YouTube Playlist API
Returns the videos in a playlist in playlist order: video id, title, thumbnail, channel and publish date. include=engagement adds views, likes, comments and duration.
GET /v1/youtube/playlistLast updated November 2026Maintained by the SocialCrawl team
When to use the YouTube Playlist API
Use it when you have a playlist id. Same rows as playlist/items from the same source; this lane has a second source behind it, so prefer it when availability matters.
From the API reference
Returns the videos in a YouTube playlist in playlist order: video id, title, thumbnail, the video's own channel (post.author.display_name, post.ext.channel_id) and its publish date, plus a cursor for the next page. YouTube's playlist listing carries no view, like or comment counts and no duration, so on a plain call those are null. Send include=engagement and every row is joined, in the same call, to the per-video lookup that carries them, and include=channel adds each video's channel subscriber count; each costs 1 credit per distinct video or channel filled, at most 5 per page. This endpoint and /v1/youtube/playlist/items return the same rows from the same source; this one additionally has a second source behind it, so prefer it when availability matters.
Searching 69 platforms in parallel
What can you do with the Playlist API?
The Playlist endpoint gives you structured YouTube data with computed fields in a single request. No scraping infrastructure to build or maintain.
Example Request
# GET /v1/youtube/playlist: Metered: holds 1 credit per page 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 60: the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
# --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.
# Next page: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until pagination.has_more is false.
IDEMPOTENCY_KEY=$(od -An -N16 -tx1 /dev/urandom | tr -d ' \n')
curl -sS --max-time 60 --retry 3 -o response.json \
-H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Idempotency-Key: $IDEMPOTENCY_KEY" \
"https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/youtube/playlist?playlist_id=PLrAXtmErZgOeiKm4sgNOknGvNjby9efdf" && cat response.json# GET /v1/youtube/playlist: Metered: holds 1 credit per page 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 = 60 # the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
MAX_RETRIES = 3
URL = "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/youtube/playlist"
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 = {
"playlist_id": "PLrAXtmErZgOeiKm4sgNOknGvNjby9efdf",
}
# Walk the list: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until has_more is false.
MAX_PAGES = 10 # each page is one call
items = []
for _ in range(MAX_PAGES):
body = socialcrawl(params)
if body is None:
break
items.extend(body["data"]["items"])
page = body.get("pagination") or {}
if not page.get("has_more") or not page.get("next_cursor"):
break
params["cursor"] = page["next_cursor"]
print(f"{len(items)} items")// GET /v1/youtube/playlist: Metered: holds 1 credit per page 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 = 60_000; // the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
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 ${body.request_id})`);
}
// Retry-After (seconds) wins; otherwise back off.
await sleep(retryAfter ? Number(retryAfter) * 1000 : backoffMs(attempt));
}
}
const url = new URL("https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/youtube/playlist");
url.searchParams.set("playlist_id", "PLrAXtmErZgOeiKm4sgNOknGvNjby9efdf");
// Walk the list: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until has_more is false.
const MAX_PAGES = 10; // each page is one call
const items: unknown[] = [];
for (let page = 0; page < MAX_PAGES; page++) {
const body = await socialcrawl(url);
if (!body) break;
items.push(...body.data.items);
const next = body.pagination?.next_cursor;
if (!body.pagination?.has_more || !next) break;
url.searchParams.set("cursor", next);
}
console.log(`${items.length} items`);Parameters
| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| playlist_id | Yes | YouTube playlist ID |
| cursor | No | Pagination cursor from a previous response: fetches the next page. |
| channel_id | No | YouTube channel id: pages that channel's uploads instead of a playlist. |
| include | No | Set to `engagement`, `channel`, or both (`engagement,channel`) to fill more of every row in this one call. `engagement` fills `post.engagement.views`, `.likes` and `.comments`, `post.content.duration_seconds`, `post.ext.channel_id` and `post.author.display_name` where the row lacks them, and replaces a date derived from a label such as "4 months ago" with the exact publish time (removing `post.ext.published_precision`). `channel` puts the channel's subscriber count on `post.ext.author_followers` (YouTube's own figure, which it rounds to three significant figures above 1,000) and fills the channel's `post.author.display_name`, `.avatar_url` and `.username` where missing. It also adds the country the channel's owner set, as an ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code on `post.ext.author_country` (null when the channel sets none). Send both to cover rows that arrive without a channel id: the video join supplies it and the channel join then uses it. Each join costs 1 credit per distinct video or channel it filled, and never more than 5 per 50; ids that could not be filled are refunded. Each join adds 0.2 to 0.7 seconds on a fresh page (one lookup per 50 ids, never more than 8 seconds). Read `data.hydration` for the rows, lookups, credits held and kept, and the time. |
| since | No | Only rows published on or after this date: YYYY-MM-DD (midnight UTC) or an ISO 8601 timestamp. Rows older than it are left off each page. This list is not in date order, so the walk does not stop at the date: keep following `next_cursor`, and each page costs what a page costs even when every row on it is filtered out. A row with no date is kept. `published_after`, `start_date`, `from_date`, `publish_time` (`yesterday`, `this-week`, `this-month`, `last-3-months`, `last-6-months`) and `max_age_days` are accepted and applied as `since`. |
| until | No | Only rows published on or before this date: YYYY-MM-DD (that whole UTC day is included) or an ISO 8601 timestamp. Newer rows are left off each page and the walk does not stop, so older pages follow. A row with no date is kept. `published_before`, `end_date` and `to_date` are accepted and applied as `until`. |
| max_pages | No | 1 to 50 (default 1, or 50 when `max_items` or `max_credits` is sent). Walk up to this many pages in one call and return the rows from all of them. Each page walked is billed exactly as one call to this endpoint (a cached page is free) and counts against your rate limit; its charge and any refund are recorded under the page's own request id, listed in `data.walk.request_ids`. The walk stops early at the last page, or when the request's time budget runs low; `data.walk.stopped` says why (`end`, `max_pages`, `max_items`, `max_credits`, `time_budget`, `page_error`) and `pagination.next_cursor` continues from where it stopped. |
| max_items | No | 1 to 5000. Get more in one call: keep walking pages until the response holds at least this many rows, then stop with `data.walk.stopped: "max_items"`. The last page is returned whole (it was billed), so `data.items` can hold up to one page more than this, and `pagination.next_cursor` resumes right after it without skipping a row. Walks up to 50 pages unless `max_pages` says fewer; each page is billed as one call (a cached page is free). Add `max_credits` to cap the spend. A long walk can stop on the time budget first (`"time_budget"`): send the returned cursor with the same params to continue. |
| max_credits | No | 1 to 100000. The most this call may spend, across every page it walks. A page starts only while the credits already spent plus that page's price (or, when higher, the most any page of this walk has cost) still fit, so the call never goes past it; the walk then stops with `data.walk.stopped: "max_credits"` and the cursor to resume. Sent alone, it walks as far as the budget goes (up to 50 pages). A value below the price of one page is a free 400 whose `error.details.page_credits` names that price. Credits a row join (`include=`) adds are known only once a page has run, so page 1 is checked against its own price. |
What does the YouTube Playlist 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": "youtube",
"endpoint": "/v1/youtube/playlist",
"data": {
"items": [
{
"post": {
"id": "0VH1Lim8gL8",
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VH1Lim8gL8",
"content": {
"text": "Sample comment text (redacted).",
"media_urls": null,
"thumbnail_url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/0VH1Lim8gL8/hqdefault.jpg",
"duration_seconds": null
},
"author": {
"username": null,
"display_name": "user_1cfeef",
"avatar_url": null,
"verified": null
},
"engagement": {
"views": null,
"likes": null,
"comments": null,
"shares": null,
"saves": null
},
"flags": {
"nsfw": null,
"spoiler": null,
"pinned": null,
"deleted": false
},
"published_at": "2020-01-10T16:04:31.000Z",
"ext": {
"position": 0,
"playlistId": "PLrAXtmErZgOeiKm4sgNOknGvNjby9efdf",
"videoOwnerChannelId": "UCSHZKyawb77ixDdsGog4iWA",
"videoPublishedAt": "2020-01-10T16:04:31Z",
"description": "Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted).",
"playlist_item_id": "UExyQVh0bUVyWmdPZWlLbTRzZ05Pa25Hdk5qYnk5ZWZkZi4yMUQyQTQzMjRDNzMyQTMy",
"playlist_owner_channel_id": "UCSHZKyawb77ixDdsGog4iWA",
"playlist_owner_title": "Lex Fridman",
"channel_id": "UCSHZKyawb77ixDdsGog4iWA"
}
},
"computed": {
"engagement_rate": null,
"language": "en",
"content_category": "other",
"estimated_reach": null
}
},
{
"post": {
"id": "O5xeyoRL95U",
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5xeyoRL95U",
"content": {
"text": "Sample comment text (redacted).",
"media_urls": null,
"thumbnail_url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/O5xeyoRL95U/hqdefault.jpg",
"duration_seconds": null
},
"author": {
"username": null,
"display_name": "user_1cfeef",
"avatar_url": null,
"verified": null
},
"engagement": {
"views": null,
"likes": null,
"comments": null,
"shares": null,
"saves": null
},
"flags": {
"nsfw": null,
"spoiler": null,
"pinned": null,
"deleted": false
},
"published_at": "2019-01-11T16:47:40.000Z",
"ext": {
"position": 1,
"playlistId": "PLrAXtmErZgOeiKm4sgNOknGvNjby9efdf",
"videoOwnerChannelId": "UCSHZKyawb77ixDdsGog4iWA",
"videoPublishedAt": "2019-01-11T16:47:40Z",
"description": "Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted).",
"playlist_item_id": "UExyQVh0bUVyWmdPZWlLbTRzZ05Pa25Hdk5qYnk5ZWZkZi4zMDg5MkQ5MEVDMEM1NTg2",
"playlist_owner_channel_id": "UCSHZKyawb77ixDdsGog4iWA",
"playlist_owner_title": "Lex Fridman",
"channel_id": "UCSHZKyawb77ixDdsGog4iWA"
}
},
"computed": {
"engagement_rate": null,
"language": null,
"content_category": "other",
"estimated_reach": null
}
}
],
"total": 2,
"dropped": 0
},
"credits_used": 1,
"request_id": "req_example000000",
"cached": false,
"pagination": {
"next_cursor": null,
"has_more": false,
"page_size": 2
},
"credits_remaining": 9999,
"source": "captured",
"captured_at": "2026-10-02T07:29:59.833Z",
"redacted": true
}Live sample illustrating the unified response shape. Field values reflect the record you query.
How does the YouTube Playlist 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
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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 every video in a YouTube playlist?
Where do I find a YouTube playlist ID?
What fields come back for each video in the playlist?
Does this work for 'Watch later' or private playlists?
How much does one playlist request cost?
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