In today‘s video-centric world, subtitles and closed captions have evolved from a "nice-to-have" to an essential part of any video content strategy. With 85% of Facebook videos watched on mute and 80% of consumers more likely to watch a video all the way through when captions are available, subtitles are a must for engaging and retaining viewers.
But beyond the engagement factor, subtitles serve a more critical purpose – making videos accessible to the 466 million people worldwide who are deaf or hard of hearing. Subtitles also aid in comprehension for people with learning disabilities, visual impairments, or those watching in their non-native language.
Plus, there are legal requirements for subtitles under laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Failing to caption videos could open your business to accessibility lawsuits or complaints.
Fortunately, adding subtitles to your videos is easier than ever thanks to the magic of SRT files. In this guide, we‘ll break down exactly what an SRT file is, why they‘re so important, and how you can easily create and edit your own subtitle files, no coding required.
What Is an SRT File?
An SRT (SubRip Subtitle) file is a plain text file that contains subtitle information. It‘s essentially a script that tells the video player exactly what subtitles to display and when to display them.
SRT files have become the standard format for subtitles and closed captions across most major video platforms including YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, Wistia, Vidyard, and more. When you upload an SRT file alongside your video, the player reads that file and overlays the text at the appropriate timestamps.
Here‘s a sample of what the contents of an SRT file look like:
1
00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:05,750
This is the first subtitle, which appears
from 1 second to 5.75 seconds in the video
2
00:00:06,800 --> 00:00:11,890
This is the second subtitle that displays
from 6.8 seconds to 11.89 seconds
3
00:00:12,000 --> 00:01:18,560
This subtitle starts at 12 seconds and
stays up until 1 minute 18.56 secondsAs you can see, an SRT file consists of four main components:
-
Subtitle Number – Each subtitle is numbered sequentially starting at 1 to keep them in chronological order.
-
Start and End Timecodes – Each subtitle requires a start and end timecode to specify when it should appear and disappear in the video. Timecodes are in a hours:minutes:seconds,milliseconds format with milliseconds going out to three decimal places.
-
Subtitle Text – The actual subtitle text goes on the line(s) right below the timecodes. Text can wrap onto a second line but there should be no blank lines within one subtitle.
-
Blank Line – Each subtitle is separated by a blank line to distinguish it from the next numbered subtitle.
That‘s the basic anatomy of an SRT file. By formatting your subtitles in this specific way, any video player will be able to parse the file and sync your text perfectly with the video.
Why SRT Files Are Essential for Video
Now that we know what an SRT file is, let‘s dive into some of the key reasons these humble text files are so crucial for your video content:
1. Accessibility for the deaf and hard of hearing
According to the World Health Organization, over 5% of the world‘s population – 466 million people – have disabling hearing loss. Subtitles make video content accessible to this large audience who can‘t rely on audio.
In the US, closed captions are required by law for broadcast television and many web videos under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Failing to caption videos could result in discrimination lawsuits or bad PR.
2. Improved engagement and watch time
Multiple studies have shown that subtitles boost video engagement metrics across the board.
- Facebook found that captioned video ads increase video view time by an average of 12%.
- Discovery Digital Networks saw a 13.48% increase in revenue on Facebook when captions were added to their videos.
- PLYmedia found an 80% increase in people watching videos to completion when subtitles were available.
- Instapage saw a 15-17% increase in watch time and a 26% increase in CTA click-through rate on captioned videos.
In an age of autoplay and short attention spans, subtitles are a proven way to grab and hold viewer attention.
3. Flexibility to watch anywhere
85% of Facebook videos and 82% of Twitter videos are now watched without sound. Whether commuting, waiting in line, or browsing while the baby‘s asleep, people increasingly prefer to consume social video with the sound off.
Subtitles provide the flexibility to watch videos anywhere, even when the audio would be disruptive. They ensure your message gets across effectively even on mute.
4. Enhanced learning and comprehension
A research study by the Oregon State University found that 98.6% of students said captions were helpful for learning. Participants reported that captions improved their performance on comprehension tests, reduced anxiety, and helped maintain concentration.
Another study from the UK‘s Ofcom found that 80% of people who use subtitles don‘t have any hearing impairment – they use them to understand dialogue better, particularly if the speaker has an accent.
5. Boosting SEO and search visibility
SRT files provide search engines with a full text transcript they can crawl and index alongside your videos. This additional content helps search engines understand what your video is about and can boost its rankings for relevant keywords.
A case study by SafeNet found that adding captions to just 29 videos increased their views by 40% and their lifetime value by 48% due to the SEO impact. Videos with subtitles are far more likely to show up in universal or video search results.
How to Create an SRT File
Now that you understand the importance of SRT files, here‘s how you can easily create your own subtitle files from scratch.
Step 1: Transcribe your video
The first step is to generate a text transcript of all the speech in your video. If you don‘t already have a script, you can either transcribe it yourself or use an automated service.
When transcribing manually, play back the video slowly and type out what‘s said verbatim, noting any important sound effects. Some transcription software can help auto-pause as you type. Expect it to take about 4-5 times the length of the video.
For a quicker solution, upload your video to YouTube and let their automatic captioning tool generate a transcript for you. It‘s not perfect, but it will give you a starting point you can clean up. Rev.com and 3PlayMedia also provide 99% accurate human transcription for $1-3 per minute.
Step 2: Create your SRT file
With your full transcript in hand, it‘s time to turn it into a properly-formatted SRT file. You can do this in any plain text editor like Notepad, TextEdit, or Notepad++.
Start with subtitle number 1 and work through your transcript, adding a new number each time the speaker changes or there‘s a break of more than 3 seconds. Aim for no more than two lines of text per subtitle, roughly 32 characters per line.
Under each number, add your start and end timecodes for when that subtitle should appear in the video, following this format:
hours:minutes:seconds,milliseconds --> hours:minutes:seconds,millisecondsTo figure out the right timecodes, play back your video and note the timestamp where each subtitle should start and end. Most video players will display timestamps down to the millisecond. Be as precise as possible to sync the text with the speech.
Finally, add your subtitle text on the line(s) below the timecodes and leave a blank line before the next number. Repeat until you‘ve subtitled the whole video.
It‘s a good idea to regularly save and test your SRT file as you go. Most video platforms let you upload an SRT and immediately preview how it looks.
Step 3: Format and review your subtitles
With your first draft complete, it‘s time to refine your SRT file and make it shine. Here are some formatting tips to keep in mind:
- Keep subtitles concise – aim for 1-2 short lines that are easy to read quickly
- Break subtitles at natural pauses or sentence boundaries
- Maintain a consistent reading speed of about 3 words per second
- Include speaker labels if multiple people are talking
- Use a readable font size and high-contrast color
- Capitalize proper nouns but otherwise use sentence case
- Check spelling and grammar carefully
- Ensure timecodes are accurate to the millisecond
- Include important non-speech audio in [square brackets]
Once you‘re happy with your SRT file, save it with a clear filename like myvideo_subtitles_en.srt and you‘re ready to add it to your video!
How to Edit an SRT File
If you already have an SRT file but need to make some changes, you can easily edit it in any plain text editing program. Simply open the .srt file and you‘ll see the subtitle numbers, timecodes, and text.
Here are some common reasons you might need to edit an existing SRT file:
- Adjusting subtitle start/end times if they‘re slightly out of sync
- Fixing spelling/grammar errors or typos in the subtitle text
- Splitting long subtitles into two shorter lines for easier reading
- Merging consecutive short subtitles into one longer subtitle
- Adding, deleting, or re-numbering subtitles
- Translating subtitles into another language
As you make changes, be sure to maintain the SRT formatting with each subtitle numbered sequentially and blank lines in between. If you accidentally delete a subtitle number or timecode, the whole file could get thrown off.
Some dedicated subtitle editing tools like Aegisub, Subtitle Edit, and Jubler provide a more visual interface and advanced features for working with SRT files. But for most simple edits, a plain text editor works just fine.
The Future of SRT Files and Subtitles
As video continues to dominate online media, SRT files will only become more crucial. Cisco predicts that by 2022, online videos will make up more than 82% of all consumer internet traffic.
At the same time, new technologies and video formats are emerging that will bring both challenges and opportunities for subtitles and accessibility.
For example, virtual and augmented reality experiences will require subtitles that are spatially mapped and attached to speakers in a 360 environment. Live streaming and real-time video will need speech recognition technology that can generate same-language or translated subtitles on the fly.
Vertical videos popularized by stories on Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok have far less space for legible subtitles without overlapping the content. We‘ll likely see a rise of integrated captions and creative typography that fits within the vertical aspect ratio.
The rapid spread of video to every social and mobile platform is also driving demand for more efficient and cost-effective subtitling solutions. We‘re already seeing advancements in machine learning and natural language processing that can automate more of the transcription and captioning process while still maintaining quality.
SRT files are here to stay as the standard subtitle format, but the way we create and consume subtitles will continue to evolve. No matter the changes ahead, one thing is certain – subtitles are now a must-have for connecting with all viewers and getting your videos seen and heard in an increasingly distracting digital world.
