Claras Claras
Get started

Getting started with Claras

This guide takes you from a new account to your first summary, in the web app or the Chrome extension, in a few minutes.

There's no search box yet. Pick a topic from the help list on this page, or open all help topics for a one-line guide to each. If your question isn't covered, email us and a person will answer.

Before you start

You need a free Claras account from the very first video. You sign in with Google, and no card is needed for the free plan, which includes 3 videos in any 30 days.

There are two ways to use Claras, and both work with the same account, plan and History:

  • The web app at app.meetclaras.com runs in any browser, including on a phone. It takes YouTube, Instagram and TikTok links, and video or audio files.
  • The Chrome extension opens in a side panel next to a YouTube video. It works on YouTube only.

Most people start in the web app, then add the extension if they watch a lot on YouTube.

Your first video in the web app

  1. Sign in. Click Get started on meetclaras.com, or open app.meetclaras.com, then click Continue with Google.
  2. Answer five quick questions. New accounts see them once: what you will use Claras for, your biggest frustration with YouTube, how many videos you watch, what you want Claras to do, and how you found it. Each is one tap.
  3. Pick a plan, or stay free. Next comes a plans screen. Every paid plan starts with a 14-day free trial. To stay on the free plan, click Not now under the plans. Two discount offers follow, one after the other: click No thanks on the first, then "No thanks, I will stay on 3 free videos a month" on the second. You land in the app on the free plan, and the screen doesn't come back in that browser.
  4. Paste a link. On the Summarize Video screen, pick the YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Video or Audio tab. If you paste a link under the wrong tab, Claras moves to the right one. Choose the language you want to read in from the menu beside the link box.
  5. Click Analyze with AI. The button shows each step as it goes: Downloading, Reading video, Writing chapters, Finishing up. A video without captions, an upload, or an Instagram or TikTok link takes longer, because the audio has to be transcribed first.
  6. Read the result. The video opens with tabs beside the player: Contents for chapters, Summary, Transcript, Comments on YouTube videos, and Ask AI. The video is saved to History in the sidebar.

Your first video in the Chrome extension

  1. Add it to Chrome. Use Add to Chrome in the web app's sidebar, which opens the Chrome Web Store listing, then pin the Claras icon to your toolbar.
  2. Sign in. Click the icon. The side panel asks you to sign in the first time. Click Continue with Google and use the same Google account as the web app, so your plan and History follow you.
  3. Open a YouTube video and analyze it. Click Summarize under the video, next to Like, or click Analyze with AI in the panel. The panel has the same tabs: Contents, Summary, Transcript, Comments and Ask AI.
  4. Need only the words? The two small icons beside Analyze with AI copy or download the transcript straight away, with no summary. They don't count as one of your videos.

What counts as a video

A video counts when its analysis finishes and is saved. A run that fails part way doesn't use one. Reopening a video from History is free, and so are copying, downloading and sending what you already have.

On the free plan, each video counts for 30 days from when you made it, then drops out and frees a slot. Uploads and Instagram or TikTok links also use transcription hours, counted by length: 1 hour every 30 days on the free plan. The account and billing guide has every plan limit side by side.

If something goes wrong

  • "That doesn't look like a YouTube, Instagram or TikTok link." The link isn't one Claras can read. YouTube Shorts and live links show this message, and so does a channel page. Use a normal watch link, the kind with watch?v= in it, or a youtu.be link.
  • An error under the Google button. Sign-in didn't finish. Try again. If the same message comes back, send it to us.
  • "Session expired. Please sign in again." The extension lost your sign-in, which can happen after a long break. Sign in again and carry on.
  • "Could not check your plan. Check your connection and try again." The extension couldn't reach Claras to check your plan, so it didn't start. Check your connection and try again.
  • A plans screen saying you've used your free videos for this month. You have made 3 videos in the last 30 days. Wait for the oldest one to drop out, or start a trial. Your saved videos stay in History either way.

Still need help?

Questions, bug reports and billing all go to one inbox, and every message is read by a person. Write from the contact page and include your account email, the video link, and the exact message you saw. That makes it much faster to help.

Transcripts and languagesGet the words, and pick the language you read in.Summaries and chaptersRead, shape and share what Claras writes.Uploads and linksWhich links and files work.How Claras worksWhat happens after you paste a link.

Ready to try it? Create your free account, or compare the plans first.