What Is an SRT File and How to Make One

An SRT is the most widely supported subtitle format: plain text with numbered, timestamped cues. Here is what is inside one and how to generate one from your media.

An SRT file (SubRip Subtitle) is a plain-text subtitle format made of numbered cues, each with a start and end timestamp and a line of text. It is the most widely supported caption format, readable by almost every video editor, player, and upload form. With LiteScribe you create one by transcribing your audio or video and exporting an SRT. Free to start.

Start free See Pricing

What is inside an SRT file

An SRT file is just text, which is why it is so universal. Each subtitle is a numbered block: a sequence number, a timing line, one or more lines of text, then a blank line before the next block. A timing line looks like 00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:04,500, meaning that cue starts one second in and ends at four and a half seconds. Note the comma before the milliseconds; that comma is a defining feature of SRT and is one of the things that distinguishes it from WebVTT, which uses a period.

A short SRT looks like this: a "1" on its own line, then "00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:04,500", then "Welcome to the show.", then a blank line, then "2", and so on. Because it is plain text, you can open an SRT in any text editor, read it, and even hand-edit a line if you need to. That simplicity is exactly why it became the default subtitle format almost everywhere.

Where SRT files are used

SRT is accepted by the broadest range of tools of any subtitle format. Video editors like Premiere, Final Cut, and DaVinci Resolve import SRT to add or burn in captions. Media players such as VLC load a matching .srt file that sits next to the video. Upload forms on video platforms and learning systems accept SRT for closed captions. When in doubt about which format a tool wants, SRT is the safe first choice, and you can convert it later if a specific tool needs WebVTT.

Because the format only carries timing and text, an SRT does not store fonts, colors, or positioning. That is a feature, not a flaw: it keeps the file portable and predictable. Styling, when you want it, is applied by the player or editor, not baked into the subtitle file.

How to make an SRT file with LiteScribe

You do not write an SRT by hand. With LiteScribe you transcribe your audio or video, and the transcript already carries the timestamps the SRT needs. Choosing "SRT" in the export menu writes a correctly formatted .srt file, with sequence numbers, comma-millisecond timings, and your edited text, ready to load anywhere. If you later need WebVTT, the free subtitle converter changes the SRT to VTT in your browser; if the captions are slightly off against the picture, the free timing shifter nudges every cue.

Why use LiteScribe for subtitles

Universal format

SRT is plain text accepted by nearly every editor, player, and upload form, so it is the safest first export.

Generated from your media

Transcribe audio or video and export a correctly formatted SRT; no hand-typing of timestamps required.

Easy to edit

Because it is plain text, you can open an SRT in any editor, or refine the text in LiteScribe before exporting.

Convert when needed

Turn your SRT into WebVTT or TXT with the free in-browser subtitle converter whenever a tool needs another format.

What Is an SRT File and How to Make One

1
Transcribe your media
Upload audio or video to LiteScribe, or paste a link, and it transcribes the speech into timed text with speaker labels in 100+ languages.
2
Edit the text
Correct any misheard names or terms in the editor and rename speakers so the captions read cleanly.
3
Export as SRT
Choose SRT in the export menu. LiteScribe writes a correctly formatted .srt with numbered cues and comma-millisecond timestamps.
4
Use or convert it
Load the SRT into your editor or player. Convert it to WebVTT or TXT with the free subtitle converter if a tool requires another format.

SRT out of the box, VTT in a click

LiteScribe generates subtitles by transcribing your media and exporting an SRT file, the most widely supported caption format, aligned to the speech. When you need WebVTT for a web player, run the exported SRT through the free in-browser subtitle converter to produce a valid VTT with no upload. If the captions sit slightly ahead of or behind the picture, the free timing shifter nudges every cue by a fixed offset. Transcribe once, then convert and retime for each destination.

Subtitle converter Timing shifter Export formats

FAQ