How to Add Captions to a Screen Recording
Captions make a screen recording watchable on mute and accessible. Auto-caption tools, manual SRT files, burned-in versus soft captions, and why tooltips on an interactive demo do the job captions can't.
Captions make a screen recording watchable on mute and accessible, and for anything you publish they're not optional. The fast path: an auto-caption tool transcribes the video, you fix the errors, and you export either a separate .srt track (soft captions the viewer can toggle) or a version with the text burned into the picture (open captions that work everywhere). Most video hosts also auto-caption on upload. Always review before publishing — auto-captions stumble on product names and jargon, which are the words that matter most in a walkthrough. And where the "captions" are really step-by-step guidance, an interactive demo's tooltips do a job captions can't.
Auto-caption tools
The common workflow:
- Upload the recording to an auto-caption tool or a video host with captioning.
- Wait for the transcription.
- Review and correct — product names, acronyms, technical terms, and any garbled sections.
- Export:
- a
.srtfile to attach as a toggleable track, or - a burned-in version with the captions rendered into the video.
- a
Writing captions manually
An .srt file is plain text with numbered blocks:
1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,200
First, open the reports section from the left nav.
2
00:00:03,200 --> 00:00:07,000
Click "New report" and pick a template.
Keep each caption to one or two short lines, on screen long enough to read (roughly 1–6 seconds), synced to what's happening.
Burned-in vs soft
| Burned-in (open) | Soft (closed) | |
|---|---|---|
| Visible | Always | Viewer toggles |
| Works everywhere | Yes | Only where the platform supports the track |
| Editable later | Re-export only | Edit the file |
| Translatable | No | Yes (host can auto-translate) |
| Best for | Social clips, embeds, uncertain platforms | Hosted video, docs, anywhere with a real player |
Default to soft captions where you can; burn them in for social and for embeds where you're not sure captions will render.
When "captions" are really guidance
If what you're adding is a running explanation of each step — "click here, now this, this is why it matters" — that's not captions, it's instruction, and a linear video is a weak container for it. An interactive demo puts a short explanation on each step as a tooltip, tied to the exact moment, in a form the viewer controls:
For a genuine narration track over footage, captions are still the right tool. For a "here's how to do X" walkthrough, see how to make a clickable product demo.
Related: how to record your screen with audio, how to make a tutorial video, screen recording best practices.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add captions to a screen recording?
The fastest way is an auto-caption tool: upload the video, let it transcribe, correct the errors, then export either a separate .srt file or a version with captions burned into the picture. Manually, you write an .srt file with timecodes and text and attach it in your player or video host. Most video hosts (YouTube, Vimeo) also auto-caption on upload.
What is the difference between burned-in and soft captions?
Burned-in (open) captions are part of the video image — always visible, work everywhere, but you cannot turn them off or edit them without re-exporting. Soft (closed) captions are a separate track the viewer can toggle and the host can translate. Use soft captions where the platform supports them; burn them in for social clips and places captions might not display.
Do screen recordings need captions?
For anything you publish or send widely, yes. A large share of video is watched on mute, captions are an accessibility requirement in many contexts, and they improve comprehension and retention even for viewers with sound on. A private one-off for a colleague usually does not need them.
How accurate are auto-generated captions?
Good but not perfect — expect errors on product names, jargon, acronyms, and anywhere audio quality dips. Always review and correct auto-captions before publishing; the errors are usually on exactly the terms that matter most in a product walkthrough.