Free tool
Add subtitles to a YouTube video
To add subtitles to YouTube video uploads without typing a word, make an SRT from the video with the free generator below. Then, in YouTube Studio, open Subtitles, add the language and upload the file With timing: each subtitle appears as its words are spoken.
- Free
- SRT for YouTube Studio
- Nothing is stored
Drop your video or audio file here, or Choose your video or audio file
MP4, MOV, MKV or WebM video, or MP3, M4A or WAV audio. Up to 30 minutes of each file, 3 free files a day. The language is detected automatically.
Publishing interviews or a podcast on YouTube? NoteOwl transcribes your recordings on your Mac, unlimited, and saves SRT subtitles that start every line with the speaker’s name.
How it works
How do you get subtitles for a YouTube upload?
Drop in the same video file you uploaded, or are about to upload. The generator transcribes its sound in short pieces and sets every subtitle to the moment it’s said. Read them through in the preview, then download the SRT, which keeps your video’s name.
- 1
Use the uploaded cut
The exact file on your channel, so each subtitle lands on the right second. Its MP3 or WAV soundtrack works as well.
- 2
Watch the subtitles build
Up to 30 minutes of the file are subtitled, each subtitle listed with its start, end and lines.
- 3
Download SRT
It’s the first button. A VTT sits beside it if you’d rather upload that.
How do you upload an SRT file in YouTube Studio?
Sign in to YouTube Studio on a computer and select Subtitles in the left menu. Choose the video, click ADD LANGUAGE and pick the language spoken in it. Then click ADD under Subtitles, select Upload file, choose With timing and the SRT, and select Save.
Haven’t published the video yet? YouTube’s help says subtitles can go in during the upload too: the Video elements step has a Subtitles and captions option.
- 1
Subtitles, then the video
In YouTube Studio’s left menu, select Subtitles, then the video you want subtitled.
- 2
ADD LANGUAGE
Click it and choose the language the video is spoken in.
- 3
ADD, then Upload file
Under Subtitles, click ADD and select Upload file.
- 4
With timing, Continue, Save
Pick With timing, select Continue, choose the .srt and select Save.
With timing or Without timing: which should you choose?
With timing. Every subtitle in the generator’s SRT already carries a start and an end time taken from the speech, so pick With timing, select Continue and choose the file. YouTube then shows each subtitle at the time written in it.
Those times count from 0:00 of the file you dropped in. If the version on YouTube has an intro the file didn’t, every subtitle runs late by the same amount: move them all at once with the subtitle shifter, or make the SRT again from the uploaded file.
Which subtitle file formats does YouTube accept?
Lots. YouTube’s help sorts them into basic ones such as SubRip .srt and SubViewer .sbv, advanced ones such as WebVTT, TTML and DFXP, and broadcast ones led by .scc, which it calls its preferred format. A plain SRT is the easiest to make and to fix.
The SRT made here is the basic kind: plain UTF-8 text with no styling. An old .sbv from YouTube turns into SRT or VTT in the subtitle converter.
- Basic
- FormatsSubRip (.srt), SubViewer (.sbv, .sub), MPsub, LRC, Videotron Lambda (.cap)
- What the help saysBasic versions only: no styling is read, and the file must be plain UTF-8
- Advanced
- FormatsWebVTT (.vtt), SAMI, RealText, TTML, DFXP
- What the help saysWebVTT positioning works; styling is limited to bold, italic and underline
- Broadcast
- Formats.scc, EBU-STL (.stl), .tds, .cin, .asc, .cap
- What the help says.scc is the format YouTube prefers
| Group | Formats | What the help says |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | SubRip (.srt), SubViewer (.sbv, .sub), MPsub, LRC, Videotron Lambda (.cap) | Basic versions only: no styling is read, and the file must be plain UTF-8 |
| Advanced | WebVTT (.vtt), SAMI, RealText, TTML, DFXP | WebVTT positioning works; styling is limited to bold, italic and underline |
| Broadcast | .scc, EBU-STL (.stl), .tds, .cin, .asc, .cap | .scc is the format YouTube prefers |
What do viewers see after you upload subtitles?
Closed captions they control. Your subtitles stay a separate track that each viewer turns on or off with the CC button in the player. Nothing is drawn into the picture, so you can correct a word later by replacing the file, not the video.
To correct them, YouTube’s help says to download the captions, edit the file and upload them to the video again; the SRT editor fixes words and times in your browser. For viewers who speak another language, translate the SRT with the subtitle translator and add it with ADD LANGUAGE.
Want the words of a video as a document instead? Paste the transcript YouTube shows under it into the YouTube transcript cleaner for tidy paragraphs.
Can YouTube subtitles show who is speaking?
Yes, when NoteOwl writes them. On your Mac it transcribes the recordings you import with on-device AI models, labels each speaker and saves an SRT file whose subtitles open with that speaker’s name, unlimited. A podcast or a panel reaches YouTube with every voice named.
FAQ
Questions about subtitles on YouTube
Can I add subtitles to a YouTube video that’s already published?
Yes. In YouTube Studio, select Subtitles in the left menu and pick the published video. Add its language with ADD LANGUAGE, then upload the SRT With timing and select Save.
Does YouTube accept VTT subtitle files?
Yes. WebVTT is one of the advanced formats on YouTube’s list, with positioning and simple bold, italic and underline. The generator saves a VTT next to the SRT, so upload whichever you prefer.
Why are my subtitles early or late on YouTube?
The SRT’s times start at 0:00 of the file it was made from. If the video on YouTube begins differently, every subtitle is off by the same amount. Make the SRT from the uploaded file itself, or shift all its times before uploading.
How long a video can I subtitle here?
Up to 30 minutes of each file, 3 files a day, with no account. A longer video is subtitled up to that point. For whole episodes, NoteOwl transcribes the full recording on your Mac, unlimited.
Will the subtitles name the speakers?
No. The web generator writes only what is said. NoteOwl, the Mac app, saves SRT subtitles with each speaker’s name at the start of their lines.
Can I get subtitles in another language for YouTube?
The generator writes subtitles in the language spoken in the video and doesn’t translate them. Translate the SRT with NoteOwl’s subtitle translator, then add it in YouTube Studio as a second language with ADD LANGUAGE.
Is my video uploaded to make the subtitles?
Not the video. Your browser pulls the sound out of it and sends that in short pieces to a cloud AI transcription service, which transcribes each one and then discards it. The subtitles are put together in the page, and NoteOwl keeps nothing.
Keep exploring
More subtitle generator tools
- Subtitle generatorA free AI subtitle generator: drop in a video or recording and download SRT or VTT subtitles timed to the speech, two short lines per cue; only the sound is sent, nothing is stored
- Subtitles for CapCutMake an SRT with short lines for vertical video, then import it in CapCut on desktop or the web
- Subtitles for Premiere ProMake an SRT from your footage, import it into Premiere as a caption track, restyle it and export it burned in or as a file
- Subtitles for iMovieIMovie can’t import subtitle files: make an SRT here, then use titles, Final Cut Pro or burned-in subtitles instead
- Subtitles for CanvaMake subtitles for a Canva video and add them the way Canva allows
Related
- YouTube transcript to textPaste the transcript YouTube shows under a video and get clean paragraphs, with or without timestamps, as text, Word or SRT; nothing is fetched from YouTube
- SRT generatorMake an SRT subtitle file from a video or recording free in your browser: timed cues of two short lines, ready for YouTube or a video editor; nothing is stored
- Subtitle generatorTurn a recording into an SRT subtitle file with timecodes and speaker names, on your Mac
Subtitles for every episode, made on your Mac
Free to download. Runs entirely on your Mac.
macOS 26 or later · Apple Silicon (M1 or newer) · 16 GB memory minimum, 24 GB recommended
About NoteOwl
NoteOwl is private AI meeting notes and memory for the Mac. It captures meetings without a bot joining the call, labels every speaker, writes summaries and action items, and builds a memory of every conversation that you can chat with — fully offline, because the speech recognition and the AI run on the Mac itself. Dictation into any app is free; Pro is a one-time purchase.
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