Add subtitles to YouTube Shorts video

One Shorts link, two useful outputs

• Paste a public youtube.com/shorts/ link. Regular watch links, youtu.be links, embeds, live streams, channels and playlists are not supported.
• Set the spoken language and caption language before selecting Generate captions. Review technical terms and any names in the resulting transcript.
• Export MP4 when you want captions visible in the picture, or SRT and VTT when you want a text track to use alongside your video.

Use an imported Short as a source for a new edit

This page starts with a Short that is already public. The transcription comes from its audio, so names or terminology still need review even if YouTube displays its own captions on the source. Text already visible in the footage remains visible in your export.

For an unpublished recording, the YouTube Shorts caption generator lets you begin with your local file. If you need a switchable subtitle track for a full-length YouTube upload, use the YouTube subtitle generator and save an SRT instead.

Make captions fit a vertical Short

Keep cues concise and place them where they do not cover a speaker's mouth or the action being explained. Preview the captions at phone size before exporting.

Changing the caption language creates a translated subtitle track; it does not replace or dub the speaker's audio. Review translated product names and keep the wording consistent across the whole Short.

Choose embedded captions or a subtitle track

Embedded captions travel with an exported clip when you reuse it elsewhere. A subtitle file keeps timing and text separate from the picture. Neither option updates your YouTube account automatically: you decide where to upload the exported file. We request the highest resolution the provider lists for your Short, up to 4K. Imports must fit the 512 MB limit; larger files are rejected.