Connect vidIQ and Sam can do your YouTube research: find keywords worth targeting, spot outlier and trending videos, size up competitors, score titles and read your own channel analytics. Each vidIQ request uses credits from your vidIQ plan.
What Sam can look up in vidIQ
- The research tools vidIQ offers, and their results: keywords, outliers, trends, competitors, title scores, transcripts and your channel analytics
What Sam can't do in vidIQ yet
- Upload or edit videos on your YouTube channel through vidIQ.
Connect vidIQ
- →A vidIQ plan with credits remaining. vidIQ requests draw on your plan's monthly credit balance.
Step 1 - Create a vidIQ MCP API key
- Sign in to vidIQ and go to Account Settings > MCP.
- Create an API key. It starts with vidiq_. This key is separate from your vidIQ password.
- Copy the key.
Step 2 - Open the integrations marketplace
Select Connect your tools at the bottom of the left sidebar, above your profile. Search for vidIQ or find it under Browse Integrations.
Step 3 - Paste it in and connect
Select vidIQ, paste what you copied into the fields Sam shows, and select Connect. Once it succeeds, it moves to your Connected tab.
You can revoke the key from the same vidIQ page at any time.
When you connect, you may see a screen of checkboxes, and some are easy to scroll past. Sam can only do what you allow. If you untick one, the matching actions in the list above will fail with a permission error.
If Sam says it can't reach vidIQ later on, see When Sam can't reach one of your tools.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does using vidIQ through Sam cost anything?
It uses your vidIQ credits, the same as using vidIQ directly. When your monthly credits run out, vidIQ requests stop working until they renew.
Can Sam post to YouTube?
Not through vidIQ. Connect YouTube separately to let Sam work with your channel.