The YouTube Data V3 API is completely "free". You have a default quota limit (quite limited even for small projects) and you can see here how it is consumed based on how you make use of the API.

Answer from E-Berry on Stack Overflow
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Google
developers.google.com โ€บ youtube โ€บ data api โ€บ quota calculator
Quota Calculator | YouTube Data API | Google for Developers
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-12-04 UTC."],[],["API requests have quota costs, with a minimum of one point per request, even if invalid. Retrieving multiple result pages from methods like `search.list` costs quota for each page. Live Streaming API methods, part of the YouTube Data API, also incur costs.
People also ask

What is the YouTube Data API pricing?
The YouTube Data API v3 is free but uses quotas. For example, a search request costs 100 units, while retrieving video details costs 1 unit.
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getphyllo.com
getphyllo.com โ€บ post โ€บ is-the-youtube-api-free-costs-limits-iv
Is the YouTube API Free? Costs, Limits, and What You Actually Get
What is the cost of using the YouTube API?
The YouTube API is free but operates on a quota system. Each request consumes units, with a daily limit of 10,000 units by default.
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getphyllo.com
getphyllo.com โ€บ post โ€บ is-the-youtube-api-free-costs-limits-iv
Is the YouTube API Free? Costs, Limits, and What You Actually Get
Is the YouTube API free for developers?
Yes, the YouTube API is free for all developers, provided they stay within the quota limits.
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getphyllo.com
getphyllo.com โ€บ post โ€บ is-the-youtube-api-free-costs-limits-iv
Is the YouTube API Free? Costs, Limits, and What You Actually Get
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Reddit
reddit.com โ€บ r/googlecloud โ€บ has anyone increased their youtube data v3 api quota before? what's the highest quota you have been granted?
r/googlecloud on Reddit: Has anyone increased their YouTube Data V3 API quota before? What's the highest quota you have been granted?
March 26, 2024 -

I've currently got 100k quota (received an increase). But I can't really scale it at the moment because costs are high for quota (e.g posting a comment is 50 unitsx20 comments day = 100 users). I'd like to know if anyone has received any quota beyond this, thanks!

https://developers.google.com/youtube/v3/determine_quota_cost

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RapidAPI
rapidapi.com โ€บ ytdlfree โ€บ api โ€บ youtube-v31 โ€บ pricing
Youtube v3
Without any api key use YT api v3 functionalities through our api. Just follow the YT api v3 docs and send same parameters to our service, get same response. For custom plan, please contact us. For quick chat: https://t.me/api_chat_support
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Google Cloud
console.cloud.google.com โ€บ marketplace โ€บ product โ€บ google โ€บ youtube.googleapis.com
YouTube Data API v3 โ€“ Marketplace
Spend smart, procure faster and retire committed Google Cloud spend with Google Cloud Marketplace. Browse the catalog of over 2000 SaaS, VMs, development stacks, and Kubernetes apps optimized to run on Google Cloud.
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Google Groups
groups.google.com โ€บ g โ€บ google-api-objectivec-client โ€บ c โ€บ -xhvHwtI25o
YouTube API v3 - API request quotas, costs, pricing, rates
The docs for the apis and/or the developer console for enabling apis would be where you are more likely to find information about quotas and costs. ... Either email addresses are anonymous for this group or you need the view member email addresses permission to view the original message ... Thanks for the response. Google provides an excellent Youtube quota calculator.
Find elsewhere
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Elfsight
elfsight.com โ€บ blog โ€บ youtube-data-api-v3-limits-operations-resources-methods-etc
Your Complete Guide to YouTube Data API v3 โ€“ Quotas, Methods, and More
4 weeks ago - Learn YouTube Data API v3 quota limits, cost structure, HTTP methods, authentication, and optimization techniques. Includes real scenarios and quota increase strategies.
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ProxiesAPI
proxiesapi.com โ€บ articles โ€บ accessing-youtube-apis-pricing-quotas-and-keys
Accessing YouTube APIs: Pricing, Quotas and Keys | ProxiesAPI
The YouTube API allows free access for non-commercial use, but there are daily request quotas. To increase quotas, register and get an API key. Paid plans are available for larger user bases. Be aware of potential changes and restrictions.
Top answer
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23

In addition to the answer by DaImTo I can add that if you don't need all of the YouTube API functionality (e.g. you only need to get video titles and thumbnails or something like that) then you don't need to be worried about the API restrictions at all, and you don't even need to use an API key.

I add this because a lot of people only need to get some basic data and get confused by all of the crazy API limits restrictions that keep changing all the time to make things worse, when you can get the same data without using the YouTube API directly.

You can get oEmbed data from YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/oembed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

Or you can access it via Noembed:

https://noembed.com/embed?url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

which (unlike YouTube) also supports JSONP:

https://noembed.com/embed?callback=example&url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

so that you can use it on the client-side with no need for server-side proxies.

See also those answers for more info:

  • Youtube Video title with API v3 without API key?
  • Get Youtube information via JSON for single video (not feed) in Javascript
  • Response for JSONp request to youtube oembed call giving "invalid label" error
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The YouTube Data API uses a quota to ensure that developers use the service as intended and do not create applications that unfairly reduce service quality or limit access for others. All API requests, including invalid requests, incur at least a one-point quota cost.

The cost they are referring to is the cost against your quota.

  • 1,000,000 read operations that each retrieve two resource parts.
  • 50,000 write operations and 450,000 additional read operations that each retrieve two resource parts.
  • 2000 video uploads, 7000 write operations, and 200,000 read operations that each retrieve three resource parts.

There are a limited number of requests you are allowed to make against the API each day. This is free for you to use it does not cost you any money to use this. Some of the Google APIs may allow you to extend this quota but will charge you for the extension but this depends upon the API.

Info from the Youtube API Quota documentation

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Google
developers.google.com โ€บ youtube โ€บ data api โ€บ youtube data api overview
YouTube Data API Overview | Google for Developers
The YouTube Data API uses a quota to ensure that developers use the service as intended and do not create applications that unfairly reduce service quality or limit access for others. All API requests, including invalid requests, incur at least a one-point quota cost.
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Scipress
scipress.io โ€บ post โ€บ jBCHKfSChrZWch9DFSwa โ€บ YouTube-Data-API
YouTube Data API - Scipress
You'll need to provide a credit card in order to use Google Cloud. However, **the YouTube data API is 100% free** :smiley:
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Getlate
getlate.dev โ€บ blog โ€บ youtube-api-limits-how-to-calculate-api-usage-cost-and-fix-exceeded-api-quota
YouTube API Quota Exceeded? Here's How to Fix It [2025]
September 27, 2025 - This one trips a lot of people up. The YouTube Data API v3 is free to use, but it's not unlimited. Your "cost" is measured in quota units, not actual dollars.
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Google Cloud
console.cloud.google.com โ€บ apis โ€บ library โ€บ youtube.googleapis.com
YouTube Data API v3 โ€“ APIs and services
Google Cloud Console has failed to load JavaScript sources from www.gstatic.com. Possible reasons are:www.gstatic.com or its IP addresses are blocked by your network administratorGoogle has temporarily blocked your account or network due to excessive automated requestsPlease contact your network ...
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Faj News
getbelayed.org โ€บ blog โ€บ youtube-api-free-access-explained
YouTube API: Free Access Explained
October 23, 2025 - Hey guys, ever wondered if YouTube has a free API? The short answer is YES, but with some important caveats you'll want to know about. For most developers just starting out or working on personal projects, the YouTube Data API v3 offers a generous free tier that's more than enough to get your feet wet.