YouTube Caption Extractor
Extract closed captions and subtitles from any YouTube video in seconds. Download in SRT, VTT, TXT, or JSON format. Works with both auto-generated and manual captions.
All Caption Types
Extract auto-generated captions, manual CC, and translated subtitles.
Lightning Fast
Get captions extracted in under 3 seconds. No processing delays.
Developer API
Integrate caption extraction into your apps with our REST API.
WHAT IS CAPTION EXTRACTION?
Caption extraction is the process of pulling out the closed caption (CC) text from a YouTube video and converting it into a downloadable file. YouTube videos can have multiple types of captions:
- →Auto-generated captions: Created automatically by YouTube's speech recognition AI
- →Manual captions: Uploaded by video creators or professional transcribers
- →Community captions: Contributed by viewers (now deprecated)
- →Translated captions: Auto-translated versions in different languages
HOW TO EXTRACT YOUTUBE CAPTIONS
Find a video with captions
Look for the CC icon on YouTube videos. Most videos have auto-generated captions at minimum.
Copy the video URL
Click on the video and copy the URL from your browser's address bar.
Paste into our extractor
Go to our dashboard and paste the YouTube URL into the input field.
Extract and download
Click Extract, then download your captions in SRT, VTT, TXT, or JSON format.
WHY EXTRACT YOUTUBE CAPTIONS?
Accessibility
Make video content accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing users by providing text versions.
Video Editing
Import SRT/VTT files into editing software like Premiere Pro, Final Cut, or DaVinci Resolve.
Translation
Extract captions and translate them to reach international audiences.
Content Analysis
Analyze video content at scale by extracting and processing caption text.
CAPTION EXTRACTION FOR DEVELOPERS
Need to extract captions programmatically? Our REST API makes it easy to integrate caption extraction into your applications:
curl -X POST "https://www.youtubetranscript.dev/api/v1/transcriptions" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"url": "https://youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"}'FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I extract captions if CC is disabled?
Yes! Even if the creator has disabled captions, we can use AI-powered audio transcription (ASR) to generate accurate captions from the audio.
Do extracted captions include timestamps?
Yes! SRT, VTT, and JSON formats all include precise timestamps. TXT format is plain text without timestamps.
Can I extract captions in other languages?
Yes, you can extract captions in any language available on the video, including auto-translated versions.