GUIDE · TRANSCRIBEANYTHING

How to add subtitles to a video on your Mac

To add subtitles to a video on a Mac, transcribe the video's audio into a timestamped caption file (SRT or VTT), then load that file into your video editor or upload it alongside the video. TranscribeAnything does the hard part on-device: drop the MP4 or MOV in, and it produces synced SRT and VTT you can drop straight into Final Cut, Premiere, CapCut, YouTube, or a web player — in a few minutes, with no upload.

Step by step

Drop your video file (MP4, MOV, and more) onto the TranscribeAnything menu bar icon.
Let it transcribe the audio into a timestamped transcript.
Export as SRT (or VTT for web).
Load the .srt into your editor or upload it with the video — captions appear synced to the speech.

SRT vs. VTT — which to export

Format	Best for
SRT	Final Cut, Premiere, DaVinci, CapCut, YouTube uploads — the universal subtitle file
VTT	Web video (HTML5 <track>), some streaming players and CMSs

Both carry the same timestamped lines; pick the one your destination expects. When in doubt, SRT is accepted almost everywhere. TranscribeAnything runs Apple's on-device speech engine at up to 80× realtime, supports 10 languages, and costs $19.99/year for unlimited transcription — the first 5 transcriptions (up to 30 minutes each) are free.

Why captions are worth it

The majority of social video is watched on mute, so captions aren't an accessibility afterthought — they're what makes the video land at all. They also make video content searchable and quotable, and they meet accessibility requirements for public-facing and educational material. Generating them on-device means you can caption confidential or unreleased footage without uploading it anywhere.

Frequently asked questions

Are the subtitles synced to the video?Yes — the export carries timestamps generated from the audio, so lines appear in time with the speech when loaded into any editor or player.

Can I edit the subtitle text before exporting?You can review the transcript and export TXT/Markdown too; SRT and VTT are standard text files you can also fine-tune in your editor after export.

Does it burn captions into the video?It produces the caption file (SRT/VTT); your video editor or uploader handles displaying or burning them in, which keeps you in control of styling.

What about captions in another language?Transcribe in any of 10 supported languages, auto-detected — the subtitles come out in the language spoken in the footage.

Try it on your own audio.First 5 transcriptions free (30 minutes each), then $19.99/year unlimited. Apple's on-device speech engine — your audio never leaves your Mac.

Get TranscribeAnything for Mac