Facebook Post Transcript API
Returns the spoken words of a Facebook video post of up to 10 minutes as a transcript, from Facebook's captions or, when there are none, AI transcription.
GET /v1/facebook/post/transcriptLast updated November 2026Maintained by the SocialCrawl team
When to use the Facebook Post Transcript API
Use it when you need what was said in a video, which post does not return. A photo or text post has nothing to transcribe, so check media_type in the post response first.
From the API reference
Returns the transcript of a Facebook video post. Videos up to 10 minutes (600 seconds) are supported; post_id is null on a video longer than 2 minutes. Every outcome below is deterministic for a given URL, so retrying returns the same answer, and none of them costs credits. A longer video returns 400 INVALID_REQUEST with error.details.reason: video_too_long and max_seconds. A video with no speech, or a post with no video, returns 404 RESOURCE_NOT_FOUND with error.details.reason: no_captions, because Facebook answers those two identically. A reel with only music or no sound has no speech, so this 404 is the expected answer for it. If you already have the post from /v1/facebook/post, check post.ext.media_type before calling. Only video, a reel or a video, can have a transcript. A photo, album or text post carries image, carousel or null and has nothing to transcribe. A video over 2 minutes is transcribed on demand and can take a minute or more, so allow up to 300 seconds before your HTTP client times out.
Searching 69 platforms in parallel
What can you do with the Post Transcript API?
The Post Transcript endpoint gives you structured Facebook data with computed fields in a single request. No scraping infrastructure to build or maintain.
Example Request
# GET /v1/facebook/post/transcript: 10 credits per call. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
# Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
# --max-time 44: this endpoint's measured p99 latency x 1.5.
# --retry 3: retries timeouts, 429 and 5xx, honoring Retry-After.
# -o response.json keeps only the final attempt's body.
# One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
IDEMPOTENCY_KEY=$(od -An -N16 -tx1 /dev/urandom | tr -d ' \n')
curl -sS --max-time 44 --retry 3 -o response.json \
-H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Idempotency-Key: $IDEMPOTENCY_KEY" \
"https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/facebook/post/transcript?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FMeta%2Fvideos%2Fa-slightly-life-changing-story%2F1459847961114516%2F" && cat response.json# GET /v1/facebook/post/transcript: 10 credits per call. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
# Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
import os
import random
import time
import uuid
import requests
API_KEY = os.environ.get("SOCIALCRAWL_API_KEY", "YOUR_API_KEY")
TIMEOUT_S = 44 # this endpoint's measured p99 latency x 1.5.
MAX_RETRIES = 3
URL = "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/facebook/post/transcript"
def backoff(attempt):
# Exponential backoff with jitter: about 1 s, 2 s, then 4 s.
return 2 ** attempt * (0.5 + random.random() / 2)
def socialcrawl(params):
# One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
idempotency_key = str(uuid.uuid4())
for attempt in range(MAX_RETRIES + 1):
try:
res = requests.get(
URL,
params=params,
headers={"x-api-key": API_KEY, "Idempotency-Key": idempotency_key},
timeout=TIMEOUT_S,
)
body = res.json()
except (requests.RequestException, ValueError):
# A timeout, a dropped connection or a non-JSON gateway page: retry with the same key.
if attempt == MAX_RETRIES:
raise
time.sleep(backoff(attempt))
continue
if body["success"]:
return body
error = body["error"]
# Branch on error["type"], never on the message text.
if error["type"] == "RESOURCE_NOT_FOUND":
return None # refunded: nothing to read
retry_after = res.headers.get("Retry-After")
# SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE without Retry-After is a withdrawn endpoint: permanent.
permanent = error["type"] == "SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE" and retry_after is None
if not error.get("retryable") or permanent or attempt == MAX_RETRIES:
raise RuntimeError(f"{error['type']}: {error['message']} (request_id {body['request_id']})")
# Retry-After (seconds) wins; otherwise back off.
time.sleep(float(retry_after) if retry_after else backoff(attempt))
params = {
"url": "https://www.facebook.com/Meta/videos/a-slightly-life-changing-story/1459847961114516/",
}
body = socialcrawl(params)
if body is not None:
print(body["data"])// GET /v1/facebook/post/transcript: 10 credits per call. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
// Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
const API_KEY = process.env.SOCIALCRAWL_API_KEY ?? "YOUR_API_KEY";
const TIMEOUT_MS = 44_000; // this endpoint's measured p99 latency x 1.5.
const MAX_RETRIES = 3;
type Page = { next_cursor: string | null; has_more: boolean };
type SocialCrawlResponse =
| { success: true; data: any; pagination?: Page; credits_used: number; request_id: string }
| { success: false; error: { type: string; message: string; retryable: boolean }; request_id: string };
const sleep = (ms: number) => new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, ms));
// Exponential backoff with jitter: about 1 s, 2 s, then 4 s.
const backoffMs = (attempt: number) => 2 ** attempt * 1000 * (0.5 + Math.random() / 2);
async function socialcrawl(url: URL) {
// One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
const idempotencyKey = crypto.randomUUID();
for (let attempt = 0; ; attempt++) {
let res: Response;
let body: SocialCrawlResponse;
try {
res = await fetch(url, {
headers: {
"x-api-key": API_KEY,
"Idempotency-Key": idempotencyKey,
},
signal: AbortSignal.timeout(TIMEOUT_MS),
});
body = (await res.json()) as SocialCrawlResponse;
} catch (error) {
// A timeout, a dropped connection or a non-JSON gateway page: retry with the same key.
if (attempt >= MAX_RETRIES) throw error;
await sleep(backoffMs(attempt));
continue;
}
if (body.success) return body;
// Branch on error.type, never on the message text.
if (body.error.type === "RESOURCE_NOT_FOUND") return null; // refunded: nothing to read
const retryAfter = res.headers.get("Retry-After");
// SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE without Retry-After is a withdrawn endpoint: permanent.
const permanent = body.error.type === "SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE" && retryAfter === null;
if (!body.error.retryable || permanent || attempt >= MAX_RETRIES) {
throw new Error(`${body.error.type}: ${body.error.message} (request_id ${body.request_id})`);
}
// Retry-After (seconds) wins; otherwise back off.
await sleep(retryAfter ? Number(retryAfter) * 1000 : backoffMs(attempt));
}
}
const url = new URL("https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/facebook/post/transcript");
url.searchParams.set("url", "https://www.facebook.com/Meta/videos/a-slightly-life-changing-story/1459847961114516/");
const body = await socialcrawl(url);
if (body) console.log(body.data);Parameters
| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| url | Yes | Full URL of the Facebook video post. Share links (`/share/v/…`, `/share/r/…`) are accepted. |
What does the Facebook Post Transcript API return?
Every response follows one unified schema. Here is a real, unmodified response body, so you can see the exact fields you get back before spending a credit.
Example response
{
"success": true,
"platform": "facebook",
"endpoint": "/v1/facebook/post/transcript",
"data": {
"post_id": "1459847961114516",
"transcript": "What's the something missing in my life until now, an absence I could not quite place, but knew somehow? And then this vegan bakery came sliding down my screen, and Everdome repair appeared and tightened up my seams. Voila my cherie d, remix french tips and sweet cuisine and let's lit, infinite possibilities I'm down. A world where personalized ads help good ideas get found."
},
"credits_used": 0,
"request_id": "req_example000000",
"cached": true,
"credits_remaining": 9999,
"source": "captured",
"captured_at": "2026-10-02T12:52:24.498Z",
"redacted": true
}Live sample illustrating the unified response shape. Field values reflect the record you query.
How does the Facebook Post Transcript API work?
Send a GET request with your API key and get back clean, structured JSON in our unified schema. Supported computed fields are populated when the source provides the required inputs.
Method
GET
Response
JSON
How do you scrape social media data in seconds?
The fastest social media scraping API for developers. Scrape profiles, posts, comments, and analytics from 69 platforms covering 10B+ monthly active users.
One schema, every platform
Query 69 platforms with identical response structures. Write your integration once.
Computed fields, not just scraped
When an endpoint supports these metrics and the source provides the required inputs, the normalized record includes engagement_rate, estimated_reach, content_category, and language. Ready to use.
See your data before you code
Visual Data Explorer. Paste any URL, get rich result cards, sortable tables, CSV export.
import requests
response = requests.get(
'https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/tiktok/profile',
params={'handle': 'charlidamelio'},
headers={'x-api-key': 'sc_YOUR_API_KEY'}
)
data = response.json(){
"success": true,
"platform": "tiktok",
"data": {
"author": {
"username": "charlidamelio",
"followers": 152400000
},
"engagement": {
"likes": 12400000000,
"engagement_rate": 0.087
},
"metadata": {
"language": "en",
"content_category": "lifestyle"
}
}
}Have a question? We got answers
Find answers to frequently asked questions about SocialCrawl's API, pricing, and capabilities.
Contact usHow do I get a Facebook video transcript via API?
What videos are supported?
How much does a Facebook transcript cost?
Can I use transcripts for AI summarization?
Is the transcript timecoded?
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