Add subtitles to videos

All videos must have subtitles for the deaf and the hard of hearing. In subtitles for the deaf and the hard of hearing, the spoken text and important sounds must be included. Important sounds are, for example, a doorbell or an explosion. Music can also be important to understand the video or the atmosphere of the video.

Good subtitles:

  • contain all spoken text.
  • describe all the important sounds.
  • describe who is speaking if this is not immediately clear.
  • emphasize the speaker’s volume if it is important.
  • are clearly visible.
  • match the sound as much as possible.
  • do not cover any other information.

The spoken text may be simplified to keep the subtitles from being too long.

There are several ways to add subtitles: embedded in the video (open captions) or added as a separate subtitle file to the video (closed captions).

How to add subtitles on the major video platforms: