Say Goodbye to YouTube Time-Sinks ⏳ Try These Tools

Unlock YouTube Gems in Minutes Instead Of Hours

Summarizing YouTube videos is a valuable skill, especially for those looking to save time and distill key information.

Whether you’ve done this a few times or haven’t used these tools at all, I’ve got some ideas to help you stay on top of those helpful channels with great content without investing a huge amount of time.

Free Tools for Summarization

First on the list is the Eightify app and Chrome extension. This tool is user-friendly and integrates directly into the YouTube interface, adding a convenient button for easy access. Installation is straightforward, and the extension is free to use. Upon clicking the button on a YouTube video page, the tool provides timestamp summaries and key insights, making it easier to navigate to specific parts of a video. This feature is particularly useful for skipping to sections of interest, significantly saving time.

Summarize.tech: A One-Off Solution

Another option for video summarization is Summarize.tech. Unlike the Eightify Chrome extension, Summarize.tech is a web-based tool that doesn't require installation. It's ideal for occasional use, offering a simple and effective way to get video summaries. By inputting a video URL, the tool generates a concise summary along with segmented insights for different video parts. Although it might not be as integrated as a browser extension, it's a great free tool for one-off summarization needs and I used it quite a bit before writing my own program.

Speaking of my own tool…

Personal Project: Summarily App

I've developed a really neat app called Summarily to address my own needs for efficient YouTube video summarization and automation. This tool is designed to provide email digests or web summaries of new videos from subscribed channels. Summarily aims to keep you updated without the distraction of browsing YouTube all the time and includes timestamped breakdowns that you can click and go right to that part of the video. While it will be a paid service due to operational costs, it's tailored for those who value staying informed on their favorite topics without spending hours on YouTube and going down tons of cat video rabbit holes…Early access signups are open and if you’re interested, check it out here.

Way more than book summaries

Shortform has the world’s best guides to 1000+ nonfiction books. Learn key points and gain insights you won't find anywhere else. Understand the world’s best ideas.

Join me on Shortform for a 5-day FREE trial and 20% off the annual subscription!

Adam Moody