← Back to YouTube Subtitles
What this does
Most YouTube videos have subtitles, either typed by the uploader or generated automatically. This extension grabs them and saves them as a file, one click from the toolbar.
Handy when you want the words without watching: to skim a long talk, quote it, search it, or paste it into an AI to summarize. Everything runs inside your browser; nothing is uploaded anywhere.
Installing it
Open youtubesubtitles.dirtsimple.app. It shows the right button for your browser.
- Firefox: click Add to Firefox. Firefox says it prevented the site from asking you to install software; that is normal for add-ons outside Mozilla's store. Click Continue to Installation, then Add.
- Chrome, Edge or Brave: click Add to Chrome, which opens the Chrome Web Store, then Add extension.
- Optional: click the puzzle-piece icon in the toolbar and pin YouTube Subtitles so its button is always visible.
Using it
- Open the video on YouTube.
- Click the YouTube Subtitles button. A tab opens with the link and file name already filled in, and the subtitles are fetched straight away.
- Click Download SRT or Download Text. Files go to your normal downloads folder.
SRT or Text?
- SRT keeps a timestamp on every line. Video editors and players understand it, so use it for subtitles or to find the exact moment something was said.
- Text has no timestamps, just the words, one sentence per line where the captions have punctuation. Best for reading, quoting, or AI.
Your privacy
The extension asks YouTube for the captions directly from your computer and saves the file to your own downloads folder. Nothing about what you fetch is sent to us, and there is no account. This site only hosts the extension file and records your name and email when you first sign up.
Common questions
It says no subtitles were found.
The video has no captions. Some uploaders turn them off, and very new videos may not have automatic ones yet. Try again later, or pick another video.
Why is there no punctuation?
Auto-generated captions often have none. The text version then comes out as one long paragraph. Pasting it into an AI and asking it to add punctuation works well.
Which language do I get?
English when the video has it, preferring captions the uploader typed over auto-generated ones. Otherwise the first language the video offers.
Can it download the video or audio too?
No. YouTube now blocks that for anything but its own apps, so this extension sticks to subtitles, which always work.
Does it work on private videos?
No. Only public and unlisted videos.