How to Add Captions on TikTok: 3 Workable Methods to Use

3 Efficient Methods to Add Captions on TikTok [Step-by-Step]

• Why You Should Add Captions to Your TikTok Videos
• How to Add Captions on TikTok via Auto-caption Feature
• Simple Steps to Add Captions Manually
• How to Add Captions to TikTok Videos Automatically with High Accuracy
• FAQs About Adding Captions to TikTok Videos

Why You Should Add Captions to Your TikTok Videos

Before jumping into this post’s three workable and effective ways to add captions to TikTok videos, you can first explore the reasons why you should add captions to a TikTok video. Captions can make a big difference for your TikTok videos. Many people scroll through TikTok with the sound off, whether they are at work, on public transport, or just in a quiet place. If your video has no captions, they might skip it before understanding what it is about.

Here are a few reasons why captions are important:

• Reach more viewers – Captions let people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or watching without sound enjoy your videos.
• Keep viewers engaged – When people can read along, they are more likely to watch until the end, which helps your video get noticed by TikTok.
• Make your message clear – Fast-moving videos can be hard to follow. In that case, captions make sure your key points or jokes are not missed.

How to Add Captions on TikTok via Auto-caption Feature

The first method that you can use to add subtitles to TikTok is through its auto-caption feature. This method is one of the fastest and easiest techniques you can use since the feature is built right into TikTok. It uses speech recognition technology to automatically convert or transcribe a video’s audio into text. Then, that transcript will be displayed as captions or subtitles on the screen. 

However, they don’t always get everything right. Sometimes words are missed, phrases are misunderstood, or the text gets a bit jumbled, especially if there’s background noise, music, or a strong accent. That’s why it’s a good idea to double-check and fix your captions before sharing your video. If you still want to try this one, here are the steps on how to add captions on TikTok through the auto-caption feature:

Here’s how to do it:

• Head to your TikTok app. Then, upload the TikTok video you want to add captions to by tapping the “Plus” icon, then the “Gallery” icon, and selecting the video. You can also record a video immediately if you haven’t prepared one yet.

• Next, select the “Caption” option with the “caption” icon on the right-hand side of the app. Then, wait for the app to finish the caption generation process.

• Once done, the app will automatically preview the generated captions for you, which you can then translate, modify the appearance (Style), change the format (Format), remove unnecessary words (Remove filler words), and more.

• Once satisfied, tap the “X” icon next to “Edit captions” to save your changes. Then, tap the “Arrow” icon in the upper-right corner, set the following post parameters, and hit “Post”. And that’s it!

Otherwise, if you are a viewer within the TikTok app, you can just enable the captions feature while watching a video. However, not every video will have captions available. Captions only appear if the creator has turned on auto-captions for that video, so you might still see some videos without them. So, how do you add captions to TikTok videos by enabling the caption feature? Here are the steps you need to follow: 

Here’s how to do it:

• Head to your profile by tapping the “Profile” button in the lower-right corner of the TikTok app. Then, tap the “Menu” button with the three-horizontal-lines icon in the upper-right corner.

• Next, select the “Settings and privacy” option, scroll down, and tap “Accessibility”. Then, toggle on the “Captions” option to display captions in your app language when available.

Simple Steps to Add Captions Manually

If the auto-caption generation feature on TikTok doesn’t work well for you, especially in terms of accuracy, this post recommends another method: adding captions to TikTok videos manually. This method is a great option if the TikTok video you want to add captions to is short—less than 1 minute. Why? Manually adding captions to a long video definitely takes a lot of time. Despite that, since this one is manual, you can be assured that your captions are accurate and well-written. 

Here’s how to do it:

• Record or import the video you wish to add captions to by tapping the “Plus” icon. Then, tap the “Add Text” button with the “Aa” icon on the right-hand side.

• Next, manually type your caption based on the speech in your video. To edit its duration, tap the caption and select “Set duration”. Then, you can set the duration of the caption’s appearance based on the speech.

• Once done, tap “Next” and set the post parameters. And that’s it! Those are the simple steps on how to add captions on TikTok manually.

How to Add Captions to TikTok Videos Automatically with High Accuracy

There you have it! Those are the two default ways you can add subtitles to TikTok videos automatically and manually. Now, if you are looking for a solution that will surely provide you with accurate captions and a quick caption generation process, then you need to use RecCloud’s Free AI Subtitle Generator Online. This web-based tool is powered by AI technology that is trained to catch every word, even in challenging audio. As a result, you can definitely acquire highly accurate captions with precise timestamps and duration. Aside from that, this tool also offers options to tweak the appearance of the captions and lets you translate them into 100+ languages without compromising the original message. Want to learn how to add captions on TikTok using this tool? Here are the steps you need to follow:

Here’s how you can use it:

• Prepare the TikTok video file you wish to add captions to. Then, access RecCloud’s Free AI Subtitle Generator Online website and import the video by clicking the “Browse” button or dragging and dropping it directly into the tool’s interface.

• Next, click “Generate Now” to start the caption generation. Once done, the tool will automatically preview the caption with the exact duration. If you want to edit its appearance, click the “Style” tab and use the following options to edit the caption’s look.

• Once you are satisfied with the generated captions, click “Export”, select “Export video”, and click “Video (MP4)” to save the TikTok video with the embedded captions.

FAQs About Adding Captions to TikTok Videos

1. Can I add captions on TikTok after uploading?

Unfortunately, you cannot directly add or edit captions on a TikTok video after it’s posted. The common workaround you can do is to delete the original post and re-upload it with the added captions.

2. Do captions affect TikTok video performance?

Absolutely! Adding captions can really boost engagement since people can follow along even with the sound off. Plus, TikTok’s algorithm loves content that keeps viewers watching, so captions can help your videos reach more people.

3. Will all TikTok videos show captions automatically for viewers?

Not always. Captions only show up if the creator has turned on auto-captions or added them manually. Viewers can also choose to turn captions on or off, but if the video doesn’t have any, nothing will appear.

Conclusion

If you want more people to watch and enjoy your videos, learning how to add captions on TikTok is a must. Captions make your content easier to follow for viewers watching without sound, as well as for those with hearing difficulties. You can use TikTok’s auto-caption feature, add text manually, or try a tool like RecCloud for highly accurate subtitles. No matter which method you choose, captions help your videos reach a wider audience, keep viewers engaged, and make your message clear from start to finish.