How to use vidIQ in Claude and Claude Code

Claude can't see YouTube data on its own. Use vidIQ in Claude to analyze your channel, research keywords, and study competitors with live YouTube data, then turn the answers into a plan for your next video.

Add to Claude (opens in a new tab)How to connect

How to connect vidIQ to Claude and Claude Code

  1. 1Open the vidIQ listing in Claude's Connector Directory, click Connect, and sign in with your vidIQ account. This listing reads YouTube data but can't change your videos.
  2. 2For the full tool set, including thumbnail generation, Comment Insights, and approved changes to videos you own, add a custom connector instead: open Customize → Connectors, select Add custom connector, name it vidIQ, and enter https://mcp.vidiq.com/mcp.
  3. 3In a conversation, open + → Connectors and enable vidIQ. Then ask about a YouTube channel, video, or topic.
  4. 4In Claude Code, run the two commands shown here, restart Claude Code, then run /mcp and sign in to the vidIQ server when prompted.
Add to Claude (opens in a new tab)

Claude Code

claude plugin marketplace add vid-io/vidiq-mcp
claude plugin install vidiq@vidiq-plugins

Tip: start with "Use vidIQ to…"

Typing @vidIQ is a ChatGPT shortcut. In Claude, enable the connector from + → Connectors, then start your prompt with "Use vidIQ to…" so Claude pulls live YouTube data instead of answering from memory. In Claude Code, you can also run a workflow directly, for example /vidiq:vidiq-get-started.

Five prompts to try

Copy one, replace the bracketed details, and paste it into your chat.

  1. Review channel health

    Use vidIQ to review my channel's last 90 days. Separate long-form and Shorts, explain what strengthened or weakened, and prioritize three improvements.

  2. Triage a launch

    Use vidIQ to compare my latest upload's first 48 hours with my channel's normal baseline. Show the evidence before recommending any change.

  3. Diagnose retention

    Use vidIQ to line up the retention changes in [video URL] with its transcript and comments. Identify the moments I should improve next time.

  4. Learn the audience's language

    Use vidIQ to read the comments on [video URL] and turn recurring viewer language into hooks and content briefs. Omit usernames and personal details from your answer.

  5. Compare packaging

    Use vidIQ to compare three distinct title and thumbnail concepts for [video idea], grounded in how similar videos in [niche] are performing now.

vidIQ in Claude: common questions

Yes, with the vidIQ connector. On its own, Claude cannot see your YouTube analytics. Connect vidIQ and link your channel to your vidIQ account, then ask about views, watch time, traffic sources, and retention. Claude can also use public stats for any channel or video, plus keyword volume, outliers, comments, and transcripts.