How to Add Captions to a Video for Free
Adding captions used to mean typing every line and dragging it to the right timestamp. Now AI does it in seconds. Here's how to auto-caption any video for free — with the captions styled and burned right into the video, no watermark.
Burned-in captions vs. subtitle files
There are two kinds of captions. A subtitle file (.srt) is separate and only shows if the player supports it. Burned-in captions are part of the video itself — they always show, on every platform, styled exactly how you want. For social video (Shorts, Reels, TikTok), you want burned-in captions, because they display even in a muted, autoplaying feed.
Add captions automatically — step by step
Open Shortify
Go to Shortify. It runs in your browser — your video isn't uploaded anywhere.
Add your video
Drop in the clip you want captioned.
Let the AI transcribe it
Speech recognition writes the captions and times each word to the audio — no typing, no manual sync.
Choose a caption style
Pick from 60+ styles and see a live preview on your video. Change the font, color, size and animation to match your brand.
Download with captions baked in
Your video downloads with captions burned in and ready to post. No watermark.
✂️ Caption your video free
Auto subtitles, styled and burned in, no watermark, no sign-up.
Open Shortify free →Caption styling tips
- Contrast is everything. White text with a dark outline, or a solid caption box, stays readable over any footage.
- Fewer words, bigger text. One or two words at a time reads faster than full sentences.
- Animate for attention. Word-by-word "pop" or karaoke styles add motion that holds the scroll.
- Stay above the UI. Keep captions off the very bottom edge where platform buttons sit.
FAQ
Is it free and watermark-free?
Yes — captioning is free with no watermark and no account.
Do I have to type anything?
No. The AI transcribes and times the captions automatically; you just pick a style.
Can I caption a long video?
Yes — and you can also cut it into multiple captioned Shorts in the same tool.