YouTube Automation via Rube MCP

Automate YouTube operations through Composio's YouTube toolkit via Rube MCP.

Prerequisites

Rube MCP must be connected (RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS available)
Active YouTube connection via
```
RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS
```
with toolkit
```
youtube
```
Always call
```
RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS
```
first to get current tool schemas

Setup

Get Rube MCP: Add

https://rube.app/mcp

as an MCP server in your client configuration. No API keys needed — just add the endpoint and it works.

Verify Rube MCP is available by confirming
```
RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS
```
responds
Call
```
RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS
```
with toolkit
```
youtube
```
If connection is not ACTIVE, follow the returned auth link to complete Google OAuth
Confirm connection status shows ACTIVE before running any workflows

Core Workflows

1. Upload and Manage Videos

When to use: User wants to upload a video or update video metadata

Tool sequence:

```
YOUTUBE_UPLOAD_VIDEO
```
- Upload a new video [Required]
```
YOUTUBE_UPDATE_VIDEO
```
- Update title, description, tags, privacy [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_UPDATE_THUMBNAIL
```
- Set a custom thumbnail [Optional]

Key parameters:

```
title
```
: Video title (max 100 characters)
```
description
```
: Video description (max 5000 bytes)
```
tags
```
: Array of keyword tags
```
categoryId
```
: YouTube category ID (e.g., '22' for People & Blogs)
```
privacyStatus
```
: 'public', 'private', or 'unlisted'
```
videoFilePath
```
: Object with
```
{name, mimetype, s3key}
```
for the video file

Pitfalls:

UPLOAD_VIDEO consumes high quota; prefer UPDATE_VIDEO for metadata-only changes
videoFilePath must be an object with s3key, not a raw file path or URL
Tags total must not exceed 500 characters including separators
Angle brackets
```
< >
```
in tags are automatically stripped
Description limit is 5000 bytes, not characters (multibyte chars count more)

2. Search YouTube Content

When to use: User wants to find videos, channels, or playlists

Tool sequence:

```
YOUTUBE_SEARCH_YOU_TUBE
```
- Search for content [Required]
```
YOUTUBE_VIDEO_DETAILS
```
- Get full details for a specific video [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_GET_VIDEO_DETAILS_BATCH
```
- Get details for multiple videos [Optional]

Key parameters:

```
q
```
: Search query (supports exact phrases, exclusions, channel handles)
```
type
```
: 'video', 'channel', or 'playlist'
```
maxResults
```
: Results per page (1-50)
```
pageToken
```
: For pagination

Pitfalls:

Search endpoint only returns 'snippet' part; use VIDEO_DETAILS for statistics
Search results are capped at 500 total items
Search has higher quota cost (100 units) vs list endpoints (1 unit)
BATCH video details practical limit is ~50 IDs per call; chunk larger sets

3. Manage Playlists

When to use: User wants to create playlists or manage playlist contents

Tool sequence:

```
YOUTUBE_LIST_USER_PLAYLISTS
```
- List user's existing playlists [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_CREATE_PLAYLIST
```
- Create a new playlist [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_ADD_VIDEO_TO_PLAYLIST
```
- Add a video to a playlist [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_LIST_PLAYLIST_ITEMS
```
- List videos in a playlist [Optional]

Key parameters:

```
playlistId
```
: Playlist ID ('PL...' for user-created, 'UU...' for uploads)
```
part
```
: Resource parts to include (e.g., 'snippet,contentDetails')
```
maxResults
```
: Items per page (1-50)
```
pageToken
```
: Pagination token from previous response

Pitfalls:

Do NOT pass channel IDs ('UC...') as playlist IDs; convert 'UC' to 'UU' for uploads
Large playlists require pagination via pageToken; follow nextPageToken until absent
items[].id is not the videoId; use items[].snippet.resourceId.videoId
Creating duplicate playlist names is allowed; check existing playlists first

4. Get Channel and Video Analytics

When to use: User wants to analyze channel performance or video metrics

Tool sequence:

```
YOUTUBE_GET_CHANNEL_ID_BY_HANDLE
```
- Resolve a handle to channel ID [Prerequisite]
```
YOUTUBE_GET_CHANNEL_STATISTICS
```
- Get channel subscriber/view/video counts [Required]
```
YOUTUBE_LIST_CHANNEL_VIDEOS
```
- List all videos from a channel [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_GET_VIDEO_DETAILS_BATCH
```
- Get per-video statistics [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_GET_CHANNEL_ACTIVITIES
```
- Get recent channel activities [Optional]

Key parameters:

```
channelId
```
: Channel ID ('UC...'), handle ('@handle'), or 'me'
```
forHandle
```
: Channel handle (e.g., '@Google')
```
id
```
: Comma-separated video IDs for batch details
```
parts
```
: Resource parts to include (e.g., 'snippet,statistics')

Pitfalls:

Channel statistics are lifetime totals, not per-period
BATCH video details may return fewer items than requested for private/deleted videos
Response data may be nested under
```
data
```
or
```
data_preview
```
; parse defensively
contentDetails.duration uses ISO 8601 format (e.g., 'PT4M13S')

5. Manage Subscriptions and Comments

When to use: User wants to subscribe to channels or view video comments

Tool sequence:

```
YOUTUBE_SUBSCRIBE_CHANNEL
```
- Subscribe to a channel [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_UNSUBSCRIBE_CHANNEL
```
- Unsubscribe from a channel [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_LIST_USER_SUBSCRIPTIONS
```
- List subscriptions [Optional]
```
YOUTUBE_LIST_COMMENT_THREADS
```
- List comments on a video [Optional]

Key parameters:

```
channelId
```
: Channel to subscribe/unsubscribe
```
videoId
```
: Video ID for comment threads
```
maxResults
```
: Results per page
```
pageToken
```
: Pagination token

Pitfalls:

Subscribing to an already-subscribed channel may return an error
Comment threads return top-level comments with up to 5 replies each
Comments may be disabled on some videos
Unsubscribe requires the subscription ID, not the channel ID

Common Patterns

Channel ID Resolution

Handle to Channel ID:

1. Call YOUTUBE_GET_CHANNEL_ID_BY_HANDLE with '@handle'
2. Extract channelId from response
3. Use in subsequent channel operations

Uploads Playlist:

1. Get channel ID (starts with 'UC')
2. Replace 'UC' prefix with 'UU' to get uploads playlist ID
3. Use with LIST_PLAYLIST_ITEMS to enumerate all videos

Pagination

Set
```
maxResults
```
(max 50 per page)
Check response for
```
nextPageToken
```
Pass token as
```
pageToken
```
in next request
Continue until
```
nextPageToken
```
is absent

Batch Video Details

Collect video IDs from search or playlist listings
Chunk into groups of ~50 IDs
Call GET_VIDEO_DETAILS_BATCH per chunk
Merge results across chunks

Known Pitfalls

Quota Management:

YouTube API has a daily quota limit (default 10,000 units)
Upload = 1600 units; search = 100 units; list = 1 unit
Prefer list endpoints over search when possible
Monitor quota usage to avoid hitting daily limits

ID Formats:

Video IDs: 11-character alphanumeric strings
Channel IDs: Start with 'UC' followed by 22 characters
Playlist IDs: Start with 'PL' (user) or 'UU' (uploads)
Do not confuse channel IDs with playlist IDs

Thumbnails:

Custom thumbnails require channel phone verification
Must be JPG, PNG, or GIF; under 2MB
Recommended: 1280x720 resolution (16:9 aspect ratio)

Response Parsing:

Statistics values are returned as strings, not integers; cast before math
Duration uses ISO 8601 format (PT#H#M#S)
Batch responses may wrap data under different keys

Quick Reference

Task	Tool Slug	Key Params
Upload video	YOUTUBE_UPLOAD_VIDEO	title, description, tags, categoryId, privacyStatus, videoFilePath
Update video	YOUTUBE_UPDATE_VIDEO	video_id, title, description, tags
Set thumbnail	YOUTUBE_UPDATE_THUMBNAIL	videoId, thumbnailUrl
Search YouTube	YOUTUBE_SEARCH_YOU_TUBE	q, type, maxResults
Video details	YOUTUBE_VIDEO_DETAILS	id, part
Batch video details	YOUTUBE_GET_VIDEO_DETAILS_BATCH	id, parts
List playlists	YOUTUBE_LIST_USER_PLAYLISTS	maxResults, pageToken
Create playlist	YOUTUBE_CREATE_PLAYLIST	(check schema)
Add to playlist	YOUTUBE_ADD_VIDEO_TO_PLAYLIST	(check schema)
List playlist items	YOUTUBE_LIST_PLAYLIST_ITEMS	playlistId, maxResults
Channel statistics	YOUTUBE_GET_CHANNEL_STATISTICS	id/forHandle/mine
List channel videos	YOUTUBE_LIST_CHANNEL_VIDEOS	channelId, maxResults
Channel ID by handle	YOUTUBE_GET_CHANNEL_ID_BY_HANDLE	channel_handle
Subscribe	YOUTUBE_SUBSCRIBE_CHANNEL	channelId
List subscriptions	YOUTUBE_LIST_USER_SUBSCRIPTIONS	(check schema)
List comments	YOUTUBE_LIST_COMMENT_THREADS	videoId
Channel activities	YOUTUBE_GET_CHANNEL_ACTIVITIES	(check schema)

youtube-automation

NPX Install

SKILL.md Content

YouTube Automation via Rube MCP

Prerequisites

Setup

Core Workflows

1. Upload and Manage Videos

2. Search YouTube Content

3. Manage Playlists

4. Get Channel and Video Analytics

5. Manage Subscriptions and Comments

Common Patterns

Channel ID Resolution

Pagination

Batch Video Details

Known Pitfalls

Quick Reference