Privacy policy

Last updated 14 October 2026

youtubetranscripts.io is a free tool that turns a public YouTube video into text. This page explains what the site collects while it does that, why, how long it is kept, and who else is involved. It is written to be read, not skimmed past, so it is short.

Who runs the site

The site is operated by TranscriptFetch, the team behind the TranscriptFetch transcript API, which does the transcription behind this tool. Questions about this policy go to [email protected]. The site is not affiliated with YouTube or Google.

What we collect, and why

The link you paste

When you submit a YouTube link, the link is sent to the TranscriptFetch API, which fetches the public video, runs speech recognition on its audio, and returns the text. The link and the outcome of the request are recorded in a request log so that we can see whether the tool is working and investigate failures. We do not receive or store the video itself beyond the time needed to transcribe it.

The transcript

The finished transcript is shown to you and cached for a limited time, so that the same video requested again does not have to be transcribed twice. Cached transcripts expire automatically. We do not build a library of transcripts and we do not sell or share them.

Your account

An account is optional. It lets you spend credits and keeps a history of the transcripts you fetch so you can open them again. Sign-in is handled by Clerk, which stores your email address and, if you set one, a password; if you sign in with Google, Clerk receives your name and email address from Google. We store your account's credit balance, plan and transcript history. Paid plans are processed by Stripe; we never see your card number.

Abuse and rate-limit signals

The free tool works without an account, so the only way to keep it free is to stop automated abuse. To do that, the page computes a device fingerprint in your browser (a hash derived from properties such as screen size, time zone and installed fonts) and sends it with each request, and our servers keep a hashed form of your IP address. These are used to apply per-visitor limits and to spot bulk scraping. They are not used to identify you by name.

Server logs

Like every website, our servers and hosting provider keep standard access logs: request time, path, status, approximate location derived from the IP address, and browser type. These are used for security and troubleshooting and are retained for a limited period.

Cookies and analytics

The tool itself does not require cookies, and the site shows no advertising. To count visits and see which pages are useful, it sets one first-party cookie, ms_vid, holding a random visitor ID; it is not shared with advertisers. To opt out, open any page with ?notrack=1 added to the address.

If you visit from the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or Switzerland, you will be asked for consent before advertising cookies are set, and you can change that choice at any time from the consent prompt.

Usage analytics

We use Microsoft Clarity to understand how people use the site, so we can fix what gets in their way. Clarity records clicks, scrolling, mouse movement and the pages you view, and builds heatmaps and session replays from them. Text you type into forms is masked before it leaves your browser, except the link field, so we can see which kinds of links people paste. If you are signed in, the session is labelled with your account's internal id, not your name or email. Clarity sets first-party cookies to recognise a returning browser. Microsoft processes this data as described in the Microsoft Privacy Statement; see also Clarity's data practices.

The Chrome extension

YouTube Transcript Extractor, our extension for Chrome, gets transcripts while you are on YouTube, using your youtubetranscripts.io account.

• On YouTube it reads the links, titles, durations and thumbnails of the videos on the page you are on, to list them and to show its transcript card on video pages. This stays in your browser.
• It sends the IDs of the videos you choose to youtubetranscripts.io only when you ask for their transcripts. The transcripts are added to your account's history, as they are on the site.
• It uses the site's own sign-in: it reads and updates the youtubetranscripts.io sign-in cookie, so signing in or out in the extension or on the site does both. If you sign in inside the extension, the email address and the code or password you enter go to Clerk, the same sign-in provider the site uses.
• It keeps its settings and the list of videos you sent to its side panel in Chrome's storage for extensions, on your device.
• It does not read your browsing history, works only on YouTube and youtubetranscripts.io, and contains no advertising or analytics.

Who else sees the data

• TranscriptFetch processes the link and produces the transcript, as described above.
• Speech-recognition providers receive the audio of the video, not any information about you.
• Clerk handles sign-in for accounts and for the Chrome extension.
• Stripe processes payments for paid plans.
• Hosting and network providers carry the traffic and keep the standard logs above.
• Google serves the advertising and receives the signals described in the cookies section.
• Microsoft runs Clarity, the usage analytics described above.

We do not sell personal data and we do not share it with anyone else.

How long things are kept

• Transcript cache: a limited number of days, then deleted automatically.
• Request log entries (the link, the outcome, the hashed identifiers): retained for operational analysis, then aggregated or deleted.
• Server access logs: a limited period set by our hosting provider.
• Your account and its transcript history: until you ask us to delete them.

Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to ask what data we hold about you, to have it deleted, or to object to its use. If you have an account, we find your data by its email address; without one, we can act on such a request only if you can give us something to match, such as the links you submitted and roughly when. Write to [email protected] and we will answer within 30 days.

Children

The site is not directed at children under 13 and we do not knowingly collect data from them.

Changes

If this policy changes, the date at the top changes with it. Material changes will be noted on the tool page for a period after they take effect.