Recover an SRT file from burned-in subtitles in your video
The subtitle file is gone, and all you have is a copy of the video with the text baked into the image. This tool rebuilds a numbered, timed SRT and VTT from that picture, word for word in the original language. A video of up to 5 minutes is free in full. A longer film is $5, paid once, for up to 3 hours.
- Rebuilds the subtitle file from the image when the original SRT is lost
- Text kept as printed, in the original language, line breaks included
- Start and end times within roughly half a second of the picture
- Channel logos and watermarks that stay on screen are dropped
- One video file or public link per job; $5 covers up to 3 hours
When this happens
- A DVD rip where the subtitles were encoded into the picture and the source disc is gone
- A festival screener or distributor copy sent only with burned-in subtitles
- An old TV recording with captions printed on the image
- Your own film, exported with subtitles baked in, after the project files were lost
- A clip from an archive where you need the text and times for a new edit
Hardcoded or soft: a quick test
Open the video in VLC or any player with a subtitle menu. If you can turn the text off, or switch to another language, the file carries a soft track. That track can be saved as a file directly with a media tool, which is faster and exact. Nothing needs to be read from the picture.
If the text stays when subtitles are off, keeps the same size when you resize the window, and blurs along with the video when the bitrate drops, it is burned in. That is the case this tool is for. MKV files often hold soft tracks, so test your own file before uploading.
Fixing timing after you download
Times come from frames sampled twice a second, so a cue can start or end up to about half a second away from the real change. That is fine for watching. For delivery to a broadcaster or a festival, open the SRT in a subtitle editor such as Aegisub, or import it into Premiere or DaVinci Resolve, and nudge the cues that matter.
If you plan to use the file with a different cut of the film, shift all cues by the same offset in the editor first. Cues come out in order and never overlap, so a global shift keeps them clean.
What will not come back
Only subtitle lines are rebuilt. Signs, opening titles and credits are skipped on purpose, and so are subtitles in the middle of the frame. Styling such as italics or color is not recovered; you get plain text. Very small or low-resolution text in old recordings may be misread, so check the free first part on screen before paying.
How the tool works, what it costs and how your files are handled is on the Extract Hardcoded Subtitles page; prices for every tool are on the pricing page.
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Questions and answers
Can ChatGPT make an SRT from the subtitles in my video?
It can read the words in a frame you paste in, and for a few lines that is enough. For a whole film you would paste hundreds of frames and still have no start or end times. This tool reads the video and writes the times for you.
What does it cost?
A video up to 5 minutes is free in full. A film of up to 3 hours is $5, one payment. Unlimited at $19 a week covers up to 6 hours per job.
How do I know the subtitles are burned in?
Turn subtitles off in your player. If the text is still there, it is part of the picture. If it disappears, save the soft track directly instead of using this tool.
Will the new SRT match the original file exactly?
The words should match what was on screen. Timings are close but not frame-exact, and line numbering is new. Formatting tags from the original file cannot be recovered.
My subtitles are at the top of the frame. Is that supported?
Yes. Choose the top area before you start. The tool reads one band per job, bottom or top.
Is the video stored?
Only you can open the job. Frames go to an AI model provider only for reading and are not used for training. Jobs started without an account are deleted after 7 days, and you can delete yours at any time.