Video Editing

How to transcribe a video online

Updated February 21, 2024

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An image of a user creating a video transcript.

Need to transcribe your video to text? From YouTube videos and podcasts to slideshow presentations and promotional videos, transcribing video to text is ideal for increasing engagement, accessibility, and making your content more professional.

Using the subtitle generator, easily and quickly create editable and downloadable .SRT transcripts in any language. Just upload a video with voice audio, or add an AI voiceover or voice recording to generate a video transcript in seconds, securely and confidently.

Explore how to convert your video to text and download your transcript for free in Clipchamp.  

What is a video transcript?

A video transcript is when you convert a video to text that can be downloaded as an .SRT file and uploaded to social media platforms like YouTube. Transcribing video to text is the perfect way to make videos more accessible to viewers, an important tool for legal services, and helpful to create marketing content and blogs.

How to transcribe video to text in Clipchamp

Step 1. Import videos or record a video

To import your own videos and audio, click on the import media button in the your media tab on the toolbar to browse your computer files, or connect your OneDrive.  

Note: Your video must include voice audio to successfully convert video to text using the subtitles generator.

Hình ảnh người dùng nhập phương tiện.

You can also use the transcribe video function with a video recorded inside the editor. Click on the record & create tab on the toolbar, then select screen and camera, camera, screen, audio recording, or text to speech.

An image of a user clicking on the record & create tab.

Drag and drop your media onto the timeline.

An image of a user adding a video to the timeline.

Step 2. Convert video to text with the captions feature

To transcribe video to text, click on the captions tab on the property panel, then click on the turn on autocaptions button.  

An image of a user clicking on the captions tab then turning on autocaptions.

A popup window will appear with transcribing with AI options. Here, you can select which language you would like to use, and filter any profanity and offensive language by checking the box. When you’re ready to generate your subtitles, click on the transcribe media button. You can look at the full list of languages here.

An image of a user selecting a language, filtering profanity and clicking on the transcribe media button.

You will automatically return to the editor and see your subtitle text and transcript being generated in the captions tab on the property panel. The generation time will depend on your internet connection, speed, and the length of your video.

An image of a user generating a transcript.

Once your captions and video transcript has successfully generated, captions will appear on the video preview, along with a transcript on the property panel.

An image of the transcript and captions circled.

Step 3. Edit your video transcript (optional)

While our transcribe video to text software is highly accurate, there’s a small chance that some words may be misspelt. Read through your video transcript on the property panel and type over the existing word to replace with the correct spelling.  

An image of a user editing a word on the transcript.

Step 4. Download your .SRT file transcript

To download your transcript to your device, click on the download captions (.srt) button on the property panel.

An image of a user downloading a video transcript.

Your video transcript will automatically download to your device in an .SRT file format. You can find your transcript in your downloads folder.

An image of the video transcript downloaded to the device.

Frequently asked questions

Is transcribing video to text free in Clipchamp?

Yes. Converting videos to text using the subtitle generator and downloading an .SRT file is free for all Clipchamp users.

What language can I convert my video to text in?

There are a huge variety of languages to choose from when converting speech to text. Select from languages like French, Japanese, German, Italian, Spanish, and so much more. You can look at the full list of languages here.

Do video transcripts have a word limit?

No. Converting your video into a transcript don't require a word limit. We recommend keeping videos to 10 minutes to reduce processing time.

Who can access the data for my video transcript?

No one has access to the data when converting your video to text. Microsoft Automatic Speech Recognition involves no human intervention, meaning no one will have access to the audio at any time.

Want to find more reasons to convert video to text? Check out how to transcribe YouTube videos with AI and explore how to get a podcast transcript.

Transcribe video to text today with Clipchamp or download the Clipchamp Windows app.  

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