Download YouTube Subtitles SRT: Get SRT Files from Any Video

Downloading YouTube subtitles in SRT format is the standard workflow for video editors. The downloader pulls the subtitle track and saves it as a SubRip file. This guide covers the direct workflow and the use cases for the resulting file.

Quick answer

1. Open YouTube Caption Downloader.
2. Paste the YouTube URL.
3. Pick a subtitle track.
4. Choose SRT as the output format.
5. Click download.

You now have an SRT file with the subtitles.

Why SRT for YouTube subtitles

SRT is the right format when:

• Editing in Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Final Cut Pro
• Playing against video in VLC, OBS, or hardware players
• Editing in a text editor and re-uploading to YouTube as a manual track
• Converting to VTT for web embedding

For the format comparison with VTT and TXT, see SRT vs VTT vs TXT.

What you can do with the SRT

Edit in a non-linear editor

Premiere Pro 2022+, DaVinci Resolve 18+, Final Cut Pro 10.6+ all import SRT. See captions for video editing for the per-editor workflow.

Edit in a text editor

Open in any text editor. Fix obvious errors (names, jargon, punctuation). Save and re-upload to YouTube as a manual track.

Use as sidecar captions

In VLC: Subtitles → Add Subtitle File. In OBS: load as text source.

Convert to VTT

ffmpeg -i input.srt output.vtt

What the file looks like

1
00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:04,500
Welcome to the channel.

2
00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:09,200
Today we're talking about subtitles.

• Index number
• Timestamp range using comma for milliseconds
• Caption text

UTF-8 plain text. Editable in any text editor.

Track selection

For the most accurate SRT:

1. Manual track — uploaded by creator. Highest accuracy.
2. Auto-generated track — produced by speech recognition. Variable accuracy.

For the accuracy deep-dive, see auto-generated captions explained.

Tips

• Edit in a text editor first before importing to an NLE.
• Save the SRT as your master file for downstream uses.
• Re-upload edited SRT to YouTube as a manual track.

FAQ

Can I download YouTube subtitles in SRT format? Yes. Use YouTube Caption Downloader and pick SRT.

What video editors accept SRT? Premiere Pro (2022+), DaVinci Resolve (18+), Final Cut Pro (10.6+).

Can I edit SRT in a text editor? Yes. SRT is plain UTF-8 text.

Can I convert SRT to VTT? Yes. ffmpeg -i input.srt output.vtt.

What’s the difference between SRT and VTT? SRT is the older, broadly compatible format. VTT is the W3C web standard.

Methodology

We tested the workflow on 30 videos using YouTube Caption Downloader, then imported the SRT into Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, and Final Cut Pro.

Conclusion

Downloading YouTube subtitles in SRT format is a one-click operation. The result is a file you can edit, embed, or import into any NLE. For format choice, see SRT vs VTT vs TXT.

About the author: The YouTube Caption Downloader Team includes editors who work with SRT, VTT, and broadcast subtitle formats daily. The free tool is at youtube-caption-downloader.com.

Last updated: 2026-10-09

Sources: - Matroska: SRT subtitles reference - YouTube Help: Subtitles and captions