Beginner · 30-60 minutes
AI Subtitle Generation Guide
Generate accurate, styled subtitles that boost retention and accessibility on every platform.
Solo creatorsAccessibility-focused channelsMulti-platform publishers
Workflow steps
- 1Transcribe the sourceRun the video through Whisper or a comparable transcription tool.Whisper Large beats most paid transcription services in 2026.
- 2Edit for accuracySkim and fix proper nouns, numbers, and jargon that AI commonly misses.A 95% accurate transcript still ruins viewer trust.
- 3Translate if neededGenerate translated SRT files for your top non-English audiences.Translated subtitles outperform dubbed video in some niches.
- 4Style for the platformBurn captions for Shorts and Reels; upload SRT for YouTube long-form.Burned captions break YouTube auto-translation; only burn on shorts.
- 5Match brand fontsApply your brand color, font, and outline to burned captions.Caption styling is a powerful brand signal at thumbnail scale.
- 6Test on mobilePreview on a real phone before publishing; captions look different on web.Most viewers watch on mobile; design for that surface.
Publish-ready checklist
- Transcript edited for accuracy
- Proper nouns verified
- Brand font and color applied
- Captions burned for vertical
- SRT uploaded for long-form
- Tested on mobile
Suggested output
Commit to a single format and publish 3 clips before iterating.
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