YouTube API: Upload Videos With Python (Easy Guide)

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YouTube API: Upload Videos with Python (Easy Guide)

Hey guys! Ever wanted to automate your YouTube uploads using Python? Well, you're in the right place! This guide will walk you through using the YouTube API to upload videos programmatically. It might sound a bit complex, but I'll break it down into easy-to-follow steps. Let's get started!

Setting Up Your Environment

Before we dive into the code, we need to set up our environment. This involves a few key steps:

1. Install the Google Client Library

The Google Client Library for Python is essential for interacting with Google APIs, including the YouTube API. You can install it using pip, which is Python's package installer. Open your terminal or command prompt and run the following command:

pip install google-api-python-client google-auth-httplib2 google-auth-oauthlib

This command installs the necessary packages for authentication and making API requests. Make sure you have Python installed on your system before running this command. If you don't have pip, you might need to install it separately.

2. Create a Google Cloud Project

To use the YouTube API, you need a Google Cloud Project. If you don't already have one, follow these steps:

  1. Go to the Google Cloud Console.
  2. If you don't have an existing project, click on "Select a project" at the top, then "New Project."
  3. Give your project a name and select an organization (if applicable).
  4. Click "Create."

Creating a project allows you to manage your API access and billing.

3. Enable the YouTube Data API v3

Now that you have a project, you need to enable the YouTube Data API v3. Here’s how:

  1. In the Google Cloud Console, navigate to "APIs & Services" > "Library."
  2. Search for "YouTube Data API v3."
  3. Click on the YouTube Data API v3 and then click "Enable."

Enabling the API allows your project to make requests to YouTube.

4. Create Credentials

To access the YouTube API, you need to create credentials. These credentials will allow your Python script to authenticate and authorize requests. Here’s how to create them:

  1. In the Google Cloud Console, go to "APIs & Services" > "Credentials."
  2. Click on "Create Credentials" and select "OAuth client ID."
  3. You might be prompted to configure the consent screen. If so, click "Configure consent screen." Choose "External" and fill in the required information, such as the application name and support email. You can add your email as a developer contact.
  4. After configuring the consent screen, return to creating credentials. Select "Web application" as the application type. Give it a name, and in the "Authorized redirect URIs" field, enter http://localhost:8080. This is important for local testing.
  5. Click "Create." You will receive a client ID and client secret. Download these credentials as a JSON file (e.g., credentials.json).

Keep this file safe, as it allows access to your YouTube account. Never share it publicly!

Writing the Python Script

Now that we have our environment set up, let's write the Python script to upload videos. Here’s a basic example:

1. Import Necessary Libraries

First, import the required libraries:

import google_auth_oauthlib.flow
import googleapiclient.discovery
import googleapiclient.errors
import os

scopes = ["https://www.googleapis.com/auth/youtube.upload"]

These libraries handle authentication and API requests. The scopes variable defines the permissions we need – in this case, the permission to upload videos.

2. Authenticate and Authorize

Next, authenticate and authorize your script to access the YouTube API. This involves using the credentials you created earlier:

def get_authenticated_service():
    os.environ["OAUTHLIB_INSECURE_TRANSPORT"] = "1"

    api_service_name = "youtube"
    api_version = "v3"
    client_secrets_file = "credentials.json"

    flow = google_auth_oauthlib.flow.InstalledAppFlow.from_client_secrets_file(
        client_secrets_file, scopes)
    credentials = flow.run_local_server()
    return googleapiclient.discovery.build(
        api_service_name, api_version, credentials = credentials)

This function reads your credentials.json file, authenticates with Google, and returns a YouTube API service object. The os.environ["OAUTHLIB_INSECURE_TRANSPORT"] = "1" line is important for local testing as it allows insecure transport (HTTP instead of HTTPS).

3. Upload the Video

Now, let's write the code to upload the video:

def upload_video(youtube, file, title, description, category, keywords, privacyStatus):
    body=dict(
        snippet=dict(
            title=title,
            description=description,
            tags=keywords,
            categoryId=category
        ),
        status=dict(
            privacyStatus=privacyStatus
        )
    )

    # Call the API's videos.insert method to create and upload the video.
    insert_request = youtube.videos().insert(
        part=",".join(body.keys()),
        body=body,
        media_body=googleapiclient.http.MediaFileUpload(file, mimetype='video/*')
    )

    res = insert_request.execute()

    print(res)

This function takes several parameters:

  • youtube: The authenticated YouTube API service object.
  • file: The path to the video file.
  • title: The title of the video.
  • description: The description of the video.
  • category: The YouTube category ID.
  • keywords: A list of keywords for the video.
  • privacyStatus: The privacy status of the video (public, private, or unlisted).

The function constructs a request body with the video's metadata and then uses the videos().insert() method to upload the video. The MediaFileUpload object handles the actual file upload.

4. Main Function

Finally, let's put it all together in a main function:

if __name__ == "__main__":
    youtube = get_authenticated_service()

    video_file = "path/to/your/video.mp4"  # Replace with your video file path
    video_title = "My Awesome Video"
    video_description = "This is a description of my awesome video."
    video_category = "22"  # Entertainment category
    video_keywords = ["python", "youtube", "api"]
    video_privacyStatus = "private"  # Can be 'public', 'private', or 'unlisted'

    try:
        upload_video(youtube, video_file, video_title, video_description, video_category, video_keywords, video_privacyStatus)
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"An error occurred: {e}")

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