@crabcut/mcp-server
Turn YouTube videos into short clips — from Claude, Cursor, or any AI assistant that supports MCP.
Give it a YouTube link. It finds the best moments, reframes for vertical video (9:16), adds subtitles, and returns download-ready clips.
Quick Start
- Get an API key at app.crabcut.ai/developers
- Run:
CRABCUT_API_KEY=sk_live_... npx @crabcut/mcp-server
Setup
Claude Desktop / Cursor
Add to your config file — claude_desktop_config.json for Claude, .cursor/mcp.json for Cursor:
{
"mcpServers": {
"crabcut": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["@crabcut/mcp-server"],
"env": {
"CRABCUT_API_KEY": "sk_live_..."
}
}
}
}
Cursor Directory
Install in Cursor
Smithery
npx @smithery/cli mcp add crabcut/crabcut-mcp-server
Remote (Streamable HTTP)
For n8n, custom integrations, or any client that supports remote MCP:
- Endpoint:
https://mcp.crabcut.ai/mcp
- Auth:
Authorization: Bearer sk_live_...
- Transport: Streamable HTTP (POST)
| Tool | What it does |
|---|
generate_clips | Start clip generation from a YouTube URL. Returns a project_id right away. |
get_project_status | Check progress and get clips when ready. Clips are sorted by score (best first). |
list_projects | List your projects with status and clip counts. |
get_clip | Get full details for a single clip. |
check_usage | See your plan, remaining credits, and usage. |
How It Works
- Call
generate_clips with a YouTube URL
- Get back a
project_id immediately
- Poll
get_project_status every 10–15 seconds (or pass a callback_url for webhook)
- When done, clips are sorted by score (best first), each with a
download_url
Statuses
Project: pending → processing → completed (or completed_no_clips / failed)
Processing steps: queued → DOWNLOADING_VIDEO → EXTRACTING_AUDIO → TRANSCRIBING → DETECTING_HIGHLIGHTS → CUTTING_CLIPS → EXPORTING_CLIPS → done
Clips: pending → exporting → completed (or failed). The download_url is available when clip_status is completed.
API Reference
generate_clips
Start clip generation from a YouTube video.
| Field | Type | Required | Description |
|---|
url | string | Yes | Full YouTube video URL |
start_time | number | No | Start time in seconds (to process only a segment) |
end_time | number | No | End time in seconds (to process only a segment) |
callback_url | string | No | Webhook URL to receive results when done |
{
"project_id": "43dbe622-8ac6-4579-9625-0ad7f0f9db0b",
"status": "processing",
"poll_url": "/api/v1/projects/43dbe622-8ac6-4579-9625-0ad7f0f9db0b",
"estimated_minutes": 5,
"message": "Processing started. Poll with get_project_status every 10-15 seconds until status is 'completed'."
}
get_project_status
Check progress and get clips.
| Field | Type | Required | Description |
|---|
project_id | string | Yes | The project ID from generate_clips |
{
"id": "43dbe622-...",
"name": "Video Title",
"status": "completed",
"step": "done",
"error": null,
"expected_clips": 9,
"duration": 639,
"created_at": "2026-03-15T02:21:46.226Z",
"clips": [
{
"id": "32538b9c-...",
"title": "One Dating Theory Leads to Chaos",
"duration": 41.83,
"score": 90,
"reason": "Sharp universal joke that hooks instantly with strong reactions.",
"clip_status": "completed",
"download_url": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/exports/premium/.../clip-32538b9c-....mp4",
"quality": "1080p",
"thumbnail_url": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/exports/premium/.../clip-32538b9c-...-thumb.jpg",
"created_at": "2026-03-15T02:29:10.954Z",
"updated_at": "2026-03-15T02:30:43.907Z"
}
]
}
Clips are sorted by score (highest first).
list_projects
| Field | Type | Required | Description |
|---|
limit | number | No | Max projects to return. Default 20, max 100. |
status | string | No | Filter: pending, processing, completed, completed_no_clips, failed |
{
"projects": [
{
"id": "43dbe622-...",
"name": "Video Title",
"status": "completed",
"step": "done",
"expected_clips": 9,
"clips_count": 8,
"duration": 639,
"created_at": "2026-03-15T02:21:46.226Z"
}
],
"total": 1,
"limit": 20,
"offset": 0
}
get_clip
| Field | Type | Required | Description |
|---|
clip_id | string | Yes | The clip ID from a project's clips array |
{
"id": "32538b9c-...",
"project_id": "43dbe622-...",
"title": "One Dating Theory Leads to Chaos",
"duration": 41.83,
"score": 90,
"reason": "Sharp universal joke that hooks instantly.",
"export_status": "completed",
"export_quality": "1080p",
"is_exported": true,
"video_url": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/...",
"video_url_720p": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/...",
"video_url_1080p": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/...",
"thumbnail_url": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/...",
"created_at": "2026-03-15T02:29:10.954Z",
"updated_at": "2026-03-15T02:30:43.907Z"
}
check_usage
No input required.
{
"plan": "pro",
"credits_remaining": 450,
"credits_total": 500,
"period_start": "2026-03-01T00:00:00.000Z",
"period_end": "2026-04-01T00:00:00.000Z"
}
Errors
| HTTP Status | Error | What to do |
|---|
| 400 | Invalid YouTube URL | Check the URL format |
| 401 | Unauthorized | Check your API key |
| 402 | Insufficient credits | Buy more credits or use a shorter video |
| 429 | Rate limit exceeded | Wait and try again |
| 500 | Internal server error | Try again later |
Webhooks
Pass a callback_url when calling generate_clips to receive a POST when all clips are ready.
Completed:
{
"event": "project.completed",
"project_id": "43dbe622-...",
"status": "completed",
"source_url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H51iLa1leOU",
"clips": [
{
"id": "32538b9c-...",
"title": "One Dating Theory Leads to Chaos",
"duration": 41.83,
"score": 90,
"download_url": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/exports/premium/.../clip-32538b9c-....mp4",
"thumbnail_url": "https://cdn.crabcut.ai/exports/premium/.../clip-32538b9c-...-thumb.jpg",
"quality": "1080p"
}
]
}
Failed:
{
"event": "project.failed",
"project_id": "43dbe622-...",
"status": "failed",
"error": "YouTube video is unavailable",
"clips": []
}
Clips are sorted by score (highest first). We retry up to 3 times if your server doesn't respond.
Signature verification (optional): Each callback includes an X-Crabcut-Signature header. Compute HMAC-SHA256 of the request body using SHA-256(your_api_key) as the signing key. Compare with the header value (sha256=<hex>).
Using with n8n
Option A — Webhook (recommended):
- Create a workflow with a Webhook trigger node. Copy its URL.
- Add an HTTP Request node:
POST https://api.crabcut.ai/api/v1/clips/generate with Header Auth (Authorization: Bearer sk_live_...) and body:
{
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=...",
"callback_url": "https://your-n8n.com/webhook/abc123"
}
- When clips are ready, the Webhook node receives the payload.
- Best clip:
{{ $json.clips[0].download_url }}
Option B — Polling loop:
POST to generate clips (same as above, without callback_url).- Wait 15 seconds → GET
https://api.crabcut.ai/api/v1/projects/{{ $json.project_id }} → IF status is not completed, loop back to Wait.
REST API
For direct HTTP calls without MCP:
| Method | Endpoint | Description |
|---|
POST | /api/v1/clips/generate | Start clip generation |
GET | /api/v1/projects/:id | Get project status and clips |
GET | /api/v1/projects | List projects |
GET | /api/v1/clips/:id | Get single clip details |
GET | /api/v1/account/usage | Check credits and plan |
Base URL: https://api.crabcut.ai — All endpoints require Authorization: Bearer sk_live_...
Environment Variables
| Variable | Required | Default |
|---|
CRABCUT_API_KEY | Yes | — |
CRABCUT_API_URL | No | https://api.crabcut.ai |
Links
License
MIT