To find influencers and creators by niche, describe the creators you want in one plain-language sentence and send it as query to a Desearch People Search route, such as POST /desearch/people/search/youtube. The search runs in the background and returns a task_id at once. You get back creators, not videos: each one with a fit score, the reasons it matched, the videos or posts that prove it, and public contact details where the creator lists them. The full reference is in the People Search guide.
This guide leads with YouTube Creator Search, then covers TikTok and X, how to read the results, and how to build an outreach list that does not repeat itself.
Why finding creators by niche is hard to do by hand
Searching videos by keyword gives you content, not people. You get a page of videos on "home espresso setups", but some come from channels that posted once on the topic and never again. To build a shortlist you still have to open each channel, check whether the creator covers the niche reliably, look at the audience size and hunt for a contact.
People Search flips that. You describe the creator, not the video, and the search returns a ranked list of creators. Every pick comes with the reasons it matched and the videos or posts behind it, so you can check the match yourself instead of taking it on trust.
Where an API for finding influencers fits
An influencer search that you can call from code fits any job where you need a shortlist of creators in a niche, again and again. Pick the network where those creators actually publish:
| Job | Network | What to describe | Filters that help |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand and sponsorship shortlists | YouTube | The niche, the format, the audience | min_subscribers, max_subscribers, countries, require_contact |
| Developer-tool and podcast sponsorships | YouTube, X | The stack or topic they teach or talk about | keywords, exclude_keywords, follower or subscriber bands |
| Affiliate programs | YouTube, TikTok | Creators who review or recommend products in the niche | require_contact, audience bands |
| Product seeding | TikTok | Creators who post about the product category | min_followers, max_followers, require_contact |
| UGC sourcing | TikTok | The style of video you want made | max_followers for smaller creators, require_contact |
| Voices on a topic | X | What they post about | min_followers, verified_only, countries |
If you want to find influencers on X without writing code, see find influencers on X with no code. For a separate Instagram example in Python, see the Instagram influencer finder in Python. Instagram is not a People Search network.
How to find creators with People Search
Every creator search follows the same flow, whichever network you pick:
- Describe the creators.
queryis required: who you are looking for, in plain language. - Set the size and the bar.
countis how many creators to find (default 25, min 5, max 200).min_scorekeeps only creators at or above a fit score from 0 to 100. - Start the search. The POST returns a
task_idat once. The search runs in the background. - Poll the task.
GET /desearch/people/tasks/{task_id}shows where the search is. - Read creators while it runs.
GET /desearch/people/tasks/{task_id}/resultsreturns creators as they arrive. - Export.
GET /desearch/people/tasks/{task_id}/export?format=csvdownloads the shortlist.
You can pause, resume or cancel a task at any time, and results stay available for 30 days.
The request body also takes exclude (handles to leave out, up to 1,000), metadata (your own labels for the search, at most 10 keys) and filters (network-specific, covered below).
For the full picture across X, YouTube, LinkedIn and TikTok, see the hub guide: People Search API: find people by description.
Get an API key in Console
Create a key in Desearch Console. New accounts get $5 in API credits after attaching a card in Console, then pay as they go.
Find YouTube creators by niche
To find YouTube creators in a niche, use YouTube Creator Search, POST /desearch/people/search/youtube. It finds videos and channels on your topic, then reads each channel's About section, subscribers, country and links. It also reads the creator's own website for publicly listed contact details, and returns a public email when the creator lists one.
YouTube filters:
| Filter | What it does |
|---|---|
min_subscribers | Drop channels below this audience size |
max_subscribers | Drop channels above this audience size. Use it to keep a micro creator shortlist |
countries | Prefer creators from the countries you choose |
require_contact | Keep only creators with a public email or contact link |
keywords | Words the creator should match |
exclude_keywords | Words that rule a creator out |
This request asks for a contact-ready shortlist of smaller channels in one niche. It is written from the API schema, not a captured run. Swap in your own description and thresholds:
curl --request POST 'https://api.desearch.ai/desearch/people/search/youtube' \
--header "Authorization: $DESEARCH_API_KEY" \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
--data '{
"query": "YouTube creators who review home espresso machines and grinders for beginners",
"count": 25,
"min_score": 60,
"metadata": {"campaign": "espresso-sponsorships"},
"filters": {
"min_subscribers": 5000,
"max_subscribers": 100000,
"require_contact": true
}
}'The response includes the task_id. The same flow in Python, with plain requests, also written from the schema and not a captured run:
import os
import requests
BASE = "https://api.desearch.ai/desearch/people"
HEADERS = {"Authorization": os.environ["DESEARCH_API_KEY"]}
resp = requests.post(
f"{BASE}/search/youtube",
headers=HEADERS,
json={
"query": "YouTube creators who review home espresso machines and grinders for beginners",
"count": 25,
"min_score": 60,
"filters": {
"min_subscribers": 5000,
"max_subscribers": 100000,
"require_contact": True,
},
},
timeout=60,
)
resp.raise_for_status()
task_id = resp.json()["task_id"]
print("task:", task_id)
# Check the task, then read the creators found so far
task = requests.get(f"{BASE}/tasks/{task_id}", headers=HEADERS, timeout=60)
task.raise_for_status()
print(task.json())
results = requests.get(f"{BASE}/tasks/{task_id}/results", headers=HEADERS, timeout=60)
results.raise_for_status()
print(results.json())Call the task route again on an interval until the search ends. When you are happy with the shortlist, download it:
curl 'https://api.desearch.ai/desearch/people/tasks/TASK_ID/export?format=csv' \
--header "Authorization: $DESEARCH_API_KEY" \
--output youtube-creators.csvAll request fields are in the YouTube Creator Search reference.
Find TikTok creators for product seeding and UGC
TikTok Creator Search, POST /desearch/people/search/tiktok, finds videos on your topic and accounts whose name or bio matches. It reads each creator's bio, followers, likes, latest videos and a public email in the bio when there is one. Public data only.
TikTok filters are min_followers, max_followers, require_contact, keywords and exclude_keywords. A follower band plus require_contact gives you a shortlist of smaller creators who list a public email in their bio, for product seeding or UGC. TikTok has no countries filter, so you can't filter TikTok creators by location.
For a full TikTok walkthrough, see TikTok Creator Search and the TikTok Creator Search reference. If you want TikTok videos rather than creators, see find TikTok posts by keyword.
Find influencers on X by what they post
X Profile Search, POST /desearch/people/search/x, returns profiles, not posts. It scans recent X posts on your topic, groups them by author, and reads each author's bio, followers, website and location. Use it when the influencers you want are best described by what they post about.
X filters are min_followers, max_followers, verified_only, countries, keywords and exclude_keywords. For the full X walkthrough, see search Twitter users by topic. If you prefer no code, see find influencers on X with no code.
LinkedIn Profile Search also exists for finding people by role. The hub guide covers it.
Read the results: fit score, reasons and proof
Each creator in the results comes with three things you can use to judge the pick:
| What you get | How to use it |
|---|---|
| Fit score (0 to 100) | Rank the shortlist. Raise min_score on the next run if weak matches get through |
| Reasons it matched | See which parts of your description the creator matches |
| Proof videos or posts | Open them and check the match before you reach out |
A high score with proof videos that all sit squarely in your niche is a strong pick. A creator whose proof is one off-topic video is worth a second look before outreach.
People Search reads public data only and does not promise every creator in a niche. When a task ends, check three fields:
| Field | What it tells you |
|---|---|
completion_reason | Why the search stopped |
coverage_limited | Whether a budget stopped the search before it reached count |
warnings | Anything else worth knowing about the run |
If a search stops before count, broaden the description, lower min_score or relax the filters, then run it again.
Build an outreach list that does not repeat itself
Creator outreach runs in rounds. Two features keep each round clean.
Leave out creators you already contacted. Pass their handles in exclude, up to 1,000 per search. A repeat run then returns only new creators.
curl --request POST 'https://api.desearch.ai/desearch/people/search/youtube' \
--header "Authorization: $DESEARCH_API_KEY" \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
--data '{
"query": "YouTube creators who review home espresso machines and grinders for beginners",
"count": 25,
"exclude": ["example_handle_1", "example_handle_2"],
"filters": {"require_contact": true}
}'Keep one roster across searches. GET /desearch/people/profiles lists every creator your searches found on one platform, with one entry per person. Each entry has found_by, so you can see which searches found that creator. Filter it with has=email to keep only creators with a public email, and sort it by score, recency or audience.
GET /desearch/people/profiles/export downloads the roster as CSV or JSON Lines, up to 10,000 people, ready for a sheet or CRM. The profiles list and its export are not billed.
Pricing and billing
- YouTube Creator Search: $10.00 / 1000 creators
- TikTok Creator Search: $15.00 / 1000 creators
- X Profile Search: $25.00 / 1000 profiles
Confirm current rates in Console.
There is no per-search minimum. When a task starts, count creators are reserved at the route price (cost_usd). At the end you pay only for the qualified creators delivered, and the rest is returned automatically. A search that delivers no profiles costs nothing. See Desearch pricing for details.
FAQ
How do I find influencers by niche with an API?
Describe the creators you want in plain language and send it as query to POST /desearch/people/search/youtube, /tiktok or /x. The POST returns a task_id; read the scored creators from GET /desearch/people/tasks/{task_id}/results.
Does it return creators or videos?
Creators. On YouTube and TikTok you get creators, not videos, and on X you get profiles, not posts. Each one comes with a fit score, the reasons it matched and the videos or posts that prove it.
Can I target micro creators?
Yes. Use min_subscribers and max_subscribers on YouTube, and min_followers and max_followers on TikTok and X.
Can I get creator contact details?
Only public ones. With require_contact, YouTube searches keep only creators with a public email or contact link, and TikTok searches keep only creators with a public email in the bio. YouTube Creator Search also reads the creator's own website for publicly listed contact details. People Search never returns private contact details.
Can I filter TikTok creators by country?
No. TikTok Creator Search has no countries filter. YouTube and X do.
How do I avoid contacting the same creator twice?
Pass handles you already contacted in exclude, up to 1,000 per search. To see every creator across your searches in one place, use GET /desearch/people/profiles.
Does it find every creator in a niche?
No. It reads public data and can end before count. Check coverage_limited and warnings when the task ends.
How long are results kept?
30 days.
What does it cost?
YouTube Creator Search: $10.00 / 1000 creators. TikTok Creator Search: $15.00 / 1000 creators. X Profile Search: $25.00 / 1000 profiles. There is no per-search minimum: you pay only for qualified creators delivered. Confirm current rates in Console.
Get started
- Create an API key in Console. New accounts get $5 in API credits after attaching a card in Console, then pay as they go.
- Run the YouTube request above, or use an SDK: desearch-js 1.7.0 or later, or desearch-py 1.5.0 or later, which installs from GitHub until PyPI catches up.
- Check the YouTube Creator Search reference and the TikTok Creator Search reference for every field.
Describe your niche in one sentence and run your first YouTube Creator Search. New accounts get $5 in API credits after attaching a card in Console, then pay as they go.
Reference: People Search guide