Extract Text From Video app icon Extract Text From Video

Extract Text From Video Online

Free, no sign-up, no upload. Open a video or image and copy every subtitle, slide, line of code, or caption on screen. The text recognition runs in your browser, so your file stays on your device.

Drop a video here

MP4, MOV, WebM. The first 60 seconds are scanned.

Your file never leaves your browser.

How to extract text from a video online

  1. Open your video. Drop a video file on the tool above, or choose one. It opens in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
  2. Select the text area (optional). Drag a box around the subtitles, slide, or code. Pick the language of the text and how often to sample a frame.
  3. Extract and copy. Press Extract text. Each new line appears with its timestamp; click a timestamp to jump to that moment, then copy one line, copy all, or download a .txt file.

For a single screenshot or photo, switch to the Image tab. You can also paste an image from the clipboard.

Reading on-screen text is not transcription

Many "video to text" tools transcribe the audio: they write down what people say. This tool does the opposite job. It uses OCR (optical character recognition) to read text that is visible in the picture: burned-in subtitles, lecture slides, code in a tutorial, captions in a TikTok, signs and labels. If the words you need were only spoken, you need a transcription tool. OCR vs transcription, explained.

Private by design

The page loads an open-source OCR engine (Tesseract) and the language data once, from a public CDN. After that, every frame is read on your own device. Your video or image is never sent to us or to anyone else. The Extract Text From Video apps for iPhone, iPad, and Mac also read text on your device and never upload your videos. See the privacy policy.

Frequently asked questions

Is my video uploaded to a server?
No. The video is opened and read inside your browser. The page downloads the OCR engine and language data, but your file is never sent anywhere. You can check this in your browser's network panel.
Does this tool transcribe speech to text?
No. It reads text that appears on screen, such as subtitles, slides, code, captions, and signs. It does not listen to the audio. Which one do you need?
Why does it only scan the first 60 seconds?
OCR in a browser is slow, especially on phones and older laptops, so the free online tool is a quick preview of the first minute. The Extract Text From Video apps scan full-length videos on your device and are faster and more accurate.
Which video formats work?
Any video your browser can play. MP4 (H.264) works everywhere. iPhone recordings are often HEVC .mov files, which play in Safari but not in every browser. If a video will not open, try Safari or convert it to MP4.
How do I get the most accurate results?
Drag a box around the text area, for example the subtitle strip, so only that region is read. Pick the language of the text, and use a shorter interval if the text changes quickly.
Can I export subtitles as an SRT file?
The online tool exports plain text (.txt). SRT subtitle export with timestamps is available in the Extract Text From Video app for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. See extracting hardcoded subtitles.