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Video to SRT

Video to SRT, any video into subtitles

Turn any video file into an SRT subtitle file on your own computer, with no upload and no per-minute billing. If you know your format, there is a dedicated guide for it - links below.

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Generate SRT locally, nothing uploaded

No account · Nothing uploaded

Generate subtitles from a video as an SRT file

SRT is the subtitle file almost everything accepts: media players, editors, and most upload forms. SnailText makes one from your video by transcribing the speech it contains and writing the timing into an SRT, all on your machine.

You get a separate .srt file, not captions burned into the picture, so the subtitles stay editable and you can attach them wherever you need them. Uploading a two-gigabyte video to a web converter is the slow part of the usual workflow, and this skips it entirely.

How to convert a video to SRT

  1. Open the Transcribe files screen in SnailText. Video formats need a one-time codec pack, which the app downloads for you on first use.
  2. Add your video (MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, AVI or M4V) or a folder of them.
  3. Choose SRT as the output before you run it.
  4. Run it. The .srt file is saved next to your video.

Try it on your own files

Download for Mac

Generate SRT locally, nothing uploaded

Which video format are you starting from?

The steps are the same whichever container you have, and SnailText reads the audio track out of it for you. If you want the specifics for your file, each format has its own page: MP4 to SRT, MOV to SRT, MKV to SRT, WebM to SRT, AVI to SRT and M4V to SRT.

Every video format needs a one-time codec pack that SnailText downloads on first use; audio formats such as MP3 and WAV do not. After that it runs offline: the video never leaves your computer, there is no length limit, and the free tier adds no watermark.

If you want a plain transcript with no timestamps instead of subtitles, the video to text page covers that. For WebVTT captions rather than SRT, see video to VTT.

Video to SRT FAQ

Which video formats can become an SRT?
MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, AVI and M4V all work, and the steps are identical for each. Each one also has its own page with the specifics: MP4 to SRT, MOV to SRT, MKV to SRT, WebM to SRT, AVI to SRT and M4V to SRT.
Do I need to extract the audio from the video first?
No. Add the video as it is and SnailText reads the audio track out of it. Pulling the audio into a separate WAV beforehand only costs you a step, though it does work if you have already done it.
Can SnailText pull out subtitles a video already has?
No. SnailText generates subtitles from the spoken audio; it does not extract an existing subtitle track embedded in the container. So if your MKV already carries subtitles you want to keep, use a demuxing tool such as MKVToolNix instead.
Will the subtitles be burned into the video, or is the SRT a separate file?
No. SnailText writes a separate SRT file and does not hardcode captions into the video. That keeps the subtitles editable and lets you attach them in any player or editor. If you want them burned in, overlay the file in a video editor afterward.

More ways to transcribe and caption

All formats

Subtitle generator →

Turn any audio or video file into an SRT or VTT subtitle file. Automatic subtitles generated from the speech itself, on your own computer, with no upload, no per-minute billing and no watermark.

Same format, other output

Video to VTT →

Guides by format

Subtitle hubs

All transcription formats →

Generate an SRT from your video

Free local subtitle generation, no account needed. SRT files on Mac and Windows.

Download for Mac Or for Windows →