How to access transcripts for YouTube videos
What's the story
YouTube transcripts are text versions of spoken content in videos.
These transcripts help viewers follow along, improve accessibility for those with hearing impairments, and allow easy searching within a video.
Transcripts can be viewed or downloaded and are available in multiple languages if supported by the video's creator.
Here, we will take you through the steps to view and export transcripts from any YouTube video, helping you discover the hidden feature of YouTube that you might have missed.
Transcript basics
Understanding YouTube's transcript feature
YouTube transcripts are either uploaded by creators or auto-generated from captions.
Auto-generated transcripts may not always be accurate as they can misinterpret unclear words or unusual pronunciations.
The language tag at the bottom of the transcript indicates whether it is auto-generated or not.
If a video lacks a transcript, users will have to create one themselves manually.
Access
Navigating transcripts on desktop browsers
To access a transcript using built-in feature, open any video on YouTube for desktop browser and click 'More' at the end of the video's description window.
Then, click the 'Show transcript' button under the Transcript heading.
The transcript will open either below or to the right of the video.
You can now export the transcript by highlighting it and copying it into your text editor.
Editing
Enhancing transcript readability and using browser extensions
To make a transcript more readable, you can remove timestamps by clicking the three-dot button in the upper-right corner of the transcript and selecting 'Toggle timestamps,' available on YouTube for desktop browsers.
If a video's transcription is missing or incorrect, you can use a third-party extension like YouTube Transcript for Chromium browsers. This free extension doesn't require account creation and breaks text into larger chunks for easier editing.
Mobile transcripts
Accessing transcripts on YouTube's mobile app
Accessing transcripts on YouTube mobile app is pretty much the same as the desktop website. However, here, you can't remove timestamps or copy the entire transcript, which makes editing a bit difficult.
To see a transcript, open the YouTube app and play a video. Then, tap 'More' under the video and select 'Show transcript.'
You can change the language by tapping the three-dot button in the upper-right corner of the transcript.