Subtitle Converter
Convert SRT to VTT (and back) and shift subtitle timing by any offset.
About this converter
Paste or drop an .srt or .vtt file, choose the output format, and optionally shift every timestamp by a number of seconds (negative for earlier). Copy or download. Nothing uploaded.
SRT, VTT and the sync problem
The two formats are near-identical cousins: SRT (from the SubRip tool, 1990s) numbers each cue and writes 00:00:01,000 with a comma; WebVTT (the web standard used by the HTML video element, YouTube and most players since) starts with a WEBVTT header, drops the numbers and uses a dot. Converting is mostly punctuation — which is why hand-editing goes wrong on line 300. The shift control solves the more common pain: subtitles that run a couple of seconds early or late because they were timed against a different cut of the video. Enter the offset once and every cue moves together, clamped so nothing goes below zero. Styling tags pass through as text; VTT positioning cues, rare in practice, are dropped rather than mangled. Transcribe fresh audio first? Extract the soundtrack, then slow it down for typing; the word counter measures what you wrote.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between SRT and VTT?
VTT adds a WEBVTT header, uses a dot instead of a comma in timestamps, and has no cue numbers. Players and download sites use SRT; the web and YouTube want VTT.
My subtitles are 3 seconds early — how do I fix them?
Enter +3 in the shift box: every timestamp moves 3 seconds later. Use a negative number if they're late.
Will formatting tags survive?
Basic tags (italics, bold) pass through as text. VTT positioning settings are dropped — honestly, rather than converted wrongly into SRT which can't hold them.
Is the file uploaded?
No — conversion and shifting run in the page. Drop the file or paste its text; download the result.