How to Add Subtitles and Closed Captions to YouTube Videos

Adding subtitles and closed captions to your YouTube videos improves accessibility for viewers with hearing difficulties, helps reach a global audience, and gives your content a big SEO boost. Here’s how to do it—step-by-step.

Why Add Subtitles and Captions?

• Increases accessibility for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers
• Makes your content easier to understand for non-native speakers
• Allows YouTube and Google to index text, helping SEO

How to Add Captions in YouTube Studio

1. Go to YouTube Studio and select Subtitles from the left menu.
2. Find the video you want, click ADD or DUPLICATE AND EDIT next to the preferred language.
3. You have three options:
   • Upload file: Use a caption file like .srt or .sbv.
   • Auto-sync: Upload your transcript and let YouTube match it to audio.
   • Type manually: Play your video and type captions as you go. Great for short videos!

Editing and Translating Captions

• Always review auto-generated captions for errors. Edit directly in YouTube Studio.
• You can add subtitles in multiple languages for global reach.

SEO Benefits of Captions

Captions give YouTube more text data from your content, increasing the chances your videos rank higher in search and get more suggested views. Learn more about keyword research for YouTube.