YouTube Metadata API
Real-time YouTube video metrics API — live view counts, like counts, and formatted numbers. Perfect for live dashboards and viral tracking from $0.01/call.
Fetch real-time view count and like count for any YouTube video. Returns both raw numbers and formatted text (e.g., '18M'). Ideal for live dashboards and real-time monitoring.
Try it live
Fill in the fields and hit Run to see a real response.
{
"ok": true,
"data": {
"id": "dQw4w9WgXcQ",
"viewCountText": "1,758,165,530 views",
"viewCount": "1758165530",
"likeCountText": "18M",
"likeCount": 18905025
}
}Features
Call /v1/youtube/metadata with a video ID to get live viewCount and likeCount, refreshed each call — built for moment-to-moment tracking.
The response pairs raw values (viewCount 1758165530, likeCount 18905025) with display strings (viewCountText '1,758,165,530 views', likeCountText '18M') so you can compute and display from one call.
Returns only the engagement counts — no description, formats, or keywords — so it's fast enough to poll frequently for live dashboards.
The minimal payload makes it ideal for high-frequency polling to drive real-time counters and viral-velocity charts.
Use cases
Live Dashboard
Display real-time view and like counts on a live analytics dashboard.
Viral Tracking
Monitor view velocity to detect when a video starts going viral.
Engagement Monitoring
Track like-to-view ratios over time for content performance analysis.
Quick start
Copy this snippet and start making calls.
const res = await fetch('https://api.yepapi.com/v1/youtube/metadata', {
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'x-api-key': 'YOUR_API_KEY',
'Content-Type': 'application/json',
},
body: JSON.stringify({
"id": "dQw4w9WgXcQ"
}),
});
const data = await res.json();
console.log(data);The YouTube Metadata API — live view and like counts
The YouTube Metadata API is the suite's lightest read: send a video ID to /v1/youtube/metadata and get back just the live engagement numbers. You receive raw values (viewCount 1758165530, likeCount 18905025) alongside formatted display strings (viewCountText '1,758,165,530 views', likeCountText '18M') — nothing else to slow the call down.
At $0.01 per call with a tiny payload, it's purpose-built for high-frequency polling: live counters, viral-velocity tracking, and any dashboard that needs current numbers without the weight of full video metadata.
What is a YouTube Metadata API?
In this suite, the YouTube Metadata API is the minimal engagement-counts endpoint: given a video ID, it returns only the current view count and like count, in both raw numeric form and pre-formatted display strings (e.g. '18M'). It deliberately omits title, description, formats, and keywords — everything that would make the payload heavier. That focus is the point: when you need the freshest numbers as often as possible, a tiny response you can poll every few seconds beats a full metadata fetch. It's the data source for live counters and real-time monitoring rather than cataloging.
Build your own live view-count dashboard
Poll Metadata for a launch video every few seconds and render a live, ticking view counter for a watch party or release event — the formatted likeCountText and viewCountText drop straight into the UI while the raw numbers drive your charts. Track view velocity by storing successive raw viewCount readings and computing the delta per interval; a sharp acceleration is your signal a video is going viral. Because the payload is so small, this kind of high-frequency polling stays both fast and affordable in a way a full Video Details poll never would.
YouTube Metadata API pricing — $0.01/call
Each reading costs $0.01 and returns just the engagement counts. There's no daily quota, which is what makes high-frequency polling viable — even checking a video every 10 seconds for an hour is only 360 calls, about $3.60. Compared to polling the full Video Details endpoint at $0.02 with a far larger payload, Metadata is the right tool for live counters: cheaper per call, lighter on the wire, and faster to render.
Metadata vs. Video Info — polling vs. cataloging
Both cost $0.01, but they serve different rhythms. Metadata returns only view and like counts and is built to be polled often for real-time displays. Video Info returns the full descriptive record — title, description, channel, publish date — and is built to be called once per video for cataloging and enrichment. Use Metadata when the question is "what are the numbers right now?" and Video Info when it's "what is this video?" Both share one YepAPI key.
Try the YouTube Metadata API free
Get $5 in free credit at signup, no card required — 500 readings. Poll any video and watch the live view and like counts update to test the refresh behavior before wiring up your dashboard.
Start making API calls in 30 seconds
$5 free credit on signup. No credit card required. Pay per call.
What developers say
“Switched from SerpAPI and cut our SERP costs by 80%. Same data quality, way simpler billing.”
“One API key for AI models, SERP data, and web scraping. Saved us from managing 4 separate providers.”
“The $5 free credit let us prototype our entire rank tracking feature before committing. No other API does that.”
Frequently asked questions
Fetch real-time view count and like count for any YouTube video. Returns both raw numbers and formatted text (e.g., '18M'). Ideal for live dashboards and real-time monitoring.
Each API call costs $0.01. No monthly minimums or subscriptions — you only pay for what you use.
Sign up for a free API key, then send a POST request to /v1/youtube/metadata. Check the code example above for a ready-to-use snippet in JavaScript, cURL, or Python.
YepAPI bundles SEO, AI, and web scraping APIs under one key with no monthly minimums. You get lower per-call pricing, a unified dashboard, and one billing account instead of managing multiple providers.
Ready to integrate?
Get your API key and start making calls in 30 seconds. $5 free credit on signup — no credit card required.
More youtube api endpoints
Search
$0.01YouTube search API — find videos, channels, and playlists with filters for date, duration, and type. Structured JSON results from $0.01/call.
Video Details
$0.02Full YouTube video metadata — title, views, likes, description, keywords, thumbnails, and available formats. Video intelligence from $0.02/call.
Comments
$0.01YouTube comments API — fetch top-level comments and replies with author info, likes, and timestamps. Sentiment analysis and engagement research from $0.01/call.