MCP Youtube Transcript vs Tube Search MCP

In-depth architectural comparison of the MCP Youtube Transcript and Tube Search MCP MCP servers. Compare execution transports, security boundaries, tool capabilities, quality scores, and ready-to-paste client installation snippets for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose MCP Youtube Transcript when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: get_transcript, get_timed_transcript, get_video_info.

Explore MCP Youtube Transcript Details

Choose Tube Search MCP when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Developer Tools domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: search_channel, search_videos, get_video.

Explore Tube Search MCP Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	MCP Youtube Transcript Developer Tools	Tube Search MCP Developer Tools
Summary	An MCP server retrieving transcripts of YouTube videos	Search archived YouTube videos including deleted, private, or region-blocked content.
Category & Scope	Developer Tools	Developer Tools

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Ready-to-Paste Client Configurations

Paste either (or both) of these JSON server blocks into your client config file (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json).

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-youtube-transcript": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "--from",
        "git+https://github.com/jkawamoto/mcp-youtube-transcript",
        "mcp-youtube-transcript"
      ]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "tube-search-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "tube-search-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

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