YouTube Analytics Service

AI-generated Key Takeaways

• The YouTube Analytics API allows you to access viewing statistics, popularity metrics, and demographic data for YouTube videos and channels within Apps Script.

• This is an advanced service that requires enabling before use.

• The provided sample code demonstrates how to create a spreadsheet report containing daily view counts, watch time, and subscriber data for a YouTube channel using the API.

• The API utilizes the same objects, methods, and parameters as the public YouTube Analytics API, ensuring consistency and familiarity for developers.

• For further support and issue reporting, refer to the YouTube API support guide.

The YouTube Analytics service allows you to use the YouTube Analytics API in Apps Script. This API gives users the ability to retrieve viewing statistics, popularity metrics, and demographic information for YouTube videos and channels.

Note: This is an advanced service that must be enabled before use.

Reference

For detailed information on this service, see the reference documentation for the YouTube Analytics API. Like all advanced services in Apps Script, the YouTube Analytics service uses the same objects, methods, and parameters as the public API. For more information, see How method signatures are determined.

Sample code

The sample code below uses version 2 of the YouTube Analytics API, as well as version 3 of the YouTube Data API, which you can access through the YouTube service in Apps Script.

To report issues and find other support, see the YouTube API support guide.

Create report

This function creates a spreadsheet containing daily view counts, watch-time metrics, and new-subscriber counts for a channel's videos.

advanced/youtubeAnalytics.gs

View on GitHub

/**
 * Creates a spreadsheet containing daily view counts, watch-time metrics,
 * and new-subscriber counts for a channel's videos.
 */
function createReport() {
  // Retrieve info about the user's YouTube channel.
  const channels = YouTube.Channels.list('id,contentDetails', {
    mine: true
  });
  const channelId = channels.items[0].id;

  // Retrieve analytics report for the channel.
  const oneMonthInMillis = 1000 * 60 * 60 * 24 * 30;
  const today = new Date();
  const lastMonth = new Date(today.getTime() - oneMonthInMillis);

  const metrics = [
    'views',
    'estimatedMinutesWatched',
    'averageViewDuration',
    'subscribersGained'
  ];
  const result = YouTubeAnalytics.Reports.query({
    ids: 'channel==' + channelId,
    startDate: formatDateString(lastMonth),
    endDate: formatDateString(today),
    metrics: metrics.join(','),
    dimensions: 'day',
    sort: 'day'
  });

  if (!result.rows) {
    console.log('No rows returned.');
    return;
  }
  const spreadsheet = SpreadsheetApp.create('YouTube Analytics Report');
  const sheet = spreadsheet.getActiveSheet();

  // Append the headers.
  const headers = result.columnHeaders.map((columnHeader)=> {
    return formatColumnName(columnHeader.name);
  });
  sheet.appendRow(headers);

  // Append the results.
  sheet.getRange(2, 1, result.rows.length, headers.length)
      .setValues(result.rows);

  console.log('Report spreadsheet created: %s',
      spreadsheet.getUrl());
}

/**
 * Converts a Date object into a YYYY-MM-DD string.
 * @param {Date} date The date to convert to a string.
 * @return {string} The formatted date.
 */
function formatDateString(date) {
  return Utilities.formatDate(date, Session.getScriptTimeZone(), 'yyyy-MM-dd');
}

/**
 * Formats a column name into a more human-friendly name.
 * @param {string} columnName The unprocessed name of the column.
 * @return {string} The formatted column name.
 * @example "averageViewPercentage" becomes "Average View Percentage".
 */
function formatColumnName(columnName) {
  let name = columnName.replace(/([a-z])([A-Z])/g, '$1 $2');
  name = name.slice(0, 1).toUpperCase() + name.slice(1);
  return name;
}