Comparison
BulkTranscripts vs TranscriptAPI
Both give you YouTube transcripts, search, channel and playlist listings over REST and MCP. The differences are who they are built for and how you pay.
Short version
Pick TranscriptAPI if you are a developer with a steady monthly volume and want a subscription with a fast, YouTube-only API. Pick BulkTranscripts if you also need a no-code way to pull a whole channel into a file, if your usage is bursty enough that a monthly plan wastes credits, or if you want repeat reads to cost nothing.
Side by side
| BulkTranscripts | TranscriptAPI | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | People and agents: a bulk web app plus the API, MCP and skill | Developers calling an API; MCP and agent skills on top |
| Free tier | 30 free transcripts, no card, no account for the web app | 100 free credits to try the API (homepage) |
| Paid pricing | One-time packs: $4.99 for 200, $14.99 for 1,200, $29 for 5,000. Credits never expire | Monthly plan from $5 for 1,000 credits; annual $54 per year; top-ups $2.50 per 1,000 monthly or $1.50 per 1,000 annual |
| What a credit buys | 1 credit per transcript the first time it enters your library; repeat reads and re-exports are free | 1 credit per successful paid request; failed and rate-limited requests cost 0 |
| Whole channel or playlist without code | Whole channel or playlist in one job, up to 1,000 videos, with live progress | List the channel or playlist via the API, then fetch each transcript yourself |
| Exports for humans | TXT, Markdown, SRT, VTT, CSV, JSON, or one combined AI-ready file | JSON or text from the API; you write the files |
| Search and listings | YouTube search, channel search, channel and playlist listings, free new-upload check | YouTube search, channel search, channel and playlist listings, free channel resolve and latest uploads |
| MCP server | Hosted, OAuth sign-in or license key, 7 tools | Hosted MCP for Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and others |
| Other platforms | YouTube channels, playlists and videos; single TikTok videos | YouTube only |
Where TranscriptAPI is the better fit
TranscriptAPI is a focused developer product. It advertises a 49 ms median response, bills only on successful requests, and its annual top-up price of $1.50 per 1,000 is hard to beat at high steady volume. If you are ingesting tens of thousands of transcripts a month into your own pipeline and never need a file a human can open, it is a strong choice.
Where BulkTranscripts is the better fit
Most people who search for a transcript API are actually trying to get a whole channel into NotebookLM, Claude or a spreadsheet. BulkTranscripts does that job without code: paste the channel, press go, download one combined file. The same engine is exposed as a REST API, a hosted MCP server and an agent skill, so the developer path is there when you want it. Credits are bought once and never expire, and anything already in your library is free to read again, which matters when an agent re-asks about the same videos.
Cost at typical volumes
For a one-off project of 1,000 transcripts, BulkTranscripts is $14.99 once against TranscriptAPI's $5 monthly plan, so TranscriptAPI is cheaper if you cancel after a month and more expensive if you forget to. For 5,000 transcripts spread over a year, BulkTranscripts is $29 once; TranscriptAPI's annual plan plus top-ups lands in a similar range. Above that, TranscriptAPI's per-thousand top-ups are cheaper. Check both pricing pages before deciding; these figures are a 2026-09-08 snapshot.
Try the bulk side of the comparison
Questions
Is BulkTranscripts an API like TranscriptAPI?
Yes. The REST API, MCP server and agent skill cover transcripts, batch transcripts, YouTube search, channel search, channel and playlist listings, and a free new-upload check. The web app and Chrome extension sit on top of the same engine.
Do BulkTranscripts credits expire?
No. Packs are one-time purchases and the balance never expires. TranscriptAPI sells monthly and annual plans.
Which is cheaper?
It depends on volume and cadence. Bursty or one-off work favours one-time credits; steady high monthly volume favours TranscriptAPI's annual top-ups. Both figures above are from public pricing pages on 2026-09-08.
Can I move from one to the other?
Both return plain transcript text with timestamps, so the data is portable. Only the API shapes differ.