Will your app fit the
YouTube API quota?
Enter your daily volume and see how much of the YouTube Data API v3 quota it uses, where it runs out, and what the same volume costs with no daily quota.
Your daily volume
Official YouTube Data API
Over the separate daily search allowance by 200 calls.
1.5% of the 10,000 daily units
- videos.list40 units
- channels.list4 units
- commentThreads.list50 units
- playlistItems.list60 units
This volume does not fit the default quota. You would need to apply for a quota increase.
Official limits as of October 2026.
Scavio YouTube API
No daily quota. Every request is billed in credits.
3,650
credits / day
109,500
credits / month (30 days)
$399 / month
Growth plan billed yearly, covers 200,000 credits (you need 109,500)
Usage value: $219 / month at $2 per 1,000 credits.
Transcripts work on any public video with captions (5 credits each). Search is 2 credits per page; video, channel, comment-page and upload-page requests are 1 credit.
Get an API key50 free credits to start
Why YouTube API projects run out of quota
As of October 2026, a YouTube Data API v3 project gets 10,000 quota units a day for most endpoints and a separate allowance of 100 search.list calls a day. Lookups are cheap when you batch them: one videos.list call can carry many video IDs for a single unit. Search is what runs out first. An app that runs a few hundred keyword searches a day hits the ceiling before lunch.
Transcripts are the other wall. captions.download costs 200 units and only works for users with permission to edit the video, so the official API cannot return captions for other channels' videos at any quota.
This calculator applies the official limits to your volume and prices the same work on the Scavio YouTube API, which bills per request in credits and has no daily quota.
How to use the YouTube quota calculator
- 1
Enter your daily volume
Type how many searches, video lookups, channel lookups, comments, upload-list items and transcripts your app needs per day.
- 2
Read the official quota
The calculator batches requests the way the official API allows and shows search calls against the separate 100-a-day search allowance and everything else against the 10,000 daily units.
- 3
Compare the credit cost
The right-hand column prices the same volume on the Scavio YouTube API, which has no daily quota, in credits per day, credits per month and dollars per month.
Frequently asked questions
What is the default YouTube Data API quota?+
As of October 2026, Google gives each project 10,000 quota units per day for most endpoints, plus separate daily allowances of 100 search.list calls and 100 videos.insert calls. Quota resets at midnight Pacific Time.
How much does a YouTube API search cost?+
As of October 2026, search.list has its own bucket: 100 calls per day by default, separate from the 10,000 units. Older guides quote 100 units per search; Google's quota page now lists search as a separate daily allowance, so 100 searches a day is the ceiling either way.
What does 'quota exceeded' mean?+
The API returns a 403 quotaExceeded error once your project has used its daily allowance. Requests keep failing until the quota resets at midnight Pacific Time, or until Google approves a quota extension request for your project.
Can I get video transcripts from the official API?+
Only for videos you can edit. As of October 2026, captions.download costs 200 units and requires authorization from a user with permission to edit the video, so you cannot download captions for other channels' videos with the official API.
How does the calculator count video and channel lookups?+
videos.list and channels.list accept a comma-separated list of IDs, so the calculator batches 50 IDs per 1-unit call. Comments are counted at 100 per commentThreads.list page and upload lists at 50 per playlistItems.list page, the official maximums.
How is the Scavio cost calculated?+
Each Scavio request has a fixed credit cost: search is 2 credits a page, video, channel, comment-page and upload-page requests are 1 credit, and a transcript is 5 credits. Monthly cost is shown at $2 per 1,000 credits, the Growth plan billed yearly, alongside the smallest plan that covers your volume.
Are the page sizes the same on both APIs?+
No. Scavio comment pages return about 20 comments and channel upload pages about 30 videos, and a search page returns one page of results. The calculator uses those page sizes for the Scavio column, so the comparison is per item, not per request.
Does Scavio have a daily limit?+
There is no daily quota. Your plan sets a monthly credit allowance and a request rate per second; you can buy more credits at any time.
How do I request a higher YouTube quota?+
Google reviews quota extensions through the YouTube API Services audit and quota extension form. The review checks your app against the YouTube API Services Terms and can take weeks; approval is not guaranteed.
Is this calculator free?+
Yes. It runs entirely in your browser, makes no API calls and has no usage limit.
Build with the YouTube API, no daily quota
Search, video details, comments, channel uploads and transcripts for any public video, billed per request in credits.