How to Add Text and Captions to a Video

Most video is watched on mute. In a feed, on a commute, in an office — viewers scroll past unless something on screen grabs them, and sound-off means your message has to be *visible*. Adding text to a video puts titles, captions, and callouts on screen so it communicates without audio. This guide explains why on-screen text matters so much now, and how to add it so it actually gets read.

Why on-screen text is essential

The single biggest shift in video is that a large share of views happen with the sound off. A talking-head clip with no captions is silent noise to a muted scroller. On-screen text — a hook in the first second, captions for speech, a title — is what stops the scroll and carries the meaning. It also makes video accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers and to anyone in a noisy or quiet environment.

How to add text to a video with this tool

1. Open the Add Text to Video tool.
2. Load your video.
3. Add your text, set font, size, color, and position, and choose when it appears.
4. Apply and download.

Everything runs in your browser, so your footage is never uploaded.

Making text readable over moving footage

Video is harder than a still image — the background moves and changes color under your text. To keep it legible throughout:

• Add a background or outline. A semi-transparent bar or a bold stroke keeps text readable no matter what passes behind it. Plain text over live footage disappears the moment the background matches its color.
• Keep it big and brief. A few large words beat a sentence in small type. Viewers give each caption a second or two.
• Place it in the safe zone. Keep text away from the very edges, where platform interface elements (buttons, captions, usernames) often overlap it.
• Time it to the speech or action so captions match what is happening.

Types of on-screen text

• A hook title in the opening seconds to stop the scroll.
• Captions of what is being said, for muted viewing and accessibility.
• Callouts pointing to something on screen.
• A closing call to action.

Related tools

Trim to the right length first with Trim Video, and reframe for vertical feeds with Crop Video before placing text in the new frame. If you muted the original with Mute Video, captions become the primary way it communicates. For the still-image version, Add Text to Image.

Common uses

• Caption social videos for silent viewing.
• Add a hook title to boost watch time.
• Label what is on screen.
• Make video accessible.

Privacy and limits

Adding text is fully local — no upload, no file-size limit, nothing stored, offline once loaded. Open the Add Text to Video tool to caption your clip.