How do I get a YouTube transcript by prepending the URL?

Replace youtube.com with ytscribe.io in any YouTube URL. The transcript loads instantly with a Copy button. Works for /watch?v=, /shorts/, /embed/, /v/, and bare-ID URLs.

What is the easiest way to copy a transcript from YouTube?

Swap youtube.com for ytscribe.io and click Copy. YouTube's native transcript panel has no copy button; ytscribe gives you a clean paragraph view ready to paste anywhere, plus a Markdown export tailored for LLMs.

How do I export a YouTube transcript to an LLM like ChatGPT or Claude?

Use Copy as Markdown on any ytscribe page to get a Markdown-formatted transcript with the title, source URL, language, and snippet count as front-matter. Paste into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Notion, or Obsidian — they all parse Markdown natively.

Does ytscribe work for YouTube Shorts?

Yes. ytscribe.io/shorts/VIDEO_ID returns the same transcript view as a normal /watch?v= URL. If the Short has captions, ytscribe will show them; if it doesn't, you'll see a clear 'no captions yet' message.

Does ytscribe work for live streams?

Live streams generally don't have captions until YouTube finishes processing them, which can take an hour or more after the stream ends. ytscribe will return 'no captions yet' during that window. Once the upload completes, the transcript appears.

How accurate are auto-captions versus creator captions?

Creator-uploaded captions are typically near-perfect because a human edited them. Auto-captions (the ones YouTube generates automatically) are 90-95% accurate for clear English speech and degrade with accents, technical vocabulary, music, or background noise. ytscribe shows a 'Source: YouTube auto-captions' or 'creator captions' line on every transcript so you know which kind you're reading.

Can I get a YouTube transcript in a language other than English?

Yes. Add ?lang=es (or any ISO language code) to the URL, or use the language picker on the transcript page. If the requested language isn't available, ytscribe lists the languages YouTube does have so you can switch with a single click.

Why doesn't YouTube have a copy button on its own transcript panel?

YouTube's native transcript panel was designed for accessibility and search-within-video, not export. There's no official copy button — you have to drag-select every line, which often misses timestamps or breaks paragraphs. ytscribe gives you a clean paragraph view with one-click copy in either plain text or Markdown.

Can I use ytscribe to summarise a YouTube video with ChatGPT or Claude?

Yes. Open the video on ytscribe, click 'Copy as Markdown', and paste the result into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or Perplexity. The Markdown includes the title and source URL as front-matter, so the LLM has full context — you can ask 'summarise this' or 'extract the action items' and the response will reference the video correctly.

Does ytscribe work for music videos?

Most music videos have captions disabled by the labels that uploaded them, so ytscribe shows a music-specific message rather than a generic error. If you want lyrics, a service like Genius or Musixmatch is the right tool. ytscribe is built for talks, podcasts, lectures, tutorials, and interviews — anything where the spoken content carries the value.

Is ytscribe free? How do you make money?

ytscribe is free with no signup. The site is supported by an optional 'buy me a coffee' link in the footer for users who want to keep it free and ad-light. There's no rate limit for normal use.

Is there a bookmarklet so I don't have to edit the URL by hand?

Yes. The homepage has a draggable bookmarklet — drag it to your bookmarks bar, and one click on any YouTube video page opens that video's transcript on ytscribe. On mobile or browsers that hide the bookmarks bar, copy the bookmarklet source from the homepage and add it as a bookmark manually.

Get any YouTube transcript instantly.

Just swap the domain.

Or paste a fresh YouTube URL — Shorts, embeds, and youtu.be links all work.

Or skip the URL edit entirely

Drag the button below to your bookmarks bar. While on any YouTube video, click it and you'll land on the ytscribe transcript instantly.

ytscribe.

How to install · keyboard shortcut for a background tab

Show your bookmarks bar if it isn't visible (⌘⇧B on Mac, Ctrl+Shift+B on Windows/Linux).
Drag the button above onto the bookmarks bar.
While on any YouTube video, click the bookmark — ytscribe opens in a new foreground tab.
Background tab? Hold ⌘ (Mac) or Ctrl (Windows/Linux) while clicking the bookmark. The new tab opens behind the current one.

If your browser hides the bookmarks bar (Safari mobile, etc.), copy the bookmarklet source instead:

Get any YouTube transcript instantly.

Or skip the URL edit entirely

How to get a YouTube transcript by prepending the URL

Easiest way to copy a transcript from YouTube

Export a YouTube transcript to an LLM (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini)