Convert plain text to an SRT subtitle file
Paste a script, one line or sentence per cue, and get an SRT or WebVTT file. The times are worked out from a reading speed or from the length of the recording, so they are a starting point, not a sync with the speech.
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Processed in your browser. Your file is never uploaded.
What this does, and what it cannot
A subtitle file is text plus times. This tool has the text, and makes up the times. It does not listen to any audio, so it cannot know when anybody actually says anything. What it can do is a sensible even spacing, and that is enough in a few honest situations: a narration you recorded at a steady pace from a script, a silent video where text is meant to appear for a readable length of time, or a rough first pass before you correct the times against the picture.
Two ways to time it
From a reading speed. A cue lasts its number of characters divided by the speed you set, never less than one second. At 15 characters per second a 45-character line stays for three seconds. This suits text that is meant to be read, such as captions on a silent video.
From the length of the recording. Enter how long the audio runs and the text is divided across it in proportion to each cue's size. A cue with twice the characters gets twice the time. If the recording is short for the amount of text, the tool counts how many cues end up faster than the reading speed, so you know before you upload.
Your text:
Welcome to the show.
Today we are talking about subtitle files.
At 15 characters per second the SRT is:
1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,333
Welcome to the show.
2
00:00:01,333 --> 00:00:04,133
Today we are talking about subtitle files.Cue size
Long sentences are wrapped to your maximum line length and number of lines and split into several cues when they will not fit, the same way as in the subtitle line splitter. The usual limits of 42 characters and two lines are the defaults; change them for your platform. Set a pause between cues if you want a visible gap.
Fixing it afterwards
Run the result through the subtitle checker to see which cues read too fast, move the whole file with the time shifter, and correct individual cues in the editor. Output is SRT or WebVTT; transcript file formats explained explains which to choose.
Checking the estimate
Play the video with the file loaded and look at three places: the first cue, one in the middle and the last. If all three are close, the pace was even and you are nearly done. If the error grows towards the end, the speaker was slower or faster than the model assumed, and changing the reading speed or the length you entered and exporting again is quicker than editing cue by cue.
When you have the audio
If you have a recording of the speech, there is no reason to guess the times. Transcribing it gives every line a start and an end from the sound itself, and the export is the SRT you were after. Scriptorium does exactly that, and an existing script helps you check the words.
Questions
Will the subtitles line up with my video?
Not by themselves. Every time in the file is calculated from how much text each cue holds. If the speaker talks at an even pace the result can be close; with pauses, music or a changing pace it drifts. You can nudge the whole file with the time shifter, or fix cues one by one in the subtitle editor, but for real sync the speech has to be heard.
Which timing mode should I use?
If you know how long the recording is, choose its length and the text is spread across it in proportion to each cue's size. If you do not, choose a reading speed: every cue then lasts as long as its text takes to read at that speed, with a one-second minimum.
What decides where one cue ends and the next begins?
Either every line of your text or every sentence, your choice. A piece longer than your line and line-count limits is wrapped and split into several cues, and its time is shared between them.
Is my text uploaded?
No. The conversion is JavaScript in this tab, and the text you paste never leaves it.
Related tools
- Subtitle Checker Find cues that read too fast, run too long or overlap, with limits you set.
- Subtitle Time Shifter Fix out-of-sync subtitles: shift, stretch or change frame rate.
- Subtitle Editor Edit subtitle text and timing cue by cue, split and merge, then save as SRT or VTT.
- Subtitle Line Splitter Wrap subtitles to a line length and split cues that run too long.
Want times that follow the speech?
Scriptorium listens to the recording and times every line from the audio, then exports SRT or VTT. You can try it free.