How to get YouTube trending shorts
GET request to /v1/youtube/trending-shorts with your input. You get clean JSON back in seconds for 2 credits per call — no OAuth, scraping or platform SDKs. List YouTube trending shorts with full metadata for each item.How to get YouTube trending shorts (step by step)
- 1
Get a free API key
Create a free Captapi account (100 credits, no card) and generate an API key from the dashboard.
- 2
Call the YouTube Trending Shorts API
Send an authenticated GET request to /v1/youtube/trending-shorts with your input. No OAuth, no scraping setup.
- 3
Read the JSON response
Parse the clean JSON response. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh.
Code example
curl "https://api.captapi.com/v1/youtube/trending-shorts?q=trending" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer capt_live_..."
# or: -H "x-api-key: capt_live_..."What the response looks like
{
"success": true,
"data": {
"platform": "youtube",
"query": "trending",
"totalReturned": 5,
"shorts": [
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ggMTGsuaooU",
"title": "GO CRAZY! 👀 2026 Group Dance Trend #Shorts #Dance #Squad #Trending #fypシ Kaido Gia Chowbaby & more",
"viewCount": 121000
},
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/O07T9_5VIRI",
"title": "who remembers this trend?😳 #trending #viral #tiktok #funny",
"viewCount": 23000000
},
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ERXFiAub3jE",
"title": "What's Trending Across America Right Now?",
"viewCount": 11
},
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7c4L1eQeJi4",
"title": "TikTok Trends Edits ☘️🔥 #trend #edit #shorts",
"viewCount": 14000000
},
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/shorts/14pQPufUzj4",
"title": "BEN EAGLE - Heartbreaking carelessness #MartialArts #ActionComedy #KungFu #Kindness #Trending #Viral",
"viewCount": 7300000
}
]
}
}Billing metadata (credits charged, cache hit/miss) is returned in the X-Captapi-Credits and X-Captapi-Cache response headers.
Request parameters
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| q | string | No | Seed keyword for trending Shorts. Defaults to trending. |
| limit | integer | No | Max items to return (default 20, max 100). Flat 2 credits per call. |
| cache | boolean | No | Set true to serve from the 24h response cache. Default false — always fetch fresh data. |
Frequently asked questions
What does the YouTube Trending Shorts API do?
The YouTube Trending Shorts API lets you list items in bulk with metadata from a public YouTube Short using one GET request to /v1/youtube/trending-shorts. It returns clean JSON — no OAuth or infrastructure setup required.
How many credits does the YouTube Trending Shorts API cost?
Each successful call costs 2 credits. Pass cache=true to serve from the 24h shared cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Failed or empty results are never charged.
Do I need a YouTube API key or OAuth?
No. A single Captapi key works across every platform Captapi supports — YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X, Reddit, Threads, Bluesky, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Rumble, Spotify, Kwai, and more. We handle proxies, rate limits, retries, and authentication for you.
Is the YouTube Trending Shorts API suitable for production use?
Yes. It is a stable REST endpoint with predictable JSON and automatic retries. Pass cache=true to serve from the 24h shared cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Use it for analytics, monitoring, and content automation.
Ready to get YouTube trending shorts?
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Get your free API key