How To Embed Subtitles Into Video Permanently (Top 7 Ways)

Seven ways to embed subtitles into videos permanently

When you permanently embed subtitles into a video, the alphabets of the subtitles become a part of the video content. After that, the subtitles cannot be changed. That's why you should be very careful about the accuracy of the subtitles, especially with auto-captioning tools.

Not all auto-caption engines are built alike. Moreover, you must look for better font and size manipulation for the captions in order to get the best overall visual. The following seven methods can allow you to make subtitles permanent over a video, but not all of them allow equal control or speed over the process.

Method 1: Use Vlc Media Player

VLC player is one of the earliest open-source media players that can open a wide range of media files. It can be used to play movies with subtitles as long as one has a video file and an .srt file with matching subtitles. Despite not being a video editor, VLC media player allows users to embed subtitles permanently onto videos as well. Here are the steps you must take to use VLC Media Player to Embed Subtitles Into Video Permanently:

1. Download, Install, and Open VLC Media Player - You can skip this step if you already have the media player installed.

2. Navigate to the Stream Option from Media - You can find Media in the top-left of the player window and scroll down to the Stream Option. Ctrl+S or Cmd+S (for mac) can also trigger the stream command in some cases.

3. Click "Add" and Select Media - The Add button is on the right side of the Stream Wizard that opens when you click the Stream option. After that, you can navigate to the video file upon which you want to permanently impress the subtitles.

4. Check "Use a subtitle file" - Checking this box will allow you to add an SRT file.

5. Select the subtitles file - Use the browse button to navigate to the SRT file and select it.

6. Click "Stream" to execute the export - Streaming plays the video and the subtitles file while simultaneously recording it. You can choose the format of said recording.

7. Select the file type and click Add - This option allows you to pick the file type of the saved stream. Often, it is best to choose MP4. After that, you click next.

8. Check Activate Transcoding and Overlay Subtitles - The wizard will, by default, be on a tab where the activate transcoding box is. After checking it, navigate to the subtitles tab and check the "Overlay Subtitles on the Video" box too.

9. Click Save - This is the final step, after which your video will be saved with subtitles.

The best thing about this method is that it doesn't require a video editor. As long as you have the subtitles file and the video file, you can overlay the captions over the video content permanently. However, there is a disadvantage in that you cannot tweak individual subtitles in the video player. It is even hard to spot timing and sync errors. But if you're confident in the subtitles' accuracy, you can choose this option.

Method 2: Use iMovie To Overlay Subtitles

This method is great for Apple device users because iMovie is available on iPhone as well as on mac. You can use this app/program to add subtitles to a video on your phone as well as your desktop. It allows you to individually type out subtitles or import them in the form of an art file. The greatest advantage of this method is its straightforwardness. Its greatest drawback is that it is useless for people who do not own and operate an Apple Device.

Here is how you can add subtitles using iMovie.

Method 3: Use Videopad To Overlay Subtitles

VideoPad is an iMovie alternative for windows users. It also allows the import of a subtitles file alongside manual editing of captions. You can also try auto-captioning in this video editor, just like you can in the latest iMovie update. Unfortunately, its auto-captioning accuracy is just as unreliable as that of iMovie. Still, it is a great way to embed subtitles to video permanently if you have a subtitles file or are willing to spend time typing out the captions manually.

Overlaying subtitles to video permanently using videopad is explained in this video.

Method 4: Leverage Veed.IO For Subtitling And Transcription

VEED.IO subtitler is a powerful tool that allows you to manipulate the font, text size, and type when it comes to captions. You can use manual typing as well as an SRT file as the input methods for VEED.IO transcription. It is a paid subscription service and has a reliable auto-captioning.

To find out how to use VEED.Io for subtitling, check out this video.

Method 5: Add Subtitles With Adobe Premiere

Adobe Premiere is one of the most popular video editors in the world. It isn't surprising, then, to see that it has a subtitle engine and the ability to overlay text over video content. Adobe Premiere subtitling takes a little work, but once you get used to it, it is relatively simple. The greatest advantage of Adobe Premiere in this context is it can give you a great deal of control over the subtitles.

Using Adobe Premiere to add subtitles to a video permanently is explained in this video.

Method 6: Use Subtitle Bee To Overlay Subtitles

As the name suggests, Subtitle Bee is built around the subtitling function. It offers automated captioning and caption translation services with .srt export for its paid subscription. It has pretty tight constraints for video duration but offers frame cropping and social-ready content.

To find out how you can use Subtitle Bee to embed subtitles into video permanently, watch this video.

Method 7: Use Contentfries To Add Permanent Subtitles To Your Video

Finally, you can use ContentFries for permanent subtitling. The content repurposing tool has an inbuilt auto-captioning engine with over 90% accuracy and a drag-and-drop editor with engagement-boosting templates. ContentFries understands the role of subtitles in making videos go viral, which is why its content-repurposing is built around precise transcription.

Find out how to use ContentFries to embed subtitles into video permanently by watching this video.

Which Method Should You Use For Permanent Subtitles?

Now that we have gone over the most accessible methods to embed subtitles permanently onto your video, let's look at the ways that are actually beneficial in different contexts, including how to add subtitles to Instagram stories. Not all people have the same subtitling needs, which is why no program is the right fit for everyone, even if we're the ones backing it. In this section, we will go over different user types and the methods they should use:

• Adding subtitles to movies - If your relatives or friends can't load subtitles files every time they play a movie, you can use VLC to permanently embed official movie SRT onto the video. These SRT files are quite in sync with the movies they belong to.

• Captioning TikToks under 30 seconds on mobile - You can use iMovie (inShot for android) to manually subtitle short clips. If you have a large batch of pre-recorded content, you can save time with Subtitle Bee or ContentFries, but iMovie is more mobile.

• Subtitling educational/podcast content - ContentFries is the best solution for subtitling videos for education, story-telling, and conversation-based entertainment, as it is built for social-ready bite-sized content.

• For long-form corporate videos and Public Awareness Messaging - iMovie, VideoPad, and Adobe Premiere Pro are the programs that would best fit this use context.

Curious to see how to add animated subtitles to your videos with ContentFries? See a quick demo:

Final Thoughts

To embed subtitles into a video permanently, you need an srt file of the subtitles alongside a video editor that can overlay it. iMovie, ContentFries, VideoPad, Adobe Premiere Pro, and VLC Media Player are all capable of doing that. You must choose the one that makes content creation most convenient for you.