overcaption / offline subtitle generator
Generate subtitles offline. No upload, no watermark.
Overcaption is a free desktop app for macOS and Windows that transcribes, edits and translates subtitles entirely on your computer. Your video never leaves your disk, and nothing gets stamped on it.
Why generate subtitles offline
- No upload, no waiting in line. Online subtitle generators spend the first stretch of every job uploading your video. Overcaption reads the file from disk and starts transcribing immediately; a typical video is done in a few minutes or less.
- No file-size ceiling. Browser tools cap uploads or give out on long footage. A desktop app reads from disk, so an hour-long recording or a 4K file is not a special case.
- Private by default. Client footage, unreleased cuts and internal recordings stay on your machine. It works on a plane.
- Actually free. No per-minute credits, no monthly caps, no signup, no watermark. The core app is free with no time limit.
How it works
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01
Drop in a video
Drag the file onto the app. It stays on your disk.
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02
Transcribe on-device
Speech recognition runs on your own hardware, times every word and filters out junk lines.
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03
Fix and style
Edit text inline, retime on the waveform, catch reading-speed and line-length problems, pick a look, translate into 50+ languages with local models.
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04
Export
Save SRT, VTT or plain text, or burn the subtitles straight into the video.
Add subtitles to a video without uploading it
Some browser tools now advertise processing inside the tab, with no upload. That is a real improvement, but the tab is a ceiling: file-size limits, no real editor, and render quality depends on what a browser codec can do. Overcaption is a native app, so the editor is a real editor: waveform retiming, find and replace, quality checks for reading speed, line length and overlaps, and a styled preview on the actual video.
If all you need is the subtitle file, that is the whole job: transcribe, tidy, export SRT.
Auto-generate an SRT file, free
SRT and VTT export is included, with word-level timing behind it. Imports work too, so you can clean up a subtitle file you already have. Take the result to Premiere, Resolve, CapCut, YouTube or anywhere else.
What is free is the whole subtitling core: transcription, the editor, local translation, every export format and burn-in up to 1080p, with no time limit. Pro adds finishing extras like animated word-by-word captions, titles, video rough cut, 4K and batch processing at $99 a year or $19 a month, free to try for 14 days. The pricing page has the exact line.
FAQ
Does it really work offline?
Yes. Transcription, editing, translation and burn-in all run on your machine. The app goes online only to check for updates and to download models you ask for; two optional Pro cloud features are clearly labeled. Everything else works with the network unplugged.
Which languages does it support?
Coverage varies by language and capability, so there is a full per-language breakdown.
What does it run on?
Apple Silicon Macs and Windows 10/11.