How to Add Captions to a Screen Recording on Mac

You can add captions to a screen recording in two ways: type them in a video editor, or let an app turn your speech into captions. QuickTime cannot add captions, so you need another app either way.

This guide shows the manual method with free tools, then shows how Quibble makes the captions for you when you stop recording.

Captions, subtitles and text: what is the difference?

People use these words loosely, so here is how this guide uses them.

• Captions are the words you speak, shown on screen as you say them. Most people mean this.
• Subtitles are usually a translation of the speech. In everyday use, people often say "subtitles" when they mean captions.
• Text on screen is a title or a label you place anywhere, such as "Click Settings".

Why add captions? Viewers often watch with the sound off, at work or on a phone. Captions also help viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing, and viewers who are not native speakers of your language.

Method 1: Type captions in a free editor (slow but free)

The built-in Mac tools record the screen but do not add captions. QuickTime and the Screenshot toolbar cannot add captions. Apple's free iMovie can add titles, which is good for short labels. For full captions you need an editor with a subtitle track, or you write a caption file.

The general steps are:

1. Record your screen with Shift-Command-5 or QuickTime.
2. Write down what you said. Play the video and type the words as you go.
3. Split the text into short lines. Keep each line to one idea, roughly one short sentence.
4. Open your editor and add each line at the right time.
5. Check the timing by playing the video. Fix any line that appears too early or too late.
6. Export the video.

For a two-minute video this can take longer than the recording itself. Timing is the slow part. That is why many people use a tool that does the speech-to-text for them.

Method 2: Use a tool that makes captions from your voice

Several apps turn speech into captions. They save you the typing. You still need to check the result, because speech tools often get names and product terms wrong.

Whichever tool you pick, ask these questions:

• Does it run on your Mac, or does it upload your video to a server?
• Does it support your language?
• Can you fix the words afterward?
• Can you change the font and color?
• Can you export a caption file (SRT) for another editor?

Method 3: Quibble (captions are ready when you stop)

In Quibble, you talk while you record. When you stop, the captions are already there.

1. Open Quibble and press ⌥⌘R to start recording.
2. Say what you are doing as you do it. For example: "Here is how to add a product."
3. Stop the recording. The video opens in the editor with captions.
4. Read through the captions and fix any wrong word.
5. Change the font and color to match your brand or your taste.
6. Press Done Editing to get a finished MP4.

Captions work in English and Korean. Quibble does the speech-to-text on your Mac, and it does not upload your recording.

Fixing wrong words

Names, brand terms and acronyms are the words speech tools most often get wrong. After you record, read the captions once from start to finish. It takes about as long as watching the video. Fix every word that is wrong. Without a license you can still edit captions and preview, so you can fix them before you decide to save anything.

Styling the captions

Good captions are easy to read. A few rules help:

• Use a clear font. Skip thin or decorative styles.
• Use a color with strong contrast against your video.
• Keep lines short. Two short lines are easier to read than one long block.
• Do not cover the thing you are pointing at.

Quibble has five built-in caption fonts and lets you style captions word by word, so you can make a key word stand out.

How to add text to a screen recording on Mac

If you want a label on screen, such as a step number or an arrow note, here are your options:

• iMovie: add a title and place it on the clip. Free, but basic.
• A video editor: most editors have a text tool for this.
• Highlights in Quibble: you can hold ⌘ while recording and move the mouse to draw a yellow highlight right into the video. A rough circle or box snaps into a clean shape. This points at things without any text.

For many tutorials, a highlight plus a spoken sentence does the job better than a text box. Viewers see where to look and hear why.

Send the captions to another editor

Sometimes you want to keep editing in CapCut. In Quibble, choose Send to CapCut. It makes a folder with your video and an SRT caption file. An SRT file is a plain text list of captions with start and end times. Most editors can import it.

Price and who this is for

Quibble costs $7.99 per month, $79 per year, or $129 once. You can record, edit captions and preview without a license. To save or export the finished video, you need one. There is a 14-day full refund on every plan, and one license covers one Mac.

Quibble works on Macs with Apple silicon only. It does not open on Intel-based Macs. It also does not translate captions into other languages, so it does not do subtitle translation.

Frequently asked questions

Does QuickTime add captions to a screen recording?

No. QuickTime can show captions that are already in a movie, but it cannot create or add them. Add captions in another app.

How do I add subtitles to a video for free on Mac?

Type them in a free editor, or write an SRT file by hand. It is free but slow. A tool that transcribes your voice saves time.

Can I edit the captions if the speech tool gets a word wrong?

Yes. In Quibble you can edit captions after recording, and you can do this without a license.

Do I have to upload my video to get captions?

Not with Quibble. It transcribes on your Mac and does not upload your recording.

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