How to add subtitles to TikTok videos
Most TikToks are watched without sound, so captions keep people watching. There are three ways to add them, depending on how much control you want.
Quickest: TikTok's own captions
While editing a video in the TikTok app, open the Captions option from the side toolbar. TikTok writes captions from the audio; check every line before posting, because names and slang are often wrong.
Most control: burn subtitles into the video
Make subtitles with the TikTok subtitle generator, correct the words, then use Add subtitles to video to download a copy of your video with the captions on it. Upload that video to TikTok.
In an editor: CapCut
CapCut Desktop and CapCut on the web can import an SRT file: in Desktop, go to Captions and add your file; on the web, open the Captions tab and upload it. Style the captions, export the video and upload it. The CapCut phone app can't import subtitle files directly.
Make captions easy to read
Keep lines short, around 20 to 28 characters, and keep text above the bottom of the screen, where TikTok's buttons and description sit.
Reuse them
The same video with burned-in captions works on Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.