Free tools
TXT to SRT converter: turn text into subtitles
Paste your text or choose a .txt file and get an SRT or VTT subtitle file. The text is split into cues and given estimated times. Everything runs in your browser, with no account or upload.
Need subtitles synced to a real recording? Generate subtitles from audio or video
Why is this free? Hushscript runs it entirely in your browser. No server processes your file, so there's nothing to charge for.
How to convert TXT to SRT
Choose your .txt file in the tool above, or paste the text into the box. The subtitle file appears below as soon as the text is read: numbered cues, a 00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:03,000 line for each, then the words. Press Copy subtitles, or Download .srt to save a file with the same name as your text file. Change a setting and the file updates at once. The text is read in your browser and never uploaded, and you do not need an account.
Text to SRT file: how the cues are built
By default the text is cut at the end of each sentence. A sentence that fits goes into one cue. A longer one is wrapped to the line length you set and split into more cues once it runs past the lines allowed per cue. A blank line in your text always starts a new cue, so you control the breaks by leaving a blank line where you want one.
If you already split your script into subtitle-sized lines, choose One cue per line of text. Each non-blank line becomes its own cue, and a line that is too long for the limits is still wrapped and split. Line length and lines per cue start at the Netflix English figures of 42 characters and two lines. Change them for another language, platform or screen.
How the times are estimated
A text file contains no times, so the tool makes them up from the text. Each cue is shown for as long as its characters take at the pace you set, in characters per second. The pace starts at 17, the Netflix English reading-speed limit for children’s programs. Adult programs allow up to 20. Treat the number as a starting point and change it to suit your script; there is no single right pace.
A cue is never shorter than 5/6 of a second or longer than 7 seconds, which are the minimum and maximum durations in Netflix’s subtitle timing guidelines. Cues follow each other with a small gap, 0.1 second to begin with, and you can set the time of the first cue to leave room for an intro. The gap is this tool’s own default.
These are estimates for a script read at a steady pace. They are not synced to a recording, so expect to move times in a subtitle editor once you hear or see the real thing. To check the result against the Netflix limits, paste the downloaded file into the SRT to TXT converter, whose collapsed checklist counts cues that are too short, too fast, overlapping or have too many lines, and lines that are too long.
TXT to VTT
Select VTT instead of SRT to convert TXT to VTT. The output starts with a WEBVTT header and writes times with periods, such as 00:00:01.000, and the download ends in .vtt. Web players and the HTML <track> element read VTT, and many editors take SRT, so pick the one your destination needs. To switch an existing subtitle file between formats later, use the SRT to VTT converter or the subtitle converter.
Need subtitles synced to a recording?
This tool turns text you already have into subtitle cues with estimated times. If you have the audio or video and want subtitles that follow what is actually said, generate subtitles from video with Hushscript. That is a separate transcription service: it requires an account and uploads prepared audio for recognition. Eligible personal accounts get 30 free minutes once, after card verification or with the first purchase. To go the other way and strip a subtitle file down to its words, use the SRT to TXT converter.
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Frequently asked questions
How do I convert TXT to SRT?
Choose your .txt file or paste the text into the box above, leave SRT selected, and copy the result or press Download .srt. The tool splits the text into numbered cues and writes a start and end time for each one. Open the file in your video editor or player to check it.
Will the subtitle times match my audio or video?
No. Plain text has no timing, so the times are estimates for a script read at a steady pace, not synced to any recording. Use the file as a starting point and adjust the times in a subtitle editor. For subtitles synced to a real recording, generate them from the audio or video with the subtitle generator.
How are the cue times worked out?
Each cue lasts as long as its characters take at the pace you set, but never longer than the maximum below. The pace starts at 17 characters per second, the Netflix English limit for children's programs, and you can change it. A cue never runs shorter than 5/6 of a second or longer than 7 seconds, the minimum and maximum in Netflix's subtitle timing guidelines. A cue that would run past 7 seconds at your pace is held to 7, so it reads faster than the pace, and the tool tells you how many cues that affects. The gap between cues starts at 0.1 second and is this tool's own setting, not a standard.
How is the text split into cues?
By sentence, unless you choose one cue per line. A blank line always starts a new cue. A cue holds up to two lines of 42 characters by default, the Netflix English figures, and a sentence that does not fit is split across several cues. You can change both numbers.
Can I convert TXT to VTT?
Yes. Select VTT before you copy or download. The tool writes a WEBVTT header and uses periods in the times, and the download is named with a .vtt ending. The cues are the same as in the SRT.
Can I just rename my .txt file to .srt?
Renaming does not make a working subtitle file. An SRT file needs a cue number, a start and end time and the caption text for every cue, and a plain text file has none of that. On a Mac or in Notepad, saving or renaming a file as .srt only changes the ending. Use this tool to create the cues, then download the .srt file.
How do I make an SRT file from text I wrote or copied?
Paste it into the box. If your text is already one subtitle per line, choose one cue per line so each line stays a single cue. Otherwise leave the split on sentences. Set the line length, lines per cue and pace you need, then download the file.
Is this TXT to SRT converter free, and is my text uploaded?
It is free, needs no account, and nothing is uploaded. The text is read and converted in your browser. Text up to 5 MB is accepted.
Can I turn an SRT file back into plain text?
Yes, with the SRT to TXT converter. It removes the cue numbers and timecodes and also reads VTT, SBV, ASS and TTML.