Both ways give you a standard .srt that works in VLC, video editors and other platforms. Transcripts and captions belong to the video's creator: use this for your own videos, videos you have permission to use, or private study — not to republish someone else's captions.
Method 1: copy the transcript from YouTube
- Open the video in a browser on a computer, expand the description and click Show transcript. The transcript opens next to the video. (Videos without captions have no transcript.)
- Keep the timestamps visible. If the ⋮ menu of the panel offers Toggle timestamps, make sure they are shown — they become the subtitle times.
- Select from the first timestamp to the last line and copy it (Ctrl+C, on a Mac Cmd+C).
- Paste it into the box below. The converter recognises the time on one line and the words on the next.
- Check the subtitles on the right and click Download SRT.
Clean the copied text first
- Delete lines that are not part of the transcript, such as chapter titles or a heading copied with the panel. A stray line is otherwise added to the subtitle above it.
- If your copy contains spoken durations like “2 minutes, 5 seconds” under each time, remove them with find and replace.
- Times in other styles work too:
[00:12] text,01:02:03 text.
Each subtitle lasts until the next timestamp, at most 7 seconds, so long pauses don't leave text on screen. A transcript copied without timestamps still converts, but the times are then estimated from reading speed and won't follow the speech — time it to the video with the SRT maker instead.
Method 2: download your own video's captions from YouTube Studio
- Open YouTube Studio and choose Subtitles in the left menu.
- Click the video, then next to the language click Edit or the options menu.
- Choose Download. Depending on the track and the Studio version you get an
.srt,.vttor.sbvfile.
An SRT is ready to use. Convert an .sbv with SBV to SRT and a .vtt with VTT to SRT. Downloading only works for videos on a channel you manage. To correct automatic captions inside Studio first, YouTube offers Duplicate and edit.
Which method should you use?
| Copy the transcript | Download from YouTube Studio | |
|---|---|---|
| Which videos | Any video that shows a transcript | Only videos on your own channel |
| Timing | Whole seconds (0:04); each subtitle ends when the next one starts | Exact start and end times in milliseconds |
| Line length | As YouTube split the text | As in the caption track |
| Best for | Quick subtitles, study notes, a draft to correct | Reusing your captions on other platforms or in an editor |
Because transcript times are shown in whole seconds, a subtitle can start up to a second off. If the whole file is off by the same amount, shift it with the subtitle sync tool; for frame-exact work, start from the Studio file.
Clean up YouTube auto-captions
- Every line appears twice: VTT files of automatic captions repeat the previous line while the next one appears. VTT to SRT removes the repeats and the word-timing tags (Remove YouTube auto-caption repeats).
- [Music], [Applause]: the SRT cleaner removes notes in square brackets, speaker names and ♪ lines.
- Subtitles early or late: shift them with the subtitle sync tool.
- Need just the text: SRT to TXT turns the captions into readable paragraphs.
Automatic captions are machine-generated and often lack punctuation or misspell names, so read them through before you publish.
Paste the YouTube transcript here
Frequently asked questions
Can I paste a YouTube link to get the SRT?
No. The tool doesn't download anything from YouTube; it converts text you paste or files you open. Copy the transcript as described above.
Is it allowed to convert someone else's transcript?
The captions belong to the video's creator. Converting them for your own viewing or study is different from publishing them; re-uploading or sharing someone else's captions needs their permission.
The transcript has no timestamps. Can I still make an SRT?
Yes. The text is split into subtitles and timed by reading speed, or spread over the video length if you enter it. For exact timing use the SRT maker.
Does it work with transcripts in other languages?
Yes. Pick the language in YouTube's transcript panel before you copy; the converter keeps any script, and the SRT is saved as UTF-8.