Media Caption
YouTube transcript generator

Paste a YouTube URL.
Get the transcript.

A YouTube transcript generator for creators. Fetch public captions, or generate a transcript with AI speech-to-text when YouTube does not show one.

Public captions cost 1 credit per track, paid once.
Free account required. Starter credits included.

From video link
to clean text.

Three steps, one input field. No browser extensions, no manual transcription, no fighting YouTube's native panel.

01

Paste a YouTube URL

Drop the video link into the input and sign in or create a free account to continue.

02

Get the transcript

Unlock a public caption track for 1 credit, paid once. If captions are missing, generate a transcript with AI speech-to-text using account credits.

03

Read, search, or export

Jump through timestamps, copy lines, or download plain text, SRT, or VTT for your next edit.

Every format
creators reach for.

Text for research and quoting. Timestamps for clipping. SRT and VTT for captioning and editing.

Plain text transcript
Timestamped transcript
SRT subtitle file
VTT caption file

Questions, answered.

Any public YouTube video link — full youtube.com/watch links, youtu.be short links, and embed URLs all work.
Create a free account and the tool can use AI speech-to-text to generate a transcript. Signup includes 10 credits, enough for up to 10 minutes of AI transcription; longer videos require additional credits.
Yes. You can download plain text, timestamped transcripts, SRT, or VTT.
No. It runs in your browser. No extensions, no desktop app.
It depends on video length and audio quality. Short videos return quickly; longer videos take more time.

Choose the right transcript source

Start with available captions when you want to read or search a video quickly. They may have been supplied by its creator or generated automatically by YouTube. Fetching that track preserves its wording; cleaning caption formatting does not correct recognition errors.

A quick source check

  1. Open the transcript and check its selected language. If another track is available, use the language control to compare it before generating a new transcript.
  2. Listen to a short passage containing a name, date or technical term. Compare the words and timestamps with the recording. A fluent sentence can still contain the wrong name.
  3. If no usable caption track is available, choose AI transcription. This reads the audio separately and requires a signed-in account with enough credits for the video. Review the result against the audio too.

When a link cannot produce a transcript

Missing captions and an unavailable video are different problems. AI transcription can help with missing captions only when the audio can be accessed. A private, deleted, restricted or otherwise inaccessible source may still fail. If you have the original file and permission to process it, use the file-upload option.

For quotations, retain the source URL and timestamp alongside your notes. Check the wording against the recording before attributing a quote to the speaker.

Try the worked caption example and download sample files →

Keep going
with related tools.

Other ways to pull, convert, and reuse transcript content.

Missing captions?

Generate a transcript with AI speech-to-text when YouTube doesn't show one.

Open

YouTube to SRT

Export SRT subtitle files ready for Premiere, Final Cut, DaVinci, or CapCut.

Open

Download transcripts

Plain text, timestamped transcripts, SRT, and VTT — all from a YouTube URL.

Open

Turn any video
into usable text.

Create a free account with 10 starter credits to use on public captions or AI tools—enough for up to 10 minutes of AI transcription.

Public captions cost 1 credit per track, paid once.