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TikTok Video Screen Text API

Returns the text shown on the video itself: native text stickers plus AI OCR of the cover frame, so burned-in editor captions are caught too.

GET /v1/tiktok/video/screen-text

Last updated November 2026Maintained by the SocialCrawl team

When to use the TikTok Video Screen Text API

Use it for the on-screen overlay text; the caption lives on post and the spoken words on post/transcript.

From the API reference

Extracts the text shown ON a TikTok post itself: the overlay captions creators put on screen, which the regular caption and transcript never carry. Two layers are merged: native text-sticker data (present when the creator used TikTok's built-in text tool) and AI OCR of the post's images, which also catches text burned in with editors like CapCut that no data provider returns. What the OCR layer reads depends on the post. On a video, the cover frame by default, so text that appears later in the video is not read; with frames=all the whole video is read instead, up to 3 minutes (180 seconds), and the response adds subtitles (on-screen captions of the speech, kept apart from texts), a timeline of every text block with at_seconds, the second it first appears, and kind (text or subtitle), and duration_seconds. On a photo post (pass its /photo/ link), every slide in order, 10 slides a call: the first 10 by default, and the next 10 with slide_offset=10; a longer photo post's response carries a warning giving its full slide count, and slide_offset and next_slide_offset say where this call started and which offset reads the rest (null when every slide has been read). texts is the deduplicated union in reading order; native_texts and ocr_texts expose each layer separately and source says which layers produced data. On a photo post, images lists each slide read with its own texts and its 0-based index, so you know which slide said what. A post with no on-screen text returns an empty texts array (that is a real answer, not an error). Costs 5 credits for a video's cover or for each call on a photo post (10 slides), and 10 credits for a whole video with frames=all; auto-refunds when the post lookup or the whole extraction fails, or when a parameter does not fit the post.

Searching 69 platforms in parallel

·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
·TikTok logoTikTok·Instagram logoInstagram·YouTube logoYouTube·Facebook logoFacebook·X logoX·LinkedIn logoLinkedIn·Reddit logoReddit·Threads logoThreads·Pinterest logoPinterest·Twitch logoTwitch·Truth Social logoTruth Social·Snapchat logoSnapchat·Kick logoKick·Bluesky logoBluesky·Kwai logoKwai·Rumble logoRumble·Spotify logoSpotify·Apple Music logoApple Music·TikTok Shop logoTikTok Shop·Amazon Shop logoAmazon Shop·Google Shopping logoGoogle Shopping·Trustpilot logoTrustpilot·TripAdvisor logoTripAdvisor·Yelp logoYelp·Linktree logoLinktree·Komi logoKomi·Pillar logoPillar·lnk.bio logolnk.bio·Facebook Ads logoFacebook Ads·Google Ads logoGoogle Ads·LinkedIn Ads logoLinkedIn Ads·Google Search logoGoogle Search·Google News logoGoogle News·Finance logoFinance·Polymarket logoPolymarket·Tavily logoTavily·Hacker News logoHacker News·GitHub logoGitHub·Perplexity logoPerplexity·Naver logoNaver·Utility logoUtility·Universal Search logoUniversal Search
TikTok API

What can you do with the Video Screen Text API?

The Video Screen Text endpoint gives you structured TikTok data with computed fields in a single request. No scraping infrastructure to build or maintain.

Example Request

# GET /v1/tiktok/video/screen-text: Metered: holds 5 credits per call up front and refunds what the call does not use. 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 15: 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 15 --retry 3 -o response.json \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $IDEMPOTENCY_KEY" \
  "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/tiktok/video/screen-text?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40stoolpresidente%2Fvideo%2F7499229683859426602" && cat response.json
# GET /v1/tiktok/video/screen-text: Metered: holds 5 credits per call up front and refunds what the call does not use. 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 = 15  # this endpoint's measured p99 latency x 1.5.
MAX_RETRIES = 3
URL = "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/tiktok/video/screen-text"


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.tiktok.com/@stoolpresidente/video/7499229683859426602",
}
body = socialcrawl(params)
if body is not None:
    print(body["data"])
// GET /v1/tiktok/video/screen-text: Metered: holds 5 credits per call up front and refunds what the call does not use. 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 = 15_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/tiktok/video/screen-text");
url.searchParams.set("url", "https://www.tiktok.com/@stoolpresidente/video/7499229683859426602");

const body = await socialcrawl(url);
if (body) console.log(body.data);

Parameters

ParameterRequiredDescription
urlYesFull URL of the TikTok video or photo post (a `/video/` or `/photo/` link)
framesNoWhat to read on a video. `cover` (the default) reads the cover frame for 5 credits. `all` reads the whole video, up to 180 seconds, for 10 credits, and adds `subtitles`, `timeline` and `duration_seconds`. Has no effect on photo posts, which are read as usual for 5 credits. (cover | all)
slide_offsetNoPhoto posts only: the 0-based index of the first slide to read, 10 slides a call. Default 0. `slide_offset=10` reads slides 11 to 20. Each slide in `images` keeps its index in the whole post, and `next_slide_offset` gives the value for the next call.
Example Response

What does the TikTok Video Screen Text API return?

This example shows the endpoint's response shape and fields. Values are illustrative; this is not a live capture.

Example response
{
  "success": true,
  "platform": "tiktok",
  "endpoint": "/v1/tiktok/video/screen-text",
  "data": {
    "video_id": "7660536627479022870",
    "url": "https://www.tiktok.com/@disneymusic/video/7660536627479022870",
    "texts": [
      "Enjoy 57 minutes of Nostalgic \nDISNEY Songs"
    ],
    "native_texts": [
      "Enjoy 57 minutes of Nostalgic \nDISNEY Songs"
    ],
    "ocr_texts": [
      "Enjoy 57 minutes of Nostalgic DISNEY Songs"
    ],
    "source": "native+ocr",
    "media_type": "video",
    "frame": "cover"
  },
  "credits_used": 5,
  "credits_remaining": 95,
  "request_id": "req-a1b2c3d4e5f6",
  "cached": false
}

Illustrative fixture for the documented response shape. Values are examples, not a production capture.

API Details

How does the TikTok Video Screen Text 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

Why SocialCrawl

Why use SocialCrawl for TikTok Video Screen Text data?

We handle the complexity of TikTok data extraction so you can focus on building. Unified schema, AI enrichment, and zero platform logic in your code.

Developer First

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()
[ .JSON ]
{
  "success": true,
  "platform": "tiktok",
  "data": {
    "author": {
      "username": "charlidamelio",
      "followers": 152400000
    },
    "engagement": {
      "likes": 12400000000,
      "engagement_rate": 0.087
    },
    "metadata": {
      "language": "en",
      "content_category": "lifestyle"
    }
  }
}
+ 69 platforms
FAQ

Have a question? We got answers

Find answers to frequently asked questions about SocialCrawl's API, pricing, and capabilities.

Contact us
What does the TikTok Video Screen Text API return?
Returns the text shown on the video itself: native text stickers plus AI OCR of the cover frame, so burned-in editor captions are caught too. The response uses the same JSON envelope as every SocialCrawl endpoint, with the data, credits_used and request_id fields.
When should I use the TikTok Video Screen Text endpoint?
Use it for the on-screen overlay text; the caption lives on post and the spoken words on post/transcript.
How much does the TikTok Video Screen Text API cost?
The price depends on the request, from 5 to 10 credits per call. Every new account gets 100 free credits. Credits for failed or empty calls are refunded automatically, and there is no subscription.
What parameters does the TikTok Video Screen Text API need?
The one required parameter is url (full URL of the TikTok video or photo post). It also accepts 2 optional parameters, all listed on this page.
How do I call the TikTok Video Screen Text API?
Send a GET request to https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/tiktok/video/screen-text?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40stoolpresidente%2Fvideo%2F7499229683859426602 with your API key in the x-api-key header. An Authorization: Bearer header works too.

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