# Get a YouTube transcript as JSON with timestamps

> One request returns a YouTube transcript as JSON with start and end times per caption line, from curl, Python or JavaScript, plus links to the moment.

Updated 2026-10-06. HTML: /blog/youtube-transcript-json-timestamps

To get a YouTube transcript as JSON with timestamps, ask for `lines`. Each caption line comes back with its start and end in seconds, ready to index, search or turn into subtitles.

```bash
curl -G https://api.cleanscript.ai/v1/transcript \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $CLEANSCRIPT_API_KEY" \
  --data-urlencode "url=https://youtu.be/jwnez8HdN7E" \
  -d include=lines
```

```python
# pip install cleanscript-ai
from cleanscript_ai import CleanScript

client = CleanScript()
result = client.transcript("https://youtu.be/jwnez8HdN7E", include=["lines"])

for line in result.lines:
    print(f"{line.start:7.2f}  {line.text}")
```

```javascript
// npm install cleanscript
import { CleanScript } from "cleanscript"

const client = new CleanScript()
const result = await client.transcript("https://youtu.be/jwnez8HdN7E", { include: ["lines"] })

for (const line of result.lines ?? []) console.log(line.start.toFixed(2), line.text)
```

## What the lines look like

TikTok and Instagram links work the same way. The first lines of [Le Monde's TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@lemondefr/video/7449782721947241750) about its explainer videos, from TikTok's automatic captions:

```json
"lines": [
  { "start": 0.08, "end": 4.56, "text": "Comment réalisons nos vidéos verticales au Monde ? Bienvenue dans notre open space." },
  { "start": 4.68, "end": 8.88, "text": "C'est ici qu'on fabrique les vidéos d'explication qui sont publiées sur les réseaux sociaux du journal" },
  { "start": 9.04, "end": 12.76, "text": "le monde. On existe depuis deux-mille-seize, et avant ça ressemblait à ça," }
]
```

Times are seconds from the start, to two decimals. A line starts and ends when its caption does, so times are accurate to the line, not the word: good for finding a moment, not for cutting on a syllable. YouTube's automatic captions roll, so a line can start before the previous one ends.

Automatic captions are corrected, which is why these lines have capitals and punctuation. Captions a person wrote come back as written. `source` tells you which you got.

## Lines or paragraphs

Without `include`, you get `text` and `sections`, whose paragraphs have their own start and end times. Paragraphs are better for reading and for a model. Lines are better for subtitles, search and pointing at a short span. With `include=lines` you get both.

## Link to the exact moment

Each section has a `url` that opens the video at its start. For a single line, build the link yourself, rounding down to a whole second so the player lands just before the words:

```python
post = result.post

for line in result.lines[:3]:
    print(f"https://youtu.be/{post.id}?t={int(line.start)}", line.text)
```

TikTok and Instagram links can't open at a moment, so there, link the post and give the time as text.

## Next steps

- Turn the lines into [SRT, Markdown or plain text](/blog/transcript-to-srt-markdown-text).
- Split a transcript for search: [chunks for RAG](/blog/transcript-chunks-for-rag).
- Every field: [Transcripts](/docs/transcripts) and the [API reference](/docs/api-reference).