# Add captions to video, with your Mark moving behind it [Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/video-timeline-and-captions) A lot of social video is watched with the sound off, so the words on screen carry the message. Here is how to build a captioned video on a timeline, from the first clip to the exported file, without leaving your brand behind. ## The short version - In Gradiently, the Timeline holds video, audio and caption tracks on top of a design, with the Mark and every design element still editable. - You can write captions one by one with Add caption, or import an existing SRT or WebVTT file of up to 2,000 cues. - Captions can sit at the top or bottom of the frame, with their own text size, text colour and background colour. - Music and voiceovers are audio tracks: import MP3, M4A, WAV or Ogg files of up to 25 MB, then set volume, fades and timing. - The timeline, captions and music are part of Pro video editing, and finished videos export as MP4 or WebM up to 1080p. To **add captions to video** in Gradiently, open the **Timeline** on a design, import or record your clip, then choose **Add caption** and type what is being said at each moment. If you already have a subtitle file, choose **Import captions** and pick an SRT or WebVTT file instead. The captions sit on their own track, styled to read on your design, while the Mark keeps moving behind the whole frame. The timeline, captions and music are part of Pro video editing. ## What the timeline holds The timeline sits under the page and holds four kinds of track. Your Mark, your headline and any other design elements stay exactly as editable as they were before you added footage. | Track | What goes on it | What you can set | | --- | --- | --- | | **Video** | MP4 or WebM footage up to 100 MB, or a camera or screen recording | Start and end, source in and out, speed, volume, mute, loop, fades, split | | **Audio** | Music or a voiceover: MP3, M4A, WAV or Ogg up to 25 MB | Start and end, trim, volume, fades, loop | | **Element** | Words, shapes and pictures already on the page | When each one appears and disappears | | **Captions** | Timed lines of text, written or imported | Text, timing, position, size, colour, background | Media files can be up to an hour long. A design can be split into scenes of up to 60 seconds each, and the soundtrack carries on across them. ## How to add captions to a video 1. **Bring in the footage** Open **Timeline**, choose **Import media** and pick a video, or use **Record** to capture your camera or screen. [Recording in the browser](https://gradiently.design/guide/recording-camera-and-screen) covers the options. 2. **Trim before you caption** Cut the start and end and split out pauses first. Captions are timed to the edit, so trimming afterwards means retiming them. 3. **Add the first caption** Move the playhead to where someone starts speaking and choose **Add caption**. Type the words in **Caption text**, then drag its edges on the track so it starts and ends with the speech. 4. **Keep going, one phrase at a time** Add a caption for each short phrase. Two lines at most, ideally one, changing as the speaker reaches a natural pause. 5. **Style the track once** Under **Caption style**, choose the position, text size, text colour and background colour. The style applies to every line, so captions look consistent throughout. 6. **Play it through with the sound off** Watch the whole video muted. If you can follow it without sound, the captions are doing their job. ## Importing SRT and WebVTT caption files If your captions already exist, from a transcription service, a video platform or a colleague, import them rather than retyping. **Import captions** accepts SRT and WebVTT files with valid cue times and text, up to 2,000 cues and 500 KB of text. Both formats are plain text files that pair a time range with the words shown during it. ```text 1 00:00:00,500 --> 00:00:02,800 We roast every batch on Thursday. 2 00:00:03,000 --> 00:00:05,400 So the coffee you get is days old, not months. 3 00:00:05,800 --> 00:00:07,600 Order by Wednesday night. ``` An SRT file: a number, a time range with a comma before the milliseconds, then one or two lines of text and a blank line. ```text WEBVTT 00:00:00.500 --> 00:00:02.800 We roast every batch on Thursday. 00:00:03.000 --> 00:00:05.400 So the coffee you get is days old, not months. 00:00:05.800 --> 00:00:07.600 Order by Wednesday night. ``` The same captions as WebVTT: a WEBVTT header and a full stop before the milliseconds. MDN documents the full [WebVTT format](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/API/WebVTT_API). It works the other way too. **Download SRT** and **Download VTT** save the captions you wrote as a subtitle file, handy as a transcript or for platforms that accept one, such as YouTube. Bear in mind the exported video already has the captions drawn in, so a viewer who also switches on the platform's subtitles would see them twice. ## Caption styles that read on a moving background Captions sit on top of footage and a living Mark, so contrast changes from frame to frame. Big, plain and steady beats clever. The wider craft, including line length and timing, is in [video captions design](https://gradiently.design/guide/video-captions-design). ### Hard to read - Long lines that wrap to three rows - Small text sized for a desktop screen - A thin or script font - Captions at the very bottom of a Reel, under the app's buttons - A new style for every video ### Easy to read - Short phrases, one or two lines - Text sized for a phone held at arm's length - A sturdy sans, often your brand's body font - Captions placed clear of the platform's interface - One caption style kept across every video On a 1080×1920 story or Reel, the platform's buttons and caption cover the bottom of the frame, so **Top** or a raised bottom position is often safer; [social media safe zones](https://gradiently.design/guide/social-media-safe-zones) shows where the interface sits. A solid background colour behind captions helps on busy footage. On calm footage, plain light or dark text usually reads well on its own. A vertical video frame for a coffee roaster with a headline near the top and space for captions in the middle A vertical video for stories and Reels: title near the top, captions in the middle band, the Mark behind it all. The same coffee roaster video designed as a portrait feed post with the headline and captions on the gradient The same video as a 1080×1350 portrait post, where captions can sit lower because there is less interface on top. ## Adding music and a voiceover Music goes on an audio track. Import an MP3, M4A, WAV or Ogg file, drag it to where it should start and trim it to the video's length. Turn its **Volume** down under speech, and use **Fade in** and **Fade out** so it doesn't start or stop abruptly. A voiceover recorded with **Record › Voice** lands as its own audio track, so you can balance it against the music. > **Use music you are allowed to use** Importing a song into a design doesn't give you the right to publish it. Use tracks you have a licence for, or music the platform provides inside its own app. ## Exporting the captioned video Choose **Export**, then video. Captions are drawn into the frame, so they show on every platform, including those that ignore subtitle files. Videos save as MP4 or WebM, depending on what your browser can record, at up to 1080p; recording runs in real time, so a 40 second video takes about 40 seconds. [Exporting a video or GIF](https://gradiently.design/guide/export-video-gif) has the details, and [social video sizes](https://gradiently.design/guide/social-video-sizes) lists the frame for each platform. New to editing? [Video editing for beginners](https://gradiently.design/guide/timeline-video-editing) covers cutting and pacing. ## FAQ ### How do I add captions to a video? Open the Timeline in Gradiently, add your clip, then use Add caption for each phrase or Import captions to load an SRT or WebVTT file. Style the track and export the video with the captions burned in. ### What is the difference between SRT and WebVTT? Both pair time ranges with lines of text. SRT numbers each cue and uses a comma before milliseconds; WebVTT starts with a WEBVTT header and uses a full stop. ### Can I download the captions I write? Yes. Download SRT or Download VTT saves them as a subtitle file you can upload to platforms that accept one. ### Can I add music to a video in Gradiently? Yes, on an audio track. Import an MP3, M4A, WAV or Ogg file up to 25 MB, then set its timing, volume and fades. ### Are captions included in the exported video? Yes. Captions are drawn into the frame of the MP4 or WebM, so they show wherever the video plays, even with the sound off.