vidIQ MCP lets you connect AI assistants like ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, and Codex directly to vidIQ’s real-time YouTube and Instagram intelligence.

Once connected, your AI can research channels, analyze videos, identify trends, review thumbnails and titles, and interpret creator analytics using live data from vidIQ, all through natural conversation.

Instead of manually searching through videos, comments, analytics, and competitor channels, creators can ask questions in plain English and get instant insights powered by vidIQ’s database of 135M+ channels and 12B+ videos.

vidIQ MCP is designed for creators, strategists, agencies, and developers who want AI tools that understand what’s actually happening on YouTube and Instagram right now, not what existed in outdated training data.

Which plans include vidIQ MCP?

vidIQ MCP is currently available on all plans (Free, Boost, and Max) during our launch period. It uses the same monthly credit allowance as the rest of vidIQ's AI features.

Most MCP tool calls cost 5 credits. A handful of free utility tools (checking your credit balance, listing your connected channels, submitting feedback, browsing trend categories) cost 0 credits. The two most powerful tools — Video Watch (YouTube) and Reel Watch (Instagram) — cost 10 credits per call because they involve full multimodal video understanding.

How do I get started?

The fastest way to set up depends on which AI tool you use.

Option 1: ChatGPT

Install our official ChatGPT app — no MCP URL or pasting required.

Open the vidIQ ChatGPT app listing
Click Install (or Try it)
Sign in with your vidIQ account when redirected. Your vidIQ email does not need to match your ChatGPT email.
Grant permission. The vidIQ tools are now available in your ChatGPT conversations.

Option 2: Claude

Open Claude at claude.ai and go to Settings → Connectors (also called Integrations in some versions)
Click "Add Custom Connector" and paste this URL: https://mcp.vidiq.com/mcp
Click "Connect" or "Authorize" — this opens vidIQ's login and consent screen
Log in with your vidIQ account. Your vidIQ email does not need to match your Claude email.
Grant permission. You're done — start asking Claude about YouTube and Instagram.

Option 3: Cursor, Codex, OpenClaw, or any other MCP-compatible client

The connection URL is always the same: https://mcp.vidiq.com/mcp
Add it as a custom MCP server inside your tool's settings and authorize with your vidIQ account. The flow is the same OAuth handshake on every client.
You can manage or revoke your MCP connection at any time from app.vidiq.com → Account Settings → MCP.

What can vidIQ MCP help you do?

vidIQ MCP turns your AI assistant into a real-time YouTube and Instagram research partner. Instead of manually searching through channels, videos, comments, trends, and analytics, you can ask questions naturally and pull live data directly from vidIQ.

Here are some of the most common ways creators are using vidIQ MCP today.

Discover breakout trends early

Find fast-growing channels, viral videos, and emerging content patterns before they become saturated.

Example prompt: “Show me small cooking channels that blew up this month.”

Creators use this to spot underserved niches, identify repeatable formats, and discover trends before they peak.

Research competitors and successful creators

Analyze how top creators structure their videos, thumbnails, titles, and upload strategies.

Example prompt: “Find channels similar to @AliAbdaal under 500K subscribers.”

This is useful for benchmarking your channel, studying successful formats, and discovering adjacent creators in your niche.

Improve titles and thumbnails

Use vidIQ’s scoring models to get feedback on clickability, clarity, and viewer appeal.

Example prompt: “Score this title and suggest stronger variations.”

Creators commonly use this workflow to improve CTR, strengthen hooks, and test creative directions faster.

Analyze why videos succeed or fail

Use Video Watch to analyze pacing, hooks, structure, and retention risks.

Example prompt: “Watch this video and tell me where viewers most likely dropping off?”

This is especially helpful for diagnosing underperforming videos and improving audience retention.

Turn comments into content ideas

Analyze comments to uncover recurring questions, frustrations, and viewer interests.

Example prompt: “What questions appear repeatedly in these comments?”

Creators use this to identify audience pain points and generate highly relevant video ideas directly from viewer demand.

Research Instagram creators and reels

Analyze public Instagram profiles, reels, and viral outliers to understand what’s performing well.

Example prompt: “Run a creator audit on @creator_handle.”

This helps creators study successful reel formats, editing styles, and high-performing hooks within a niche.

Understand your own channel performance

For channels connected to vidIQ, MCP can pull your YouTube Analytics directly into your AI conversation.

Example prompt: “What were my top traffic sources last month?”

This makes it easier to interpret analytics, identify growth opportunities, and understand which content performs best with your audience.

Best workflows to try with vidIQ MCP

The biggest wins come from chaining multiple MCP tools together in one conversation. Instead of asking one-off questions, treat your AI like a research partner that can analyze trends, channels, videos, comments, and performance data together.

Below are some of the most effective workflows creators are using with vidIQ MCP.

Workflow 1: Find breakout channels before everyone else

One of the strongest uses of MCP is discovering fast-growing creators before they become saturated.

Try this flow:

"Find channels in [your niche] under 100K subscribers that are growing unusually fast."
"Show me their top-performing videos from the last 30 days."
"What patterns do these channels have in common? Hooks, thumbnails, pacing, titles, upload style?"
"Based on those patterns, give me 10 video ideas adapted for my channel."

This workflow is especially powerful because the AI can combine:

growth metrics
trending video analysis
title patterns
niche clustering
thumbnail analysis

Workflow 2: Diagnose why a video underperformed

This is where Video Watch becomes valuable.

Instead of guessing why a video stalled, MCP can watch the actual content and analyze retention risks.

Try this workflow:

"Watch this video and tell me where viewers are likely dropping off."
"Analyze the first 30 seconds and score the hook strength."
"What moments slow the pacing down?"
"Rewrite the intro to improve retention."
"Now generate 5 stronger title options."

Tip: Video Watch costs more credits because the AI is analyzing the actual video frame-by-frame, not just metadata.

Workflow 3: Turn comments into content ideas

Comments are one of the best sources of future videos.

Try this workflow:

"Pull the top comments from these videos."
"What questions or frustrations appear repeatedly?"
"Group them into themes."
"Which of these themes has the strongest viral potential?"
"Turn the top 3 themes into Shorts ideas."

How are credits used?

Most MCP tool calls cost 5 credits. The two video-understanding tools (YouTube Video Watch and Instagram Reel Watch) cost 10 credits per call because the AI watches the actual video frame-by-frame. A handful of utility tools (checking your credit balance, listing your connected channels, browsing trend categories, submitting feedback) are free.

A single AI conversation can use multiple tool calls behind the scenes. For example, asking your AI to "run a full Instagram creator audit" will chain four tools and use around 25 credits total.

You can check your remaining credits at any time by asking your AI: " How many vidIQ credits do I have left?"

Troubleshooting

The "Authorize" button doesn't do anything when I click it

The most common cause is an outdated browser. The login flow requires modern JavaScript and redirect support. Try the latest version of Chrome, Edge, or Firefox.
Disable pop-up blockers and ad blockers temporarily — these can block the redirect.
Clear cookies and cache for vidiq.com, then try again.
If it's still failing, open your browser's developer console (F12 → Console tab) after clicking Authorize and share what you see with Support.

My Claude or ChatGPT email is different from my vidIQ email — is that a problem?

No. The MCP connection authorizes against your vidIQ account specifically. The email on your AI tool is unrelated. Just make sure you're logged into the correct vidIQ account when you click Authorize.

I'm trying to pull my Channel Analytics and it isn't working

The Channel Analytics tool only works for YouTube channels you have authorized to your vidIQ account. To enable it:

Go to app.vidiq.com → Channel Settings
Connect the YouTube channel you want analytics for
Once connected, your AI will be able to pull full analytics for that channel

MCP cannot return private analytics for channels you don't own.

I've run out of credits

If you’ve run out of credits, access to AI-powered tools will pause until your credits refresh at the start of your next billing cycle.

You can ask your AI assistant, “check my vidIQ credit balance,” to see when your credits will reset.

If you're interested in having more monthly credits for your workflow, upgrading to a higher plan may be the best option. To explore upgrade options, head to app.vidiq.com → Account Settings → Manage Plan or contact our support team for more information on upgrading.

The AI says it doesn't have access to vidIQ tools after I connected it

Make sure the MCP connection shows as authorized in your AI tool's settings.
Some AI tools require you to explicitly enable the connector in each new conversation — check for a tools/connectors menu inside the chat.
Try refreshing the AI app or starting a new conversation.
If problems persist, disconnect vidIQ MCP from your AI tool's settings, then reconnect (paste https://mcp.vidiq.com/mcp, or reinstall from the ChatGPT App Store if you're using ChatGPT).

Instagram tools say the profile can't be found

Instagram tools only work for public Instagram profiles. If the account is private, the AI won't be able to fetch its reels or profile data. Double-check the handle is spelled correctly and the account is public.

Can MCP modify my channel or post videos for me?

No. vidIQ MCP tools are read-only. They retrieve data but cannot change settings, upload videos, edit metadata, or make any modifications to your YouTube channel, Instagram account, or vidIQ account.

Frequently asked questions:

Do I need a paid Claude or ChatGPT subscription to use vidIQ MCP?

You need an account with whichever AI tool you want to connect, but most of these have free tiers. You'll also need an active vidIQ account to authorize the connection.

Is my data secure?

The connection uses OAuth: the same standard used when you "Log in with Google" elsewhere. Your AI tool never sees your vidIQ password, only an authorization token. You can revoke the connection at any time from app.vidiq.com → Account Settings → MCP.

Can I use vidIQ MCP on mobile?

vidIQ MCP works wherever your AI tool runs. If Claude or ChatGPT supports MCP connectors / apps on mobile, vidIQ MCP will work there too. Most desktop AI apps support MCP today; mobile support varies by provider.

Does this replace the vidIQ web app or browser extension?

No, it complements them! Many creators use all three: the browser extension for quick keyword and metric overlays on YouTube itself, the web app for deep analysis, and MCP for conversational research with their AI assistant.

Does vidIQ MCP work for TikTok or YouTube Shorts?

YouTube Shorts: yes- every YouTube tool supports filtering by Shorts vs. long-form. TikTok: not yet. We currently support YouTube (full coverage) and Instagram (public profiles + reels).

I'm a developer, can I build with vidIQ MCP?

Yes. The server endpoint is https://mcp.vidiq.com/mcp, it uses the standard MCP protocol, and authentication is OAuth 2.0. Any MCP-compatible client library should work.