Tips for Effortless Eradication of Unwanted YouTube Discussions

Deleting YouTube Comments

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube is a video platform where people share informative and entertaining content. It works in the form of channels belonging to individuals or companies. People can subscribe to these channels to show support, and YouTubers create a strong sense of community with these subscribers.

But some people comment inappropriate comments that can cause the community harm and spread hatred. Many YouTubers may want to delete such remarks. There are also times when you accidentally comment on a channel’s comment section and may wish to delete it.

So how do you delete all YouTube comments? In this how-to blog, we will show you.

• Part 1: Deleting YouTube Comments from Desktop
• Part 2: Deleting All YouTube Comments from Mobile
• Part 3: How to Delete Your Comments from YouTube?
• part 4: Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels
• Part 5: Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments

How to Delete YouTube Comments from Desktop?

In this section, we will tell you how you can do it from your desktop.

1. Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop browser and log in.
2. Once you log in, you need to go to your channel. For this, you can select the My Channel option from the upper-left side of your YouTube home page.
3. From the list of your videos, select the one you need and scroll down to reach the comment you want to delete.
4. When you locate the comment, click on the three vertical dots on the right-hand side of the comment. From the drop-down list, click on Remove. The process is complete, and YouTube will remove your comment.

You also have the option to report the comment or hide the user from your channel .

How to Delete All YouTube Comments from Mobile?

The steps to deleting someone else’s YouTube comments from your mobile are similar to those from your desktop.

1. Log in to your account from the YouTube app on your phone.
2. On the right-hand side of your YouTube homepage, there will be a profile icon. Tap on that, and from the list, select My Channel. This will direct you to all videos on your channel.
3. Select the video from where you want to delete a comment. Scroll down to reach the desired comment.
4. Once you reach the target comment, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner. There should be an option called Remove. Tap on it.
5. This will create another dialog box on the mobile app where you have to click on Remove again to delete the comment.

How Do You Delete Your Comments from YouTube?

Have you accidentally posted something on a YouTuber’s channel? Are you anxious because you cannot find the comment and delete it?

Fear not. Read on to know how to delete all comments you posted on someone else’s YouTube channel from your desktop.

1. Visit https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop and then sign in YouTube channel.
2. If your YouTube account is not open, tap on Sign in and enter your email and password to log in to your account.
3. Once there, you need to access your Comment History page. To do this, you can click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of your YouTube homepage. Click on History. On the page that opens, click Comments from the panel on the right. It will direct you to your Comment History page. You can also access the YouTube comment history from here .
4. When you reach the Comment History page, you will be able to find all comments you have ever posted. Scroll down to the comment you want to delete.
5. Click on the three vertical dots that you see beside the target comment. You will find a Delete option. Tap on it, and confirm that you want to delete the comment. That completes the process. No more embarrassing comments!

How Do You Delete Your Comments from Your Phone?

Don’t have a desktop handy? This section will tell you how you can delete your comments you posted on your or someone else’s YouTube video from your mobile.

1. Go to the YouTube app on your phone. You will need to log in to your account to delete any comment you posted.
2. When the login process is complete, you need to find the video where your target comment is.

If it is someone else’s video, you can search for it by clicking on the magnifying glass at the top of the homepage or check your YouTube History to find it. To access your History, you need to click on an option called Library at the bottom of the homepage. From there, you can find the History option.

If it is your video where the comment to be removed is, you can go to My Channel from the profile icon on the right-hand side of the YouTube app’s homepage.

1. Once you locate the video, you need to find the comment you want to delete. On the YouTube app, you may need to scroll down for a while to do this.
2. When you reach it, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner of your comment. You should see an option called Delete. Click on that. You need to confirm once more that you want to delete it, and the process will be complete.

Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels

Did you see a hate comment on your favorite creator’s video? Sadly, you cannot delete the comment. But, you can report it, and YouTube will hide or take it down.

You can do this both from your desktop or your phone with some easy steps.

How to report people’s comments on YouTube?

Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop or open the YouTube app from your phone. Log in to your account if it is not open.

1. The next step is to find the video where the comment is. You can search for it by tapping on the search button at the top of the YouTube homepage. Or you can locate it from your YouTube History.

To find your History from your desktop, you need to click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of the homepage. You will find the History option from the list. To access it from your phone, click on the Library option at the bottom of your homepage, and it will open a list where you will find the History option.

1. Open the video, and scroll down to locate the comment you want to report.
2. Once you find your target comment, click on the three vertical dots that appear on its right side. You will find the Report option from the pop-up menu. Click on that.
3. When you tap Report, another dialogue box will appear. From the list of options, choose the most appropriate option, tap on Report at the lower right corner of the pop-up, and complete the process. YouTube will do the rest.

How to Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments?

You can also delete all comments you ever posted on any YouTube video by hiding your channel. When you do this, you can hide your video content temporarily. But it will irreversibly erase all your comments throughout YouTube. If you are curious, read on to know how you can do it.

1. You need to go to YouTube from your desktop and sign in to your account.
2. Next, you can either click on the profile icon at the top right corner or the three horizontal lines beside the YouTube logo on your homepage. From the list of options, click Settings.

1. YouTube will direct you to the Settings page of your account. Choose Advanced Settings from the list on your left. You can also access it from here .

1. Scroll down and select Delete Channel. Clicking it will not delete your account. When you click on Delete Channel, you will get two choices – ‘I want to hide my channel’ and ‘I want to permanently delete my content’. Select the first.

1. YouTube will now show you what will happen when you hide your channel. Check all the boxes to confirm that you understand, and then tap on Hide My Channel. YouTube will now delete all comments made by your account.

Final Thoughts

YouTube can be an unsafe place with unwanted comments everywhere. In this blog, we tried to show how you can get rid of comments on your and on others’ YouTube accounts. The next time you see an offensive comment or post something mistakenly, don’t forget to try our tips and make YouTube a safe platform again.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube is a video platform where people share informative and entertaining content. It works in the form of channels belonging to individuals or companies. People can subscribe to these channels to show support, and YouTubers create a strong sense of community with these subscribers.

But some people comment inappropriate comments that can cause the community harm and spread hatred. Many YouTubers may want to delete such remarks. There are also times when you accidentally comment on a channel’s comment section and may wish to delete it.

So how do you delete all YouTube comments? In this how-to blog, we will show you.

• Part 1: Deleting YouTube Comments from Desktop
• Part 2: Deleting All YouTube Comments from Mobile
• Part 3: How to Delete Your Comments from YouTube?
• part 4: Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels
• Part 5: Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments

How to Delete YouTube Comments from Desktop?

In this section, we will tell you how you can do it from your desktop.

1. Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop browser and log in.
2. Once you log in, you need to go to your channel. For this, you can select the My Channel option from the upper-left side of your YouTube home page.
3. From the list of your videos, select the one you need and scroll down to reach the comment you want to delete.
4. When you locate the comment, click on the three vertical dots on the right-hand side of the comment. From the drop-down list, click on Remove. The process is complete, and YouTube will remove your comment.

You also have the option to report the comment or hide the user from your channel .

How to Delete All YouTube Comments from Mobile?

The steps to deleting someone else’s YouTube comments from your mobile are similar to those from your desktop.

1. Log in to your account from the YouTube app on your phone.
2. On the right-hand side of your YouTube homepage, there will be a profile icon. Tap on that, and from the list, select My Channel. This will direct you to all videos on your channel.
3. Select the video from where you want to delete a comment. Scroll down to reach the desired comment.
4. Once you reach the target comment, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner. There should be an option called Remove. Tap on it.
5. This will create another dialog box on the mobile app where you have to click on Remove again to delete the comment.

How Do You Delete Your Comments from YouTube?

Have you accidentally posted something on a YouTuber’s channel? Are you anxious because you cannot find the comment and delete it?

Fear not. Read on to know how to delete all comments you posted on someone else’s YouTube channel from your desktop.

1. Visit https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop and then sign in YouTube channel.
2. If your YouTube account is not open, tap on Sign in and enter your email and password to log in to your account.
3. Once there, you need to access your Comment History page. To do this, you can click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of your YouTube homepage. Click on History. On the page that opens, click Comments from the panel on the right. It will direct you to your Comment History page. You can also access the YouTube comment history from here .
4. When you reach the Comment History page, you will be able to find all comments you have ever posted. Scroll down to the comment you want to delete.
5. Click on the three vertical dots that you see beside the target comment. You will find a Delete option. Tap on it, and confirm that you want to delete the comment. That completes the process. No more embarrassing comments!

How Do You Delete Your Comments from Your Phone?

Don’t have a desktop handy? This section will tell you how you can delete your comments you posted on your or someone else’s YouTube video from your mobile.

1. Go to the YouTube app on your phone. You will need to log in to your account to delete any comment you posted.
2. When the login process is complete, you need to find the video where your target comment is.

If it is someone else’s video, you can search for it by clicking on the magnifying glass at the top of the homepage or check your YouTube History to find it. To access your History, you need to click on an option called Library at the bottom of the homepage. From there, you can find the History option.

If it is your video where the comment to be removed is, you can go to My Channel from the profile icon on the right-hand side of the YouTube app’s homepage.

1. Once you locate the video, you need to find the comment you want to delete. On the YouTube app, you may need to scroll down for a while to do this.
2. When you reach it, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner of your comment. You should see an option called Delete. Click on that. You need to confirm once more that you want to delete it, and the process will be complete.

Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels

Did you see a hate comment on your favorite creator’s video? Sadly, you cannot delete the comment. But, you can report it, and YouTube will hide or take it down.

You can do this both from your desktop or your phone with some easy steps.

How to report people’s comments on YouTube?

Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop or open the YouTube app from your phone. Log in to your account if it is not open.

1. The next step is to find the video where the comment is. You can search for it by tapping on the search button at the top of the YouTube homepage. Or you can locate it from your YouTube History.

To find your History from your desktop, you need to click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of the homepage. You will find the History option from the list. To access it from your phone, click on the Library option at the bottom of your homepage, and it will open a list where you will find the History option.

1. Open the video, and scroll down to locate the comment you want to report.
2. Once you find your target comment, click on the three vertical dots that appear on its right side. You will find the Report option from the pop-up menu. Click on that.
3. When you tap Report, another dialogue box will appear. From the list of options, choose the most appropriate option, tap on Report at the lower right corner of the pop-up, and complete the process. YouTube will do the rest.

How to Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments?

You can also delete all comments you ever posted on any YouTube video by hiding your channel. When you do this, you can hide your video content temporarily. But it will irreversibly erase all your comments throughout YouTube. If you are curious, read on to know how you can do it.

1. You need to go to YouTube from your desktop and sign in to your account.
2. Next, you can either click on the profile icon at the top right corner or the three horizontal lines beside the YouTube logo on your homepage. From the list of options, click Settings.

1. YouTube will direct you to the Settings page of your account. Choose Advanced Settings from the list on your left. You can also access it from here .

1. Scroll down and select Delete Channel. Clicking it will not delete your account. When you click on Delete Channel, you will get two choices – ‘I want to hide my channel’ and ‘I want to permanently delete my content’. Select the first.

1. YouTube will now show you what will happen when you hide your channel. Check all the boxes to confirm that you understand, and then tap on Hide My Channel. YouTube will now delete all comments made by your account.

Final Thoughts

YouTube can be an unsafe place with unwanted comments everywhere. In this blog, we tried to show how you can get rid of comments on your and on others’ YouTube accounts. The next time you see an offensive comment or post something mistakenly, don’t forget to try our tips and make YouTube a safe platform again.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube is a video platform where people share informative and entertaining content. It works in the form of channels belonging to individuals or companies. People can subscribe to these channels to show support, and YouTubers create a strong sense of community with these subscribers.

But some people comment inappropriate comments that can cause the community harm and spread hatred. Many YouTubers may want to delete such remarks. There are also times when you accidentally comment on a channel’s comment section and may wish to delete it.

So how do you delete all YouTube comments? In this how-to blog, we will show you.

• Part 1: Deleting YouTube Comments from Desktop
• Part 2: Deleting All YouTube Comments from Mobile
• Part 3: How to Delete Your Comments from YouTube?
• part 4: Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels
• Part 5: Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments

How to Delete YouTube Comments from Desktop?

In this section, we will tell you how you can do it from your desktop.

1. Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop browser and log in.
2. Once you log in, you need to go to your channel. For this, you can select the My Channel option from the upper-left side of your YouTube home page.
3. From the list of your videos, select the one you need and scroll down to reach the comment you want to delete.
4. When you locate the comment, click on the three vertical dots on the right-hand side of the comment. From the drop-down list, click on Remove. The process is complete, and YouTube will remove your comment.

You also have the option to report the comment or hide the user from your channel .

How to Delete All YouTube Comments from Mobile?

The steps to deleting someone else’s YouTube comments from your mobile are similar to those from your desktop.

1. Log in to your account from the YouTube app on your phone.
2. On the right-hand side of your YouTube homepage, there will be a profile icon. Tap on that, and from the list, select My Channel. This will direct you to all videos on your channel.
3. Select the video from where you want to delete a comment. Scroll down to reach the desired comment.
4. Once you reach the target comment, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner. There should be an option called Remove. Tap on it.
5. This will create another dialog box on the mobile app where you have to click on Remove again to delete the comment.

How Do You Delete Your Comments from YouTube?

Have you accidentally posted something on a YouTuber’s channel? Are you anxious because you cannot find the comment and delete it?

Fear not. Read on to know how to delete all comments you posted on someone else’s YouTube channel from your desktop.

1. Visit https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop and then sign in YouTube channel.
2. If your YouTube account is not open, tap on Sign in and enter your email and password to log in to your account.
3. Once there, you need to access your Comment History page. To do this, you can click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of your YouTube homepage. Click on History. On the page that opens, click Comments from the panel on the right. It will direct you to your Comment History page. You can also access the YouTube comment history from here .
4. When you reach the Comment History page, you will be able to find all comments you have ever posted. Scroll down to the comment you want to delete.
5. Click on the three vertical dots that you see beside the target comment. You will find a Delete option. Tap on it, and confirm that you want to delete the comment. That completes the process. No more embarrassing comments!

How Do You Delete Your Comments from Your Phone?

Don’t have a desktop handy? This section will tell you how you can delete your comments you posted on your or someone else’s YouTube video from your mobile.

1. Go to the YouTube app on your phone. You will need to log in to your account to delete any comment you posted.
2. When the login process is complete, you need to find the video where your target comment is.

If it is someone else’s video, you can search for it by clicking on the magnifying glass at the top of the homepage or check your YouTube History to find it. To access your History, you need to click on an option called Library at the bottom of the homepage. From there, you can find the History option.

If it is your video where the comment to be removed is, you can go to My Channel from the profile icon on the right-hand side of the YouTube app’s homepage.

1. Once you locate the video, you need to find the comment you want to delete. On the YouTube app, you may need to scroll down for a while to do this.
2. When you reach it, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner of your comment. You should see an option called Delete. Click on that. You need to confirm once more that you want to delete it, and the process will be complete.

Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels

Did you see a hate comment on your favorite creator’s video? Sadly, you cannot delete the comment. But, you can report it, and YouTube will hide or take it down.

You can do this both from your desktop or your phone with some easy steps.

How to report people’s comments on YouTube?

Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop or open the YouTube app from your phone. Log in to your account if it is not open.

1. The next step is to find the video where the comment is. You can search for it by tapping on the search button at the top of the YouTube homepage. Or you can locate it from your YouTube History.

To find your History from your desktop, you need to click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of the homepage. You will find the History option from the list. To access it from your phone, click on the Library option at the bottom of your homepage, and it will open a list where you will find the History option.

1. Open the video, and scroll down to locate the comment you want to report.
2. Once you find your target comment, click on the three vertical dots that appear on its right side. You will find the Report option from the pop-up menu. Click on that.
3. When you tap Report, another dialogue box will appear. From the list of options, choose the most appropriate option, tap on Report at the lower right corner of the pop-up, and complete the process. YouTube will do the rest.

How to Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments?

You can also delete all comments you ever posted on any YouTube video by hiding your channel. When you do this, you can hide your video content temporarily. But it will irreversibly erase all your comments throughout YouTube. If you are curious, read on to know how you can do it.

1. You need to go to YouTube from your desktop and sign in to your account.
2. Next, you can either click on the profile icon at the top right corner or the three horizontal lines beside the YouTube logo on your homepage. From the list of options, click Settings.

1. YouTube will direct you to the Settings page of your account. Choose Advanced Settings from the list on your left. You can also access it from here .

1. Scroll down and select Delete Channel. Clicking it will not delete your account. When you click on Delete Channel, you will get two choices – ‘I want to hide my channel’ and ‘I want to permanently delete my content’. Select the first.

1. YouTube will now show you what will happen when you hide your channel. Check all the boxes to confirm that you understand, and then tap on Hide My Channel. YouTube will now delete all comments made by your account.

Final Thoughts

YouTube can be an unsafe place with unwanted comments everywhere. In this blog, we tried to show how you can get rid of comments on your and on others’ YouTube accounts. The next time you see an offensive comment or post something mistakenly, don’t forget to try our tips and make YouTube a safe platform again.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube is a video platform where people share informative and entertaining content. It works in the form of channels belonging to individuals or companies. People can subscribe to these channels to show support, and YouTubers create a strong sense of community with these subscribers.

But some people comment inappropriate comments that can cause the community harm and spread hatred. Many YouTubers may want to delete such remarks. There are also times when you accidentally comment on a channel’s comment section and may wish to delete it.

So how do you delete all YouTube comments? In this how-to blog, we will show you.

• Part 1: Deleting YouTube Comments from Desktop
• Part 2: Deleting All YouTube Comments from Mobile
• Part 3: How to Delete Your Comments from YouTube?
• part 4: Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels
• Part 5: Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments

How to Delete YouTube Comments from Desktop?

In this section, we will tell you how you can do it from your desktop.

1. Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop browser and log in.
2. Once you log in, you need to go to your channel. For this, you can select the My Channel option from the upper-left side of your YouTube home page.
3. From the list of your videos, select the one you need and scroll down to reach the comment you want to delete.
4. When you locate the comment, click on the three vertical dots on the right-hand side of the comment. From the drop-down list, click on Remove. The process is complete, and YouTube will remove your comment.

You also have the option to report the comment or hide the user from your channel .

How to Delete All YouTube Comments from Mobile?

The steps to deleting someone else’s YouTube comments from your mobile are similar to those from your desktop.

1. Log in to your account from the YouTube app on your phone.
2. On the right-hand side of your YouTube homepage, there will be a profile icon. Tap on that, and from the list, select My Channel. This will direct you to all videos on your channel.
3. Select the video from where you want to delete a comment. Scroll down to reach the desired comment.
4. Once you reach the target comment, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner. There should be an option called Remove. Tap on it.
5. This will create another dialog box on the mobile app where you have to click on Remove again to delete the comment.

How Do You Delete Your Comments from YouTube?

Have you accidentally posted something on a YouTuber’s channel? Are you anxious because you cannot find the comment and delete it?

Fear not. Read on to know how to delete all comments you posted on someone else’s YouTube channel from your desktop.

1. Visit https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop and then sign in YouTube channel.
2. If your YouTube account is not open, tap on Sign in and enter your email and password to log in to your account.
3. Once there, you need to access your Comment History page. To do this, you can click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of your YouTube homepage. Click on History. On the page that opens, click Comments from the panel on the right. It will direct you to your Comment History page. You can also access the YouTube comment history from here .
4. When you reach the Comment History page, you will be able to find all comments you have ever posted. Scroll down to the comment you want to delete.
5. Click on the three vertical dots that you see beside the target comment. You will find a Delete option. Tap on it, and confirm that you want to delete the comment. That completes the process. No more embarrassing comments!

How Do You Delete Your Comments from Your Phone?

Don’t have a desktop handy? This section will tell you how you can delete your comments you posted on your or someone else’s YouTube video from your mobile.

1. Go to the YouTube app on your phone. You will need to log in to your account to delete any comment you posted.
2. When the login process is complete, you need to find the video where your target comment is.

If it is someone else’s video, you can search for it by clicking on the magnifying glass at the top of the homepage or check your YouTube History to find it. To access your History, you need to click on an option called Library at the bottom of the homepage. From there, you can find the History option.

If it is your video where the comment to be removed is, you can go to My Channel from the profile icon on the right-hand side of the YouTube app’s homepage.

1. Once you locate the video, you need to find the comment you want to delete. On the YouTube app, you may need to scroll down for a while to do this.
2. When you reach it, click on the three vertical dots at the bottom corner of your comment. You should see an option called Delete. Click on that. You need to confirm once more that you want to delete it, and the process will be complete.

Delete Other People’s Comments on Others’ Channels

Did you see a hate comment on your favorite creator’s video? Sadly, you cannot delete the comment. But, you can report it, and YouTube will hide or take it down.

You can do this both from your desktop or your phone with some easy steps.

How to report people’s comments on YouTube?

Go to https://www.youtube.com/ from your desktop or open the YouTube app from your phone. Log in to your account if it is not open.

1. The next step is to find the video where the comment is. You can search for it by tapping on the search button at the top of the YouTube homepage. Or you can locate it from your YouTube History.

To find your History from your desktop, you need to click on the three horizontal lines at the top left corner of the homepage. You will find the History option from the list. To access it from your phone, click on the Library option at the bottom of your homepage, and it will open a list where you will find the History option.

1. Open the video, and scroll down to locate the comment you want to report.
2. Once you find your target comment, click on the three vertical dots that appear on its right side. You will find the Report option from the pop-up menu. Click on that.
3. When you tap Report, another dialogue box will appear. From the list of options, choose the most appropriate option, tap on Report at the lower right corner of the pop-up, and complete the process. YouTube will do the rest.

How to Delete All Your Posted YouTube Comments?

You can also delete all comments you ever posted on any YouTube video by hiding your channel. When you do this, you can hide your video content temporarily. But it will irreversibly erase all your comments throughout YouTube. If you are curious, read on to know how you can do it.

1. You need to go to YouTube from your desktop and sign in to your account.
2. Next, you can either click on the profile icon at the top right corner or the three horizontal lines beside the YouTube logo on your homepage. From the list of options, click Settings.

1. YouTube will direct you to the Settings page of your account. Choose Advanced Settings from the list on your left. You can also access it from here .

1. Scroll down and select Delete Channel. Clicking it will not delete your account. When you click on Delete Channel, you will get two choices – ‘I want to hide my channel’ and ‘I want to permanently delete my content’. Select the first.

1. YouTube will now show you what will happen when you hide your channel. Check all the boxes to confirm that you understand, and then tap on Hide My Channel. YouTube will now delete all comments made by your account.

Final Thoughts

YouTube can be an unsafe place with unwanted comments everywhere. In this blog, we tried to show how you can get rid of comments on your and on others’ YouTube accounts. The next time you see an offensive comment or post something mistakenly, don’t forget to try our tips and make YouTube a safe platform again.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

The Easiest Way to Convert Your YouTube Videos Into Texts for FREE

How to Transcribe a YouTube Video for FREE

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

If you want to transcribe your videos to make the dialogs and speeches available in text format, you can use YouTube Transcribe feature that the streaming site offers for free. In this article, I’ll share with you a couple of methods to transcribe a YouTube video for free.

• Part 1: Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]
• Part 2: Transcribe YouTube Video to Text Online with Third-Party Service
• Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos
• Part 4: YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

Part 1: How to Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]

Besides the basic video editing features on the YouTube platform, you can now quickly transcribe YouTube videos to the text as well. The good thing is, you can either use the automatic transcription feature that YouTube offers, or upload it manually while adjusting the timing as you go further.

Below are the two methods to transcribe your YouTube videos for free:

Method 1: Use the Automated Transcription Service on YouTube

As the name suggests, YouTube automatic transcription service works automatically. This means you don’t even have to click the ‘Transcribe’ button anymore to transcribe a YouTube video, and the website takes care of it on its own. All you need to do is, choose English as the language of the video when setting up subtitles. You can follow the instructions given below to do so:

Step 1 Upload a Video

Sign in to your YouTube account, click your profile picture from the top-right corner, and click YouTube Studio from the menu. Next, click CREATE from the upper-right corner, click Upload videos from the menu, and drag and drop a video from your computer to the Upload videos box that appears next.

Step 2 Select Transcription Language

On the Details page of the next box that appears, scroll down and click MORE OPTIONS, and select English in the Video language drop-down list under the Language, subtitles, and closed captions (CC) section.

Step 3 Publish the Video

Follow the on-screen instructions from this point to publish the video, and wait while YouTube automatically transcribes and adds the close captions to it.

Note: Depending on the duration of the clip, the time YouTube would take to transcribe may vary.

After YouTube has transcribed the video, you can download the transcription file in your preferred format. The instructions are given below explain how you can do so:

1. Get to the Subtitles Window

While on the YouTube Studio page, click Subtitles from the left pane to go to the Channel subtitles page. And then click the video you want to modify.

1. Get to Classic Studio

In the video subtitle page of the target video, hover mouse on the Published Automatic status under the Subtitles column, click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) that appears, and click Edit on Classic Studio.

1. Download Transcription File

Click and open the Actions drop-down list from the top-left corner of the left pane, click your preferred transcription format including .vtt, .srt and .sbv from the list, and save the file on your local hard disk.

Method 2: Get YouTube Transcription when Watching

In addition, if you are watching any other video, you can make YouTube transcribe that for you as well. You can follow the instructions given below to get the YouTube video to text transcription:

Step 1: Play the Video

Go to the video on YouTube and start playing it. Make sure NOT to get to full-screen mode as doing so would hide the option to transcribe the clip.

Step 2: Enable Transcription

Click the More icon (with three horizontal dots) from under the bottom-right corner of the video player, and click Open transcript to see the video transcription in the Transcript pane that appears in the right.

Step 3: Manage Timestamps

Click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) from the top-right corner of the Transcript pane, and click Toggle timestamp to enable or disable the timestamps in the video transcription.

Limitations of Using YouTube Transcribe

Although YouTube’s automatic transcription is a decent feature that saves you a lot of time, since Google uses machine learning algorithms to convert the speech to text, the level of accuracy may vary depending on the accent of the speaker, and the clarity of the audio the video has. Also, even sometime you may not be satisfied with the end-results.

Alternatively, you can use Kapwing to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file with the below step-by-step instructions:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

You can follow the step-by-step instructions to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file using Kapwing:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos

You may need video transcriptions for several reasons, such as analyzing the summary of the entire speech in the video, extracting a single phrase or quote that was spoken in the clip, or making the video helpful even for those suffering from hearing impairment. When you transcribe a YouTube video, the transcript can be useful in many ways. Some of the most common benefits of transcribing a video include:

• Search Engine Optimization

When you add subtitles, the text can appear in Google search results when someone types a similar phrase in the search box. This helps get more views to your videos, thus giving your channel popularity, and you, monetary gains in the long run.

• Accent

If the speaker in the video is from a different region and is using an accent that you are not much comfortable with, you can turn on the subtitles and read the dialogs along with the video.

• Repurposing on Blogs

If you own a blog that you have embedded your video to, the transcription could be used to add text to it so the target audience can get a fair idea of what the video is all about. This is useful because many people prefer reading over watching.

YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

1. How to Transcribe YouTube Video to Text

Usually the transcription files have *.srt extension that are globally accepted and supported by almost all media players. However, there might be instances when you want to have the subtitles in plain text.

That said, to convert an SRT file to TXT, you can:

• Right-click the SRT file
• Go to Rename
• Replace srt with txt and press Enter
• Click OK on the confirmation box that appears next to convert SRT to TXT

After this, you can simply double-click the file, and read and modify the transcribed content as needed.

2. How to Edit and Upload Edited Transcript to YouTube

If you made any modifications to the transcript that was automatically generated by YouTube or any other third-party transcription tool, you can follow the steps given below to upload the new file to the YouTube video:

• Go to YouTube Studio and then to the Channel subtitles page as explained earlier

• Expand the Languages column of the target video

• Click the Options icon that appears under the Subtitles column when you hover mouse on to it

• Click Edit on Classic Studio

• On the next page, click Edit from the top-right corner

• Click to open the Actions drop-down list from the upper-left corner

• Click Upload a file

  • Follow the on-screen instructions from there to upload the modified transcription file
  • Click Save Changes from the top-right corner of the page when done

Conclusion

If you are looking for a quick and easy way of adding subtitles to your videos, letting YouTube transcribe for you could be a good approach. However, because these auto-generated transcriptions are created by machine learning algorithms, their accuracy cannot be counted on. Therefore, the best way to get the job done accurately is, let YouTube auto-transcribe your video, download the transcription file, make the necessary changes to it, and then upload the file back to the video.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

If you want to transcribe your videos to make the dialogs and speeches available in text format, you can use YouTube Transcribe feature that the streaming site offers for free. In this article, I’ll share with you a couple of methods to transcribe a YouTube video for free.

• Part 1: Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]
• Part 2: Transcribe YouTube Video to Text Online with Third-Party Service
• Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos
• Part 4: YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

Part 1: How to Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]

Besides the basic video editing features on the YouTube platform, you can now quickly transcribe YouTube videos to the text as well. The good thing is, you can either use the automatic transcription feature that YouTube offers, or upload it manually while adjusting the timing as you go further.

Below are the two methods to transcribe your YouTube videos for free:

Method 1: Use the Automated Transcription Service on YouTube

As the name suggests, YouTube automatic transcription service works automatically. This means you don’t even have to click the ‘Transcribe’ button anymore to transcribe a YouTube video, and the website takes care of it on its own. All you need to do is, choose English as the language of the video when setting up subtitles. You can follow the instructions given below to do so:

Step 1 Upload a Video

Sign in to your YouTube account, click your profile picture from the top-right corner, and click YouTube Studio from the menu. Next, click CREATE from the upper-right corner, click Upload videos from the menu, and drag and drop a video from your computer to the Upload videos box that appears next.

Step 2 Select Transcription Language

On the Details page of the next box that appears, scroll down and click MORE OPTIONS, and select English in the Video language drop-down list under the Language, subtitles, and closed captions (CC) section.

Step 3 Publish the Video

Follow the on-screen instructions from this point to publish the video, and wait while YouTube automatically transcribes and adds the close captions to it.

Note: Depending on the duration of the clip, the time YouTube would take to transcribe may vary.

After YouTube has transcribed the video, you can download the transcription file in your preferred format. The instructions are given below explain how you can do so:

1. Get to the Subtitles Window

While on the YouTube Studio page, click Subtitles from the left pane to go to the Channel subtitles page. And then click the video you want to modify.

1. Get to Classic Studio

In the video subtitle page of the target video, hover mouse on the Published Automatic status under the Subtitles column, click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) that appears, and click Edit on Classic Studio.

1. Download Transcription File

Click and open the Actions drop-down list from the top-left corner of the left pane, click your preferred transcription format including .vtt, .srt and .sbv from the list, and save the file on your local hard disk.

Method 2: Get YouTube Transcription when Watching

In addition, if you are watching any other video, you can make YouTube transcribe that for you as well. You can follow the instructions given below to get the YouTube video to text transcription:

Step 1: Play the Video

Go to the video on YouTube and start playing it. Make sure NOT to get to full-screen mode as doing so would hide the option to transcribe the clip.

Step 2: Enable Transcription

Click the More icon (with three horizontal dots) from under the bottom-right corner of the video player, and click Open transcript to see the video transcription in the Transcript pane that appears in the right.

Step 3: Manage Timestamps

Click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) from the top-right corner of the Transcript pane, and click Toggle timestamp to enable or disable the timestamps in the video transcription.

Limitations of Using YouTube Transcribe

Although YouTube’s automatic transcription is a decent feature that saves you a lot of time, since Google uses machine learning algorithms to convert the speech to text, the level of accuracy may vary depending on the accent of the speaker, and the clarity of the audio the video has. Also, even sometime you may not be satisfied with the end-results.

Alternatively, you can use Kapwing to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file with the below step-by-step instructions:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

You can follow the step-by-step instructions to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file using Kapwing:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos

You may need video transcriptions for several reasons, such as analyzing the summary of the entire speech in the video, extracting a single phrase or quote that was spoken in the clip, or making the video helpful even for those suffering from hearing impairment. When you transcribe a YouTube video, the transcript can be useful in many ways. Some of the most common benefits of transcribing a video include:

• Search Engine Optimization

When you add subtitles, the text can appear in Google search results when someone types a similar phrase in the search box. This helps get more views to your videos, thus giving your channel popularity, and you, monetary gains in the long run.

• Accent

If the speaker in the video is from a different region and is using an accent that you are not much comfortable with, you can turn on the subtitles and read the dialogs along with the video.

• Repurposing on Blogs

If you own a blog that you have embedded your video to, the transcription could be used to add text to it so the target audience can get a fair idea of what the video is all about. This is useful because many people prefer reading over watching.

YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

1. How to Transcribe YouTube Video to Text

Usually the transcription files have *.srt extension that are globally accepted and supported by almost all media players. However, there might be instances when you want to have the subtitles in plain text.

That said, to convert an SRT file to TXT, you can:

• Right-click the SRT file
• Go to Rename
• Replace srt with txt and press Enter
• Click OK on the confirmation box that appears next to convert SRT to TXT

After this, you can simply double-click the file, and read and modify the transcribed content as needed.

2. How to Edit and Upload Edited Transcript to YouTube

If you made any modifications to the transcript that was automatically generated by YouTube or any other third-party transcription tool, you can follow the steps given below to upload the new file to the YouTube video:

• Go to YouTube Studio and then to the Channel subtitles page as explained earlier

• Expand the Languages column of the target video

• Click the Options icon that appears under the Subtitles column when you hover mouse on to it

• Click Edit on Classic Studio

• On the next page, click Edit from the top-right corner

• Click to open the Actions drop-down list from the upper-left corner

• Click Upload a file

  • Follow the on-screen instructions from there to upload the modified transcription file
  • Click Save Changes from the top-right corner of the page when done

Conclusion

If you are looking for a quick and easy way of adding subtitles to your videos, letting YouTube transcribe for you could be a good approach. However, because these auto-generated transcriptions are created by machine learning algorithms, their accuracy cannot be counted on. Therefore, the best way to get the job done accurately is, let YouTube auto-transcribe your video, download the transcription file, make the necessary changes to it, and then upload the file back to the video.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

If you want to transcribe your videos to make the dialogs and speeches available in text format, you can use YouTube Transcribe feature that the streaming site offers for free. In this article, I’ll share with you a couple of methods to transcribe a YouTube video for free.

• Part 1: Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]
• Part 2: Transcribe YouTube Video to Text Online with Third-Party Service
• Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos
• Part 4: YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

Part 1: How to Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]

Besides the basic video editing features on the YouTube platform, you can now quickly transcribe YouTube videos to the text as well. The good thing is, you can either use the automatic transcription feature that YouTube offers, or upload it manually while adjusting the timing as you go further.

Below are the two methods to transcribe your YouTube videos for free:

Method 1: Use the Automated Transcription Service on YouTube

As the name suggests, YouTube automatic transcription service works automatically. This means you don’t even have to click the ‘Transcribe’ button anymore to transcribe a YouTube video, and the website takes care of it on its own. All you need to do is, choose English as the language of the video when setting up subtitles. You can follow the instructions given below to do so:

Step 1 Upload a Video

Sign in to your YouTube account, click your profile picture from the top-right corner, and click YouTube Studio from the menu. Next, click CREATE from the upper-right corner, click Upload videos from the menu, and drag and drop a video from your computer to the Upload videos box that appears next.

Step 2 Select Transcription Language

On the Details page of the next box that appears, scroll down and click MORE OPTIONS, and select English in the Video language drop-down list under the Language, subtitles, and closed captions (CC) section.

Step 3 Publish the Video

Follow the on-screen instructions from this point to publish the video, and wait while YouTube automatically transcribes and adds the close captions to it.

Note: Depending on the duration of the clip, the time YouTube would take to transcribe may vary.

After YouTube has transcribed the video, you can download the transcription file in your preferred format. The instructions are given below explain how you can do so:

1. Get to the Subtitles Window

While on the YouTube Studio page, click Subtitles from the left pane to go to the Channel subtitles page. And then click the video you want to modify.

1. Get to Classic Studio

In the video subtitle page of the target video, hover mouse on the Published Automatic status under the Subtitles column, click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) that appears, and click Edit on Classic Studio.

1. Download Transcription File

Click and open the Actions drop-down list from the top-left corner of the left pane, click your preferred transcription format including .vtt, .srt and .sbv from the list, and save the file on your local hard disk.

Method 2: Get YouTube Transcription when Watching

In addition, if you are watching any other video, you can make YouTube transcribe that for you as well. You can follow the instructions given below to get the YouTube video to text transcription:

Step 1: Play the Video

Go to the video on YouTube and start playing it. Make sure NOT to get to full-screen mode as doing so would hide the option to transcribe the clip.

Step 2: Enable Transcription

Click the More icon (with three horizontal dots) from under the bottom-right corner of the video player, and click Open transcript to see the video transcription in the Transcript pane that appears in the right.

Step 3: Manage Timestamps

Click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) from the top-right corner of the Transcript pane, and click Toggle timestamp to enable or disable the timestamps in the video transcription.

Limitations of Using YouTube Transcribe

Although YouTube’s automatic transcription is a decent feature that saves you a lot of time, since Google uses machine learning algorithms to convert the speech to text, the level of accuracy may vary depending on the accent of the speaker, and the clarity of the audio the video has. Also, even sometime you may not be satisfied with the end-results.

Alternatively, you can use Kapwing to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file with the below step-by-step instructions:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

You can follow the step-by-step instructions to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file using Kapwing:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos

You may need video transcriptions for several reasons, such as analyzing the summary of the entire speech in the video, extracting a single phrase or quote that was spoken in the clip, or making the video helpful even for those suffering from hearing impairment. When you transcribe a YouTube video, the transcript can be useful in many ways. Some of the most common benefits of transcribing a video include:

• Search Engine Optimization

When you add subtitles, the text can appear in Google search results when someone types a similar phrase in the search box. This helps get more views to your videos, thus giving your channel popularity, and you, monetary gains in the long run.

• Accent

If the speaker in the video is from a different region and is using an accent that you are not much comfortable with, you can turn on the subtitles and read the dialogs along with the video.

• Repurposing on Blogs

If you own a blog that you have embedded your video to, the transcription could be used to add text to it so the target audience can get a fair idea of what the video is all about. This is useful because many people prefer reading over watching.

YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

1. How to Transcribe YouTube Video to Text

Usually the transcription files have *.srt extension that are globally accepted and supported by almost all media players. However, there might be instances when you want to have the subtitles in plain text.

That said, to convert an SRT file to TXT, you can:

• Right-click the SRT file
• Go to Rename
• Replace srt with txt and press Enter
• Click OK on the confirmation box that appears next to convert SRT to TXT

After this, you can simply double-click the file, and read and modify the transcribed content as needed.

2. How to Edit and Upload Edited Transcript to YouTube

If you made any modifications to the transcript that was automatically generated by YouTube or any other third-party transcription tool, you can follow the steps given below to upload the new file to the YouTube video:

• Go to YouTube Studio and then to the Channel subtitles page as explained earlier

• Expand the Languages column of the target video

• Click the Options icon that appears under the Subtitles column when you hover mouse on to it

• Click Edit on Classic Studio

• On the next page, click Edit from the top-right corner

• Click to open the Actions drop-down list from the upper-left corner

• Click Upload a file

  • Follow the on-screen instructions from there to upload the modified transcription file
  • Click Save Changes from the top-right corner of the page when done

Conclusion

If you are looking for a quick and easy way of adding subtitles to your videos, letting YouTube transcribe for you could be a good approach. However, because these auto-generated transcriptions are created by machine learning algorithms, their accuracy cannot be counted on. Therefore, the best way to get the job done accurately is, let YouTube auto-transcribe your video, download the transcription file, make the necessary changes to it, and then upload the file back to the video.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

If you want to transcribe your videos to make the dialogs and speeches available in text format, you can use YouTube Transcribe feature that the streaming site offers for free. In this article, I’ll share with you a couple of methods to transcribe a YouTube video for free.

• Part 1: Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]
• Part 2: Transcribe YouTube Video to Text Online with Third-Party Service
• Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos
• Part 4: YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

Part 1: How to Transcribe YouTube Video Automatically for Free [2 Ways]

Besides the basic video editing features on the YouTube platform, you can now quickly transcribe YouTube videos to the text as well. The good thing is, you can either use the automatic transcription feature that YouTube offers, or upload it manually while adjusting the timing as you go further.

Below are the two methods to transcribe your YouTube videos for free:

Method 1: Use the Automated Transcription Service on YouTube

As the name suggests, YouTube automatic transcription service works automatically. This means you don’t even have to click the ‘Transcribe’ button anymore to transcribe a YouTube video, and the website takes care of it on its own. All you need to do is, choose English as the language of the video when setting up subtitles. You can follow the instructions given below to do so:

Step 1 Upload a Video

Sign in to your YouTube account, click your profile picture from the top-right corner, and click YouTube Studio from the menu. Next, click CREATE from the upper-right corner, click Upload videos from the menu, and drag and drop a video from your computer to the Upload videos box that appears next.

Step 2 Select Transcription Language

On the Details page of the next box that appears, scroll down and click MORE OPTIONS, and select English in the Video language drop-down list under the Language, subtitles, and closed captions (CC) section.

Step 3 Publish the Video

Follow the on-screen instructions from this point to publish the video, and wait while YouTube automatically transcribes and adds the close captions to it.

Note: Depending on the duration of the clip, the time YouTube would take to transcribe may vary.

After YouTube has transcribed the video, you can download the transcription file in your preferred format. The instructions are given below explain how you can do so:

1. Get to the Subtitles Window

While on the YouTube Studio page, click Subtitles from the left pane to go to the Channel subtitles page. And then click the video you want to modify.

1. Get to Classic Studio

In the video subtitle page of the target video, hover mouse on the Published Automatic status under the Subtitles column, click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) that appears, and click Edit on Classic Studio.

1. Download Transcription File

Click and open the Actions drop-down list from the top-left corner of the left pane, click your preferred transcription format including .vtt, .srt and .sbv from the list, and save the file on your local hard disk.

Method 2: Get YouTube Transcription when Watching

In addition, if you are watching any other video, you can make YouTube transcribe that for you as well. You can follow the instructions given below to get the YouTube video to text transcription:

Step 1: Play the Video

Go to the video on YouTube and start playing it. Make sure NOT to get to full-screen mode as doing so would hide the option to transcribe the clip.

Step 2: Enable Transcription

Click the More icon (with three horizontal dots) from under the bottom-right corner of the video player, and click Open transcript to see the video transcription in the Transcript pane that appears in the right.

Step 3: Manage Timestamps

Click the Options icon (with three vertical dots) from the top-right corner of the Transcript pane, and click Toggle timestamp to enable or disable the timestamps in the video transcription.

Limitations of Using YouTube Transcribe

Although YouTube’s automatic transcription is a decent feature that saves you a lot of time, since Google uses machine learning algorithms to convert the speech to text, the level of accuracy may vary depending on the accent of the speaker, and the clarity of the audio the video has. Also, even sometime you may not be satisfied with the end-results.

Alternatively, you can use Kapwing to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file with the below step-by-step instructions:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

You can follow the step-by-step instructions to transcribe a YouTube video and download the transcription file using Kapwing:

Step 1: Add YouTube Video

Copy the URL of YouTube video you want to transcribe, go to https://www.kapwing.com/subtitles , paste the URL in the Paste a URL field, wait while Kapwing fetches the content of the video, and opens the Add subtitles to Video page.

Step 2: Transcribe the Video

Click Auto-generate from the right window, and follow the on-screen instructions to transcribe YouTube video to text.

Step 3: Download the Transcription File

Click Download SRT from the left pane, and follow the instructions from there to download the transcription file in *.srt format.

Pros

• Kapwing is free to use
• The auto-transcription process is quick and less tedious
• Kapwing also allows manual transcription and uploading of an existing *.srt file

Cons

• The auto-transcribed text might lack accuracy as the task is done by the speech-to-text tools that work in the background

Part 3: Benefits of Transcribing YouTube Videos

You may need video transcriptions for several reasons, such as analyzing the summary of the entire speech in the video, extracting a single phrase or quote that was spoken in the clip, or making the video helpful even for those suffering from hearing impairment. When you transcribe a YouTube video, the transcript can be useful in many ways. Some of the most common benefits of transcribing a video include:

• Search Engine Optimization

When you add subtitles, the text can appear in Google search results when someone types a similar phrase in the search box. This helps get more views to your videos, thus giving your channel popularity, and you, monetary gains in the long run.

• Accent

If the speaker in the video is from a different region and is using an accent that you are not much comfortable with, you can turn on the subtitles and read the dialogs along with the video.

• Repurposing on Blogs

If you own a blog that you have embedded your video to, the transcription could be used to add text to it so the target audience can get a fair idea of what the video is all about. This is useful because many people prefer reading over watching.

YouTube Video Transcription FAQs

1. How to Transcribe YouTube Video to Text

Usually the transcription files have *.srt extension that are globally accepted and supported by almost all media players. However, there might be instances when you want to have the subtitles in plain text.

That said, to convert an SRT file to TXT, you can:

• Right-click the SRT file
• Go to Rename
• Replace srt with txt and press Enter
• Click OK on the confirmation box that appears next to convert SRT to TXT

After this, you can simply double-click the file, and read and modify the transcribed content as needed.

2. How to Edit and Upload Edited Transcript to YouTube

If you made any modifications to the transcript that was automatically generated by YouTube or any other third-party transcription tool, you can follow the steps given below to upload the new file to the YouTube video:

• Go to YouTube Studio and then to the Channel subtitles page as explained earlier

• Expand the Languages column of the target video

• Click the Options icon that appears under the Subtitles column when you hover mouse on to it

• Click Edit on Classic Studio

• On the next page, click Edit from the top-right corner

• Click to open the Actions drop-down list from the upper-left corner

• Click Upload a file

  • Follow the on-screen instructions from there to upload the modified transcription file
  • Click Save Changes from the top-right corner of the page when done

Conclusion

If you are looking for a quick and easy way of adding subtitles to your videos, letting YouTube transcribe for you could be a good approach. However, because these auto-generated transcriptions are created by machine learning algorithms, their accuracy cannot be counted on. Therefore, the best way to get the job done accurately is, let YouTube auto-transcribe your video, download the transcription file, make the necessary changes to it, and then upload the file back to the video.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

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