creator data beyond YouTube's API | Keyword search volume and competition, outlier scores, similar channels, and earnings estimates | Transcripts and creator-vs-brand channel labels | Transcripts, with semantic search over the ones you store | Transcripts, plus optional TwelveLabs video analysis | No keyword, outlier, or earnings tools listed |
| Write actions | Yes, each one approved by you: update your videos' title, description, tags, visibility, schedule, or thumbnail, reply to comments, and publish Instagram Reels. No YouTube uploads. | None in its 10 documented tools | None on YouTube | None | Yes: upload, update, and delete videos, change thumbnails, manage playlists and comments, and subscribe. |
| Sign-in | vidIQ account over OAuth, or a read-only API key | YouTube Data API key in an environment variable | Google API key in a .env file | None | OAuth with your YouTube account, through Composio |
| Cost | Free to connect on every plan, including Free. Tool calls use plan credits. | Free, open source (MIT) | Free, open source (MIT) | Free, open source (MIT) | Free Hobby plan. Pro is $29/month. |
When another server is a better fit
- You only need transcripts. A free transcript server such as kimtaeyoon83's runs locally with no API key.
- You want free, self-hosted, open-source code. If you already have a YouTube Data API key, ZubeidHendricks' server covers search, channel, playlist, and transcript data.
- You need to upload videos or manage playlists. Composio's hosted connector lists those write actions.
Choose vidIQ when you want keyword search volume, outlier scores, and earnings estimates in your AI tool without managing API keys or quota.
Competitor details come from each project's README or product page, linked above, as of October 26, 2026. Many other YouTube servers in MCP directories, such as Nocodeboy's on Glama and coyaSONG's on MCP.so, also run locally and need a YouTube Data API key. Google's default YouTube Data API quota is 100 search calls and 10,000 units a day for other requests, per project.
YouTube MCP Server FAQs
Ready to supercharge
your AI workflow?
Connect vidIQ MCP to your AI tools and get real, data-backed answers about your YouTube channel.
Also works with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, Perplexity, OpenClaw, Grok, Codex and Gemini CLI. Available on every vidIQ plan, including Free.