YouTube Transcript Loader for Claude Code

A Claude Code slash command that downloads YouTube video transcripts and loads them directly into your conversation context for AI-assisted analysis.

What This Does

• Downloads transcripts from any YouTube video
• Loads the transcript text into Claude Code automatically
• Supports multiple languages
• Works with a simple /load-yt-transcript command

Perfect for: summarizing videos, translating content, extracting insights, or analyzing spoken content with AI assistance.

Prerequisites

You need these installed on your computer:

1. Claude Code - Download from claude.ai/code
2. UV - Python package installer (installation instructions)

Installing UV (Quick Guide)

macOS/Linux:

curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

Windows:

powershell -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

Installation

Option 1: Quick Install (Copy Files)

1. Download this repository (click the green "Code" button → "Download ZIP")

2. Locate your Claude Code global commands folder:

   • macOS/Linux: ~/.claude/commands/
   • Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.claude\commands\

3. Copy the command file:

   # Create the directory if it doesn't exist
   mkdir -p ~/.claude/commands/
   
   # Copy the command file
   cp .claude/commands/load-yt-transcript.md ~/.claude/commands/

4. Copy the script to your path:

   # macOS/Linux - choose one location:
   sudo cp yt-transcript.py /usr/local/bin/yt-transcript
   # OR
   cp yt-transcript.py ~/bin/yt-transcript
   
   # Make it executable
   chmod +x /usr/local/bin/yt-transcript  # or ~/bin/yt-transcript

   # Windows - copy to a location in your PATH
   # Example: C:\Users\YourName\bin\
   copy yt-transcript.py %USERPROFILE%\bin\yt-transcript.py

Option 2: Git Clone (For Developers)

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/claude-code-yt-transcript.git
cd claude-code-yt-transcript

# Create global commands directory
mkdir -p ~/.claude/commands/

# Symlink the command (automatically updates with git pulls)
ln -s "$(pwd)/.claude/commands/load-yt-transcript.md" ~/.claude/commands/

# Install script globally
chmod +x yt-transcript.py
sudo ln -s "$(pwd)/yt-transcript.py" /usr/local/bin/yt-transcript

Usage

In Claude Code

Once installed, use the command anywhere in Claude Code:

# Load a transcript into the conversation
/load-yt-transcript "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ"

# Just the video ID works too
/load-yt-transcript "dQw4w9WgXcQ"

# List available languages first
/load-yt-transcript "VIDEO_ID" --list-languages

# Load a specific language
/load-yt-transcript "VIDEO_ID" --lang es

# Save to a file (and load into context)
/load-yt-transcript "VIDEO_ID" --output transcript.txt

After the transcript loads, you can ask Claude to:

• "Summarize this video"
• "Translate this to Spanish"
• "Extract the key points"
• "Create a blog post from this content"

Standalone Script

You can also use the script directly in your terminal:

# Download and display transcript
yt-transcript "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"

# List available languages
yt-transcript "VIDEO_ID" --list-languages

# Download specific language
yt-transcript "VIDEO_ID" --lang es

# Save to file
yt-transcript "VIDEO_ID" --output transcript.txt

Troubleshooting

Command not found in Claude Code

1. Check that the file is in the correct location:

   ls ~/.claude/commands/load-yt-transcript.md

2. Restart Claude Code

3. Verify the command file is valid:

   cat ~/.claude/commands/load-yt-transcript.md

Script not found (yt-transcript: command not found)

1. Check if the script is in your PATH:

   which yt-transcript

2. Make sure it's executable:

   chmod +x /usr/local/bin/yt-transcript

3. Verify UV is installed:

   uv --version

No transcripts available

Some videos don't have transcripts. Try:

• Videos with auto-generated captions (most English videos)
• Videos with manual captions/subtitles
• Use --list-languages to see what's available

Permission denied

On macOS/Linux, you might need to use sudo:

sudo cp yt-transcript.py /usr/local/bin/yt-transcript

Or use a user-writable location like ~/bin/ (make sure it's in your PATH).

How It Works

1. The Claude Code command runs the Python script
2. The script uses youtube-transcript-api to fetch transcripts
3. The transcript text is automatically loaded into your Claude Code conversation
4. You can immediately ask questions or request analysis

No configuration files needed - dependencies are managed automatically by UV inline script system.

Features

• ✅ Zero configuration - works immediately after installation
• ✅ Automatic dependency management (UV handles everything)
• ✅ Multiple language support
• ✅ Smart fallback (English → first available)
• ✅ Direct integration with Claude Code
• ✅ Standalone script also works in terminal

Files

• .claude/commands/load-yt-transcript.md - Claude Code slash command definition
• yt-transcript.py - Main Python script (UV inline dependencies)
• spec.md - Complete technical specification
• CLAUDE.md - Development guide for Claude Code

Contributing

See CLAUDE.md for development guidelines and architecture details.

License

MIT License - feel free to use and modify as needed.