How to add an SRT or VTT subtitle file to a video

In a video player

Most desktop players, including VLC, let you add a subtitle file from their menu while the video is playing. Many also load it automatically when the subtitle file has the same name as the video and sits in the same folder, for example lecture.mp4 and lecture.srt. Some players also look for a language code before the extension, such as lecture.en.srt.

Smart TVs and media servers usually want SRT files with the same name as the video. If yours does not show the subtitles, convert them to SRT and save them as UTF-8; both are done automatically when you convert a file on this site.

In a video editor

Video editors usually import SRT files as a caption track that you can adjust before exporting. Some editors can burn the captions into the picture permanently; others keep them as a separate track that viewers can turn on or off. Burned-in captions always show, but they cannot be turned off, translated or fixed later.

On a web page

Browsers show subtitles from VTT files attached to an HTML video element with a track element, for example a track with kind set to subtitles, srclang set to en and src pointing to your file. The browser then offers the captions in its player controls. Serve the VTT file from the same site as the page, or the browser may refuse to load it.

When subtitles do not appear or look wrong

If nothing appears, check that the player supports the format and that the file is not empty. If strange characters appear, the encoding is wrong; see the guide to subtitle encoding. If the words appear at the wrong moment, the file is out of sync with your video; the subtitle time shifter can fix that.