🎬 YouTube Transcript Extractor
Paste any YouTube link and get the full transcript with timestamps. Free, no sign-up.
Looking for a quick way to get the text from any YouTube video? This free YouTube transcript extractor pulls captions from any video that has them — whether manually uploaded or auto-generated by YouTube. No sign-up, no limits, no ads.
Researchers use it to quote video sources. Students grab lecture transcripts for notes. Content creators repurpose their own videos into blog posts and social threads. Podcasters extract interviews for show notes.
How it works
- Paste any YouTube link into the box above —
youtube.com/watch?v=...,youtu.be/..., or even just the raw 11-character video ID - Click “Get Transcript” — the tool fetches caption tracks via Cloudflare’s edge network
- Read, copy, or export the full transcript with timestamps
The tool works on any video with captions enabled — including auto-generated captions available on the vast majority of English YouTube videos.
Export options
| Format | What you get | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Copy Text | Plain text, no timestamps | Pasting into a document or notes app |
| Copy with Timestamps | Timestamp + text per line | Citing specific parts of a video |
| Export SRT | Subtitle format | Importing into a video editor like Descript or Premiere |
| Export Markdown | Timestamps as headings | Note-taking in Obsidian, Notion, or Markdown editors |
| Export TXT | Timestamped plain text file | Archiving or processing with other tools |
Who needs a YouTube transcript extractor?
Students & researchers — Grab lecture transcripts, interview quotes, or conference talk text without rewatching. Click any timestamped line to jump-reference it later.
Content creators — Repurpose your own YouTube videos into blog posts, Twitter threads, or newsletter content. Paste the transcript into Claude or ChatGPT to generate summaries, social copy, or SEO-optimized articles.
Podcasters & video editors — Export transcripts as SRT files and import them directly into editing software for subtitle overlays. Combine with Descript for AI-powered editing.
Non-native speakers — Read along with the transcript while watching to improve comprehension. Translate segments with any online translator.
Marketers & SEO writers — Mine competitor videos for topic ideas, quotes, and structure. Transcripts reveal exactly what keywords and questions a video targets.
Related tools on AI Tools Solo
If you work with video and audio content, these tools pair well with a transcript extractor:
- Descript — AI-powered video/audio editor that also generates transcripts and lets you edit by deleting text
- Captions — Add AI-generated captions to your videos for social media
- Otter.ai — Real-time meeting transcription and note-taking
- VEED — Online video editor with automatic subtitles
- Submagic — AI-powered short-form video captions for TikTok, Reels, and Shorts
- Opus Clip — Clip and repurpose long videos into shorts with AI
FAQ
Q: Does every YouTube video have a transcript available?
No. Only videos with captions enabled — either manually uploaded by the creator or auto-generated by YouTube. Most English-language videos with clear audio have auto-generated captions, but some older or music-only videos may not.
Q: Is this tool free?
Yes, completely free. No sign-up, no API keys, no usage limits. You can extract as many transcripts as you want.
Q: What languages are supported?
Any language that YouTube provides captions for. The tool detects the available caption tracks and returns the best match for your preferred language (English by default).
Q: Can I download the transcript as a subtitle file?
Yes. Click Export SRT to download a standard .srt subtitle file compatible with Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro, and most video editors. You can also export as Markdown or plain text.
Q: How accurate are the transcripts?
Auto-generated captions (marked as “English (auto-generated)”) are typically 80–95% accurate depending on audio quality, accent, and background noise. Manually uploaded captions are 100% accurate. For critical work, verify against the original audio.
Q: What’s the difference between “Copy Text” and “Copy with Timestamps”?
Copy Text gives you just the spoken words — useful for getting the gist or pasting into a summary tool. Copy with Timestamps includes the time code before each line (e.g., 1:23 This is what was said) — useful for citing specific moments in the video.
Q: Can I use the transcript for commercial purposes?
Yes. The transcript text itself is not copyrighted (it’s a factual rendering of spoken content). Use it for research, content creation, subtitling, or any other purpose.
Free tool to extract transcripts from any YouTube video with timestamps. Copy, export SRT, Markdown, or TXT.
Key features
- Timestamped transcripts
- Copy with or without timestamps
- Export SRT, Markdown, TXT
- Works on any video with captions
Best for
- Researchers
- Content creators
- Students
Pros
- Free and fast
- Multiple export formats
- No sign-up required
Cons
- Requires video to have captions enabled
- ASR captions may have errors
Pricing: Free
AIToolsSolo Score — YouTube Transcript Extractor
5.0/5
A transparent composite of our hands-on rating (70% weight) and the verified evidence this entry carries (30%: depth of features/pros/cons, last_verified recency, pricing clarity, and pros/cons balance). Only signal actually on the page counts — nothing is auto-inflated.
- Editorial rating: 4.5/5
- Evidence depth: 2.0/2
- Freshness: 1.0/1
- Pricing clarity: 0.3/0.5
- Pros/cons balance: 0.5/0.5
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