---
pretty_name: SponsorBlock YouTube Metadata
license: cc-by-4.0
language:
  - en
  - ru
  - hi
  - pl
  - pt
  - de
  - fr
  - es
  - vi
  - multilingual
annotations_creators:
  - machine-generated
language_creators:
  - machine-generated
source_datasets:
  - original
task_categories:
  - text-classification
  - feature-extraction
  - text-generation
tags:
  - youtube
  - video-metadata
  - sponsorblock
  - subtitles
  - engagement
  - viewer-behavior
  - captions
  - transcripts
size_categories:
  - 10M<n<100M
configs:
  - config_name: video_metadata
    data_files:
      - split: train
        path: video_metadata/*.parquet
    default: true
  - config_name: subtitles
    data_files:
      - split: train
        path: subtitles/*.parquet
  - config_name: channel_playlists
    data_files:
      - split: train
        path: channel_playlists/*.parquet
  - config_name: heatmaps
    data_files:
      - split: train
        path: heatmaps/*.parquet
  - config_name: live_chat
    data_files:
      - split: train
        path: live_chat/*.parquet
dataset_info:
  - config_name: video_metadata
    features:
      - name: id
        dtype: string
      - name: title
        dtype: string
      - name: fulltitle
        dtype: string
      - name: description
        dtype: string
      - name: upload_date
        dtype: string
      - name: timestamp
        dtype: int64
      - name: duration
        dtype: int64
      - name: view_count
        dtype: int64
      - name: like_count
        dtype: int64
      - name: comment_count
        dtype: int64
      - name: channel
        dtype: string
      - name: channel_id
        dtype: string
      - name: channel_url
        dtype: string
      - name: channel_follower_count
        dtype: int64
      - name: channel_is_verified
        dtype: bool
      - name: uploader
        dtype: string
      - name: uploader_id
        dtype: string
      - name: width
        dtype: int64
      - name: height
        dtype: int64
      - name: fps
        dtype: float64
      - name: vcodec
        dtype: string
      - name: acodec
        dtype: string
      - name: dynamic_range
        dtype: string
      - name: aspect_ratio
        dtype: float64
      - name: age_limit
        dtype: int64
      - name: availability
        dtype: string
      - name: live_status
        dtype: string
      - name: was_live
        dtype: bool
      - name: is_live
        dtype: bool
      - name: language
        dtype: string
      - name: playable_in_embed
        dtype: bool
      - name: media_type
        dtype: string
      - name: license
        dtype: string
      - name: location
        dtype: string
      - name: categories
        dtype: string
      - name: tags
        dtype: string
      - name: thumbnail
        dtype: string
      - name: chapters_json
        dtype: string
    splits:
      - name: train
        num_examples: 154536
  - config_name: subtitles
    features:
      - name: video_id
        dtype: string
      - name: language
        dtype: string
      - name: full_text
        dtype: string
      - name: segments_json
        dtype: string
    splits:
      - name: train
        num_examples: 62819
  - config_name: channel_playlists
    features:
      - name: id
        dtype: string
      - name: title
        dtype: string
      - name: description
        dtype: string
      - name: duration
        dtype: int64
      - name: view_count
        dtype: int64
      - name: timestamp
        dtype: int64
      - name: upload_date
        dtype: string
      - name: live_status
        dtype: string
      - name: availability
        dtype: string
      - name: channel
        dtype: string
      - name: channel_id
        dtype: string
      - name: channel_url
        dtype: string
      - name: channel_is_verified
        dtype: bool
      - name: uploader
        dtype: string
      - name: uploader_id
        dtype: string
      - name: playlist
        dtype: string
      - name: playlist_id
        dtype: string
      - name: playlist_title
        dtype: string
      - name: playlist_count
        dtype: int64
      - name: playlist_index
        dtype: int64
      - name: playlist_channel
        dtype: string
      - name: playlist_channel_id
        dtype: string
      - name: thumbnail
        dtype: string
    splits:
      - name: train
        num_examples: 20800000
  - config_name: heatmaps
    features:
      - name: video_id
        dtype: string
      - name: start_time
        dtype: float64
      - name: end_time
        dtype: float64
      - name: value
        dtype: float64
    splits:
      - name: train
        num_examples: 15000000
  - config_name: live_chat
    features:
      - name: video_id
        dtype: string
      - name: message_id
        dtype: string
      - name: timestamp_usec
        dtype: int64
      - name: video_offset_msec
        dtype: int64
      - name: author_name
        dtype: string
      - name: author_channel_id
        dtype: string
      - name: message
        dtype: string
      - name: message_type
        dtype: string
    splits:
      - name: train
        num_examples: 5000000
---

# SponsorBlock YouTube Metadata Dataset

A dataset of YouTube video metadata collected from a subset of videos in the [SponsorBlock](https://sponsor.ajay.app/) database. This dataset contains metadata, subtitles, engagement heatmaps, live chat, and channel playlist information for popular YouTube videos.

Contains the top videos from the SponsorBlock database that had data added in the year 2024.

## Quick Stats

| Metric | Value |
|--------|-------|
| Total videos | 154,536 |
| Videos with subtitles | 62,819 (41%) |
| Videos with heatmaps | ~92% |
| Videos with chapters | ~32% |
| Livestream recordings | 4,300 |
| Unique channels | 20,061 |
| Channel playlist entries | ~20.8M |
| Average video duration | 28.6 minutes |
| Average view count | 1.6M views |

## Collection Period

| Data Type | Collection Date | Content Date Range |
|-----------|-----------------|-------------------|
| Video metadata | Aug 9 - Sep 30, 2025 | May 2019 - Dec 2024 |
| Channel playlists | Oct 2-5, 2025 | Varies by channel |

**Note**: All metrics (view counts, likes, subscriber counts) are snapshots from the collection date and do not represent historical data.

## Data Source

Videos were selected from a **subset** of the [SponsorBlock](https://sponsor.ajay.app/) database, a crowdsourced browser extension for skipping sponsor segments. The subset was created by sorting all videos by their SponsorBlock **vote count** (total upvotes on submitted segments) and selecting the top ~167K video IDs. This selection method biases the dataset toward:

- **Highly-engaged SponsorBlock content** — videos with many user-submitted and upvoted segments
- **Popular videos** with large, active communities
- **Gaming, tech, and entertainment** content (common SponsorBlock categories)
- Videos with **sponsor segments** (brand deals, mid-roll ads)
- **English-language** content primarily, with significant Russian, Hindi, and European language representation

**Note**: This dataset does not represent a random sample of YouTube or even a random sample of SponsorBlock. Videos were specifically selected for having high engagement within the SponsorBlock community.

### Category Distribution

| Category | Percentage |
|----------|------------|
| Gaming | 15% |
| Entertainment | 11% |
| People & Blogs | 8% |
| Science & Technology | 6% |
| Education | 5% |
| Other | 55% |

### Language Distribution

| Language | Percentage |
|----------|------------|
| English (en, en-US) | 25% |
| Russian | 16% |
| Hindi | 2.5% |
| Polish | 2% |
| Other | 54.5% |

## Dataset Configurations

### `video_metadata`

Full metadata for 154,536 individual YouTube videos.

| Column | Type | Description |
|--------|------|-------------|
| `id` | string | YouTube video ID (11 characters) |
| `title` | string | Video title |
| `fulltitle` | string | Full video title |
| `description` | string | Video description (may be truncated) |
| `upload_date` | string | Upload date (YYYYMMDD format) |
| `timestamp` | int64 | Unix timestamp of upload |
| `duration` | int64 | Duration in seconds |
| `view_count` | int64 | Number of views at collection time |
| `like_count` | int64 | Number of likes at collection time |
| `comment_count` | int64 | Number of comments at collection time |
| `channel` | string | Channel display name |
| `channel_id` | string | YouTube channel ID (24 characters, starts with UC) |
| `channel_url` | string | Full channel URL |
| `channel_follower_count` | int64 | Subscriber count at collection time |
| `channel_is_verified` | bool | Whether channel has verification badge |
| `uploader` | string | Uploader name (usually same as channel) |
| `uploader_id` | string | Uploader handle (@username) |
| `width` | int64 | Video width in pixels |
| `height` | int64 | Video height in pixels |
| `fps` | float64 | Frames per second |
| `vcodec` | string | Video codec (e.g., vp9, av01, avc1) |
| `acodec` | string | Audio codec (e.g., opus, mp4a) |
| `dynamic_range` | string | SDR or HDR |
| `aspect_ratio` | float64 | Width/height ratio |
| `age_limit` | int64 | Age restriction (0 = none, 18 = adult) |
| `availability` | string | public, unlisted, or private |
| `live_status` | string | not_live, is_live, was_live, is_upcoming |
| `was_live` | bool | True if video was a livestream |
| `is_live` | bool | True if currently live |
| `language` | string | Detected video language (ISO 639-1) |
| `playable_in_embed` | bool | Whether embedding is allowed |
| `categories` | string | JSON array of YouTube categories |
| `tags` | string | JSON array of video tags |
| `thumbnail` | string | URL of highest quality thumbnail |
| `chapters_json` | string | JSON array of `{title, start_time, end_time}` |

### `subtitles`

Extracted subtitles for 62,819 videos (41% coverage).

| Column | Type | Description |
|--------|------|-------------|
| `video_id` | string | YouTube video ID |
| `language` | string | Subtitle language code |
| `full_text` | string | Concatenated plain text of all subtitles |
| `segments_json` | string | JSON array of `{start, end, text}` segments |

**Note**: These are auto-generated captions from YouTube, not human-created subtitles.

### `channel_playlists`

Video entries from 20,061 channel upload playlists (~20.8M total entries).

| Column | Type | Description |
|--------|------|-------------|
| `id` | string | YouTube video ID |
| `title` | string | Video title |
| `description` | string | Video description |
| `duration` | int64 | Duration in seconds |
| `view_count` | int64 | Number of views |
| `timestamp` | int64 | Unix timestamp |
| `upload_date` | string | Upload date (YYYYMMDD) |
| `channel` | string | Channel name |
| `channel_id` | string | Channel ID |
| `playlist` | string | Playlist name (usually "Uploads from [Channel]") |
| `playlist_id` | string | Playlist ID |
| `playlist_count` | int64 | Total videos in channel's upload playlist |
| `playlist_index` | int64 | Position in playlist (1 = newest) |
| `thumbnail` | string | Thumbnail URL |

**Use cases**: Channel growth analysis, upload frequency patterns, content strategy analysis.

### `heatmaps`

Viewer engagement heatmaps showing which parts of videos are most watched. ~92% of videos have heatmap data, with ~100 segments per video.

| Column | Type | Description |
|--------|------|-------------|
| `video_id` | string | YouTube video ID |
| `start_time` | float64 | Segment start in seconds |
| `end_time` | float64 | Segment end in seconds |
| `value` | float64 | Relative engagement score (0.0 - 1.0) |

**How to interpret**: Values represent relative rewatch/skip behavior. Higher values indicate segments that viewers replay or don't skip. Values near 0 indicate frequently skipped segments (often intros, sponsor reads).

**Use cases**: Identifying engaging content patterns, sponsor segment detection, intro/outro detection, content quality analysis.

### `live_chat`

Chat messages from 4,300 livestream recordings.

| Column | Type | Description |
|--------|------|-------------|
| `video_id` | string | YouTube video ID |
| `message_id` | string | Unique message ID |
| `timestamp_usec` | int64 | Message timestamp in microseconds |
| `video_offset_msec` | int64 | Video playback time when message appeared |
| `author_name` | string | Display name of message author |
| `author_channel_id` | string | Author's YouTube channel ID |
| `message` | string | Message text content |
| `message_type` | string | text, paid (Super Chat), membership, gift |

**Use cases**: Chat sentiment analysis, community engagement patterns, Super Chat analysis.

## Raw Data Archives

In addition to the processed parquet files, the complete raw yt-dlp output is available as compressed archives in the `raw/` directory:

| Archive | Contents | Compressed | Uncompressed |
|---------|----------|------------|--------------|
| `video_metadata.tar.zst` | 154K `.info.json` files | 1.6 GB | 56 GB |
| `subtitles.tar.zst` | 62K `.vtt` files | 2.5 GB | 12 GB |
| `live_chat.tar.zst` | 4K `.live_chat.json` files | 897 MB | 14 GB |
| `channel_playlists.tar.zst` | 20K channel `.json` files | 3.4 GB | 48 GB |
| **Total** | | **8.2 GB** | **130 GB** |

### Extracting Raw Data

```bash
# Extract with zstd
tar -I zstd -xvf raw/video_metadata.tar.zst

# Or with explicit zstd command
zstd -d raw/video_metadata.tar.zst -c | tar -xvf -
```

### Additional Fields in Raw Data

The raw JSON files contain fields not included in the parquet files:

- `formats` - All available streaming URLs and quality options
- `thumbnails` - All thumbnail resolutions
- `automatic_captions` - Caption availability for 150+ languages
- `subtitles` - Manual subtitle availability
- `requested_formats` - Selected format details
- `http_headers` - Request headers used

## Usage Examples

### Basic Loading

```python
from datasets import load_dataset

# Load video metadata
videos = load_dataset("ScriptSmith/sponsorblock-youtube-metadata-2024", "video_metadata")
print(f"Loaded {len(videos['train']):,} videos")

# Load with streaming for large configs
playlists = load_dataset(
    "ScriptSmith/sponsorblock-youtube-metadata-2024",
    "channel_playlists",
    streaming=True
)
```

### Analyzing Engagement Patterns

```python
import json
from datasets import load_dataset

videos = load_dataset("ScriptSmith/sponsorblock-youtube-metadata-2024", "video_metadata")
heatmaps = load_dataset("ScriptSmith/sponsorblock-youtube-metadata-2024", "heatmaps")

# Find videos with high early drop-off (bad intros)
# Join on video_id, look for low values in first 30 seconds
```

### Working with Subtitles

```python
import json
from datasets import load_dataset

subtitles = load_dataset("ScriptSmith/sponsorblock-youtube-metadata-2024", "subtitles")

# Parse segments
for row in subtitles['train']:
    segments = json.loads(row['segments_json'])
    for seg in segments:
        print(f"{seg['start']:.1f}s: {seg['text']}")
```

### Channel Analysis

```python
from datasets import load_dataset
from collections import Counter

playlists = load_dataset("ScriptSmith/sponsorblock-youtube-metadata-2024", "channel_playlists")

# Count videos per channel
channel_counts = Counter(row['channel_id'] for row in playlists['train'])
print(f"Most prolific: {channel_counts.most_common(10)}")
```

## Known Limitations

1. **Temporal snapshot**: All metrics are from collection time (Aug-Oct 2025) and don't reflect current values or historical trends.

2. **Selection bias**: Videos come from SponsorBlock, biasing toward sponsored content and certain genres (gaming, tech).

3. **Missing data**: Not all videos have subtitles (41%), heatmaps (92%), or chapters (32%).

4. **Deleted content**: Some videos may have been deleted or made private since collection.

5. **Auto-captions**: Subtitles are YouTube's auto-generated captions, which may contain transcription errors.

6. **Truncated descriptions**: Very long descriptions may be truncated.

7. **Regional availability**: Some videos may be region-locked; metadata reflects availability from the collection location.

## License

This dataset is released under **CC-BY-4.0**. The underlying video content belongs to the respective creators. This dataset contains only metadata, not the actual video/audio content.

## Citation

```bibtex
@dataset{sponsorblock_youtube_metadata_2024,
  title={SponsorBlock YouTube Metadata Dataset},
  author={Smith, Adam},
  year={2025},
  url={https://huggingface.co/datasets/ScriptSmith/sponsorblock-youtube-metadata-2024},
  note={Metadata for 154K YouTube videos from the SponsorBlock database}
}
```

## Acknowledgments

- [SponsorBlock](https://sponsor.ajay.app/) for the video ID database
- [yt-dlp](https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp) for metadata extraction
- YouTube creators whose content is represented in this dataset