YT Recover API GUIDE
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⚡ Official Step-by-Step Walkthrough

How to Get a Free YouTube Data API Key

Follow this visual beginner guide to generate your personal YouTube Data API v3 key in under 3 minutes. It takes zero technical experience and enables 100% direct access to playlists up to 5,000 videos!

100% Free Forever

Google grants 10,000 free quota points every day at midnight PST.

No Credit Card

You never have to enter billing info or credit cards to use this API.

Private & Secure

Your key is saved exclusively in your browser's private local storage.

Bypass Limits

Parse 5,000-video playlists without proxy blocks or IP rate limits.

1

Open Google Cloud Console

Takes ~30 seconds • Requires standard Google/Gmail account

Google Cloud Console is Google's official developer dashboard where developers and users manage Google APIs. All you need to sign in is any regular personal Google account (the same one you use for Gmail or YouTube).

First time in Google Cloud? A popup may ask to select your Country and accept the Google Cloud Terms of Service. Check the checkbox and click Agree and continue. You can ignore any free-trial credit prompts.
🚀 Open Google Cloud Console
2

Create a New Project

Takes ~45 seconds

Google organizes API keys under "Projects". Creating a project is free and takes just a couple of clicks:

  • A Look at the top blue navigation bar and click the Project dropdown (it usually says Select a project or the name of an existing project).
  • B In the popup window, click the NEW PROJECT button in the upper right.
  • C Type any project name (e.g. YT-Recover-App). Leave Organization as No organization.
  • D Click the blue CREATE button. Wait about 5 seconds for Google to finish setting it up, and make sure your new project is selected in the top bar.
Cloud Console Navigation Reference
Google Cloud → Select a project → + NEW PROJECT → Name: YT-Recover-App → CREATE
3

Enable "YouTube Data API v3"

Takes ~30 seconds • Crucial Step!

By default, new projects have all APIs turned off. You must enable the YouTube Data API v3 so Google allows your key to read YouTube playlist items.

  • A Click the direct button below to jump straight to the YouTube Data API v3 page in Google Cloud.
  • B Click the big blue ENABLE button.
  • C Wait 5-10 seconds until the page refreshes to the API Metrics page showing "API Enabled".
Can't find the direct button? In the top search bar of Google Cloud Console, type YouTube Data API v3 and press Enter. Click on the result under "Marketplace" and click Enable.
⚡ Direct Link: Enable YouTube Data API v3
4

Generate Your API Key

Takes ~30 seconds

Now you create the alphanumeric credentials key that unlocks YouTube playlist requests:

  • A Click the Credentials link in the left sidebar menu (or click the direct button below).
  • B At the top of the page, click the + CREATE CREDENTIALS button.
  • C Select API key from the dropdown menu. (Do not pick OAuth or Service Account).
  • D A modal dialog will pop up stating "API key created" with your key starting with AIzaSy....
  • E Click the Copy icon to copy your new API key to your clipboard!
Cloud Console Credentials Path
APIs & Services → Credentials → + CREATE CREDENTIALS → API key → AIzaSy... (Copied)
🔑 Direct Link: Cloud Credentials Page
5

(Optional) Restrict Key to YouTube API

Recommended Best Practice

Restricting your key is an optional security step. It ensures that even if anyone ever saw your key, it can only ever be used to request YouTube Data API v3 and nothing else:

  • A On the "API key created" popup, click Edit API key (or click the pencil icon next to your key in the Credentials list).
  • B Under API restrictions, choose Restrict key.
  • C In the dropdown list, find and check YouTube Data API v3.
  • D Click the blue Save button at the bottom.
STEP 6

Test & Save Your Key Right Here

Paste your copied AIzaSy... key below. You can verify it against YouTube's live API servers right now before returning to the app!

Start Scanning Playlists in App →

Frequently Asked Questions & Troubleshooting

Is YouTube Data API really 100% free? Will Google bill my card?
Yes, 100% free. Google provides a free tier quota of 10,000 units per day for every single Google account. Since fetching 50 playlist items costs only 1 unit, 10,000 units allows you to scan up to 500,000 videos every day. You are never asked for credit card details, and requests are simply stopped if you exceed the daily limit (which resets at midnight PST).
I got an error: "API key not valid. Please pass a valid API key."
This error means either:
1. You accidentally copied extra spaces or missed characters. Make sure the key begins with AIzaSy.
2. Google takes about 30 to 60 seconds to deploy newly created keys worldwide. Wait 1 minute and test again.
I got an error: "YouTube Data API v3 has not been used in project..."
This means you created the project and API key, but skipped Step 3!
Click this direct link, make sure your project is selected at the top, and click the blue ENABLE button.
Is my API key safe? Does this website steal or store it on a remote server?
Your key is 100% private. It is saved directly in your browser's private localStorage on your own machine. When fetching playlists, requests go directly between your browser and Google's official googleapis.com servers. No third-party or tracker ever sees your key.
Can I use YT Playlist Recover without an API key?
Yes! The app includes a built-in proxy engine that can scrape standard public playlists up to ~100 items and automatically queries Filmot and Wayback Machine archives. However, for large playlists (over 100 to 5,000 items) or when YouTube blocks web scraping, having a free API key guarantees 100% reliable access without rate limits.