Most subtitle files are one of six formats. SRT and WebVTT are plain text, timing plus words, and are what nearly every platform takes. ASS/SSA adds fonts, colours and placement. SBV is YouTube's own simple format. TTML (and its DFXP profile) is XML for broadcast and streaming delivery. SCC carries US broadcast CEA-608 captions as hex codes. Pick by where the file is going: when in doubt, SRT.
WhipScribe exports SRT and WebVTT from a recording; below, SRT, VTT, ASS, SBV, TTML and SCC compared. Packs: $4 for 500 minutes, $12 for 2,000, $24 for 5,000; Workspace $19 a month. Up to 10 hours or 5 GB per file. Measured turnaround: about 2 minutes per audio hour. 99 languages. Checked 25 Oct 2026.
At a glance
| Format | Extension | Inside | Styling and position | Used for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SubRip (SRT) | .srt | Plain text: number, time, text | A few tags some players honour | Almost everything: YouTube, Vimeo, LinkedIn, Facebook, every editor |
| WebVTT | .vtt | Plain text with a WEBVTT header | Cue settings for position; CSS styling | HTML5 video, Vimeo (recommended), course players |
| Advanced SubStation Alpha (ASS, SSA) | .ass, .ssa | Plain text in sections: script info, styles, events | Full: fonts, colours, outlines, placement, karaoke effects | Fansubs, anime, styled burn-ins; MKV files |
| SubViewer (SBV) | .sbv | Plain text: start and end on one line, then text | None | YouTube (its download format for years) |
| TTML, DFXP | .ttml, .dfxp, .xml | XML | Full, in XML attributes | Broadcast and streaming delivery, some OTT specs |
| Scenarist (SCC) | .scc | Timecodes and hex byte pairs (CEA-608) | Limited by the TV caption standard | US broadcast television, Final Cut Pro, YouTube |
Source: YouTube Help, supported subtitle files, checked 26 Oct 2026.
What they look like
1 00:00:34,680 --> 00:00:40,703 fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth upon this continent
WEBVTT 00:00:34.680 --> 00:00:40.703 fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth upon this continent
0:00:34.680,0:00:40.703 fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth upon this continent
Hours take one digit and start and end share a line, separated by a comma.
[Script Info] ScriptType: v4.00+ PlayResX: 1920 PlayResY: 1080 [V4+ Styles] Format: Name, Fontname, Fontsize, PrimaryColour, SecondaryColour, OutlineColour, BackColour, Bold, Italic, Underline, StrikeOut, ScaleX, ScaleY, Spacing, Angle, BorderStyle, Outline, Shadow, Alignment, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Encoding Style: Default,Arial,64,&H00FFFFFF,&H000000FF,&H00000000,&H64000000,0,0,0,0,100,100,0,0,1,3,1,2,40,40,60,1 [Events] Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.68,0:00:40.70,Default,,0,0,0,,fourscore and seven years ago our fathers\Nbrought forth upon this continent
Times are in hundredths of a second, \N is the line break, and every cue names a style defined above it.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<tt xmlns="http://www.w3.org/ns/ttml" xml:lang="en">
<body>
<div>
<p begin="00:00:34.680" end="00:00:40.703">fourscore and seven years ago our fathers<br/>brought forth upon this continent</p>
</div>
</body>
</tt>SCC is not shown: its cue text is hexadecimal byte pairs for the TV caption decoder, made by caption software, not typed.
Source: W3C WebVTT, checked 26 Oct 2026.
Source: W3C TTML2, checked 26 Oct 2026.
Which to pick
Every format holds the same thing underneath: a start time, an end time and words. Converting between them keeps the timing; only styling may be lost on the way down to SRT.
Where each is accepted
| Where | Takes | Menu path |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube Studio | SRT, VTT, SBV, TTML, DFXP, SCC and nine more | Studio › Subtitles › the video › Add language › Add › Upload file › With timing |
| Vimeo | VTT (recommended), SRT | the video › Languages › + › choose Subtitle or Caption › Upload › toggle on |
| SRT | share box › Video › Edit › Select Caption (desktop) | |
| SRT named name.en_US.srt | the video › Edit › Captions › upload the SRT | |
| Teachable | SRT, VTT | lesson video › Settings (gear) › subtitles › upload .srt or .vtt |
| Adobe Premiere Pro | SRT | File › Import, then drag onto the sequence |
| DaVinci Resolve | SRT | Media Pool › right-click › Import Subtitle |
| Final Cut Pro | SRT, iTT, SCC | File › Import › Captions |
| CapCut | SRT (desktop also TXT); not the phone app | Desktop: Captions › Add Captions › Import file; Web: Captions › Upload caption file |
Menu paths from each platform's or editor's help page, checked 26 Oct 2026; the page for each is linked on the page about that platform.
Length and pace
| Characters a line | Lines | Reading speed | Time on screen | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netflix (English timed text style guide) | 42 | 2 | up to 20 characters a second (adult), 17 (children) | not stated |
| WhipScribe download | about 42 | 2 | aims for 20 characters a second | 1 to 7 seconds |
| The sample on this page, measured | longest 41 | 6 of 10 cues use 2 | fastest 16.6 characters a second | 2.87 to 6.38 seconds |
| YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn | no published limit; the 42-character, two-line shape reads well on all of them | |||
Source: Netflix partner help, checked 26 Oct 2026; our figures are the cue builder's settings and the sample below.
Burned in, not a file
Open, or burned-in, subtitles are not a file format at all: the text is drawn into the video frames on export, so nothing can be switched off or extracted. Instagram and TikTok need them that way. Make an SRT first, then burn it in with an editor; captions vs subtitles compares the two side by side.
How it works
Drop the video or audio in the box, or paste a public link.
Fix misheard names on the transcript; the cues follow the correction.
Both come from the same job. Convert to another format with a subtitle editor if a delivery spec asks for one.
Before you rely on it
Each cue holds at most two lines of about 42 characters and stays on screen for one to seven seconds, breaking at the end of a sentence or clause where it can. The words are exactly the transcript's; only the breaks are chosen for the screen.
Cue times are taken from the recording itself, so the file lines up with the video or audio you uploaded. If you trim the start of the video afterwards, shift the cues by the same amount in your editor.
Open the transcript, correct a misheard name or number on its line, and the SRT and VTT you download carry the correction with the timing unchanged.
You get the subtitle file. Fonts, colours, position and captions drawn into the picture are done in your video editor or player, which reads this file.
On public test recordings, about 7 words in 100 differed from the reference for clean English read speech, between 4 and 9 in 100 for Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, French and German, and about 21 in 100 for Hindi. Noisy rooms, music and crosstalk do worse. Method and every number: the benchmark.
Up to 10 hours or 5 GB per recording. The box on this page takes files up to 500 MB; larger ones continue on the upload page. 99+ languages, detected automatically.
Pricing
The preview is free. When the full transcript needs a pack, one-time packs are $4 for 500 minutes, $12 for 2,000 minutes, $24 for 5,000 minutes. Credits never expire, which comes to about $0.29 to $0.48 per hour of audio.
| Recording | $4 pack | $12 pack | $24 pack |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5-minute video | $0.04 | $0.03 | $0.02 |
| 30-minute video | $0.24 | $0.18 | $0.14 |
| 2-hour recording | $0.96 | $0.72 | $0.58 |
Figures are the share of a pack each recording uses. A button opens secure checkout for that pack. Every export format is included; full details on the pricing page.
FAQ
SRT (SubRip), WebVTT, ASS/SSA, SBV, TTML/DFXP and SCC. SRT and WebVTT are plain text and the most widely accepted; ASS adds styling; TTML and SCC are for broadcast and streaming delivery.
SRT for platforms and editors, because nearly all of them accept it. WebVTT for your own website. ASS when you need styled subtitles. A delivery spec that names a format always wins.
SRT, SBV, WebVTT, TTML, DFXP, SCC, SAMI and several broadcast formats. SRT and SBV must be basic UTF-8 files without style markup.
SRT holds only timing and text. ASS also defines styles, fonts, colours, outlines and exact placement for every line, which is why fansubs and styled burn-ins use it.
In the US, broadcast captions follow CEA-608 and CEA-708; SCC is the common file for 608. Online, the same captions usually travel as SRT, VTT or TTML.
SRT and VTT for subtitles, plus TXT, DOCX and JSON transcripts from the same job. For ASS, TTML or SCC, convert the SRT in a subtitle editor.
Every page in this set uses the same upload box and the same export. All subtitle pages
Free preview. Drop a file, download both formats; packs from $4.