This content isn't available, try again later: YouTube rate limit

This YouTube error means the session or account went over YouTube's video request rate limit.

This content isn't available, try again later.

Short answer

This YouTube error means the session or account went over YouTube's video request rate limit. The documented limits, how long the block lasts and how to pace requests.

Diagnosis checked 2026-11-11; sources below.

Why it happens

The guest session or account went over YouTube's video request rate limit (about 300 videos an hour for guest sessions, about 2,000 for accounts), and yt-dlp reports it as rate-limited for up to an hour. Source: yt-dlp wiki: This content isn't available.

Do this now

If the data is yours or your use fits the official terms, switch to the official route: YouTube Data API v3 (Public API). No per-call fee is published; the constraint is the daily quota. Extra quota is not self-serve.
For video files and metadata at volume, run a hosted route instead of patching your own requests: YouTube Video, Playlist & Channel Downloader with Metadata. The request below runs it with its published example input through the Apify API (your token, billed at the Store price).
Compare every route, with fields and prices, on the YouTube page.

Python

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN>")
run_input = {
    "mode": "metadata",
    "videoUrls": [
        "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw"
    ],
    "playlistUrls": [],
    "channelUrls": [],
    "searchQueries": [],
    "videoQuality": "360p",
    "container": "auto",
    "audioOnly": False,
    "audioFormat": "m4a",
    "downloadSubtitles": False,
    "subtitleLanguages": [
        "en"
    ],
    "subtitleFormat": "vtt",
    "includeTranscript": False,
    "maxVideos": 1,
    "maxMinutes": 30,
    "maxMB": 100,
    "allow4K": False,
    "storage": "ephemeral_kvs",
    "storageRetentionDays": 7,
    "s3Prefix": "youtube-downloader",
    "s3Region": "auto",
    "proxyConfiguration": {
        "useApifyProxy": True
    }
}

run = client.actor("nimbryxo-studio/youtube-video-playlist-and-channel-downloader").call(run_input=run_input)
if run is None:
    raise RuntimeError("The Actor run was not found.")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

pip install apify-client

JavaScript

import { ApifyClient } from "apify-client";

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: "<YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN>" });
const input = {
    "mode": "metadata",
    "videoUrls": [
        "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw"
    ],
    "playlistUrls": [],
    "channelUrls": [],
    "searchQueries": [],
    "videoQuality": "360p",
    "container": "auto",
    "audioOnly": false,
    "audioFormat": "m4a",
    "downloadSubtitles": false,
    "subtitleLanguages": [
        "en"
    ],
    "subtitleFormat": "vtt",
    "includeTranscript": false,
    "maxVideos": 1,
    "maxMinutes": 30,
    "maxMB": 100,
    "allow4K": false,
    "storage": "ephemeral_kvs",
    "storageRetentionDays": 7,
    "s3Prefix": "youtube-downloader",
    "s3Region": "auto",
    "proxyConfiguration": {
        "useApifyProxy": true
    }
};

const run = await client.actor("nimbryxo-studio/youtube-video-playlist-and-channel-downloader").call(input);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items);

npm install apify-client

cURL

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/nimbryxo-studio~youtube-video-playlist-and-channel-downloader/run-sync-get-dataset-items"   -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN"   -H "Content-Type: application/json"   -d '{"mode":"metadata","videoUrls":["https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw"],"playlistUrls":[],"channelUrls":[],"searchQueries":[],"videoQuality":"360p","container":"auto","audioOnly":false,"audioFormat":"m4a","downloadSubtitles":false,"subtitleLanguages":["en"],"subtitleFormat":"vtt","includeTranscript":false,"maxVideos":1,"maxMinutes":30,"maxMB":100,"allow4K":false,"storage":"ephemeral_kvs","storageRetentionDays":7,"s3Prefix":"youtube-downloader","s3Region":"auto","proxyConfiguration":{"useApifyProxy":true}}'

Waits for the run and returns the dataset items (runs over 300 seconds return HTTP 408; start an async run instead).

MCP (AI agents)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=nimbryxo-studio/youtube-video-playlist-and-channel-downloader",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer <YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Adds this Actor as a tool in an MCP client that takes a remote server URL (Cursor, VS Code, Claude Code) through Apify's hosted MCP server. OAuth sign-in also works without the header. Clients that only start local servers can wrap the URL with npx mcp-remote.

Open YouTube Video, Playlist & Channel Downloader with Metadata in Apify Store

Routes that work for YouTube data

The official route first, then the catalogue Actors that fit this problem (video files and metadata), by their published fields. Store figures are the publisher's public numbers.

Routes for YouTube data
Route	Core fields	Price / 1K	Success, 30 days	Link
Public APIYouTube Data API v3	not compared	below		Official docs
YouTube Video, Playlist & Channel Downloader with Metadata	4/8	$0.99	96% of 24 runs	Open in Apify Store
YouTube Video Metadata & Chapter Extractor	7/8	$0.99	16 runs, too few to rate	Open in Apify Store
YouTube Playlist Contents & Channel Playlist Finder	7/8	$0.99	13 runs, too few to rate	Open in Apify Store

Official price: No per-call fee is published; the constraint is the daily quota. Extra quota is not self-serve. Compare all 25 YouTube routes.

The facts behind the error

Fact	Value
What it means	The YouTube guest session or account exceeded YouTube's video request rate limit
Block length	yt-dlp reports the session or account as rate-limited by YouTube for up to an hour
Guest session limit	About 300 videos an hour (about 1,000 webpage or player requests)
Account limit	About 2,000 videos an hour (about 4,000 webpage or player requests)
Documented recovery	Add a delay of about 5-10 seconds between downloads with yt-dlp's -t sleep preset
First tracked	yt-dlp issue #11426, opened November 1, 2024; maintainers called it a newly enforced rate limit