How to Switch On Captions on TikTok

Captions are a powerful tool for making your TikTok videos more accessible, engaging, and discoverable. Whether you want to help viewers who watch without sound or simply make your content clearer, adding captions is a must.

The TikTok app provides multiple options for adding video captions to your videos. Those options include auto captions that automatically transcribe speech; text you type in yourself; and third party tools that offer even more customization. Learning how to use these features effectively will help you reach a larger audience, improve your SEO and watch time, and ensure that your amazing TikTok content is accessible to everyone.

Why Are TikTok Captions Important?

They Make Your Content More Accessible

Captions are a positive content tool that make your TikTok videos accessible to a wider audience, including viewers who may be deaf or hard of hearing. Without captions, many of these users may struggle to understand or engage with your content.

But accessibility isn’t limited to those with hearing impairments. Many TikTok app users watch videos without sound in noisy environments (such as public transportation) or quiet spaces (like offices and libraries.) By including TikTok captions in your videos, you’re enabling your clips to reach as many people as possible, regardless of where or how they watch.

They Help Boost Engagement 

As anyone who’s browsed it can attest, TikTok is a very fast-paced platform! Users often scroll quickly through content, so if your videos don’t grab their attention immediately, users may scroll right on by. Auto captions help prevent this by keeping viewers engaged, even if they’re watching on mute.

Captions can also add a fun interactive element to your TikTok videos. Many creators use captions creatively - you can bold key phrases, animate text, zoom your captions in and out of frame, or even add humor with well-timed subtitles. Eye-catching, interesting video captions have so much potential for making your TikTok content more dynamic, which in turn can keep users watching longer, increasing your watch time and engagement.

They Improve Your SEO 

Captions improve your TikTok engagement - and can also boost your discoverability. TikTok’s search function and Google indexing rely on text-based signals, so by including TikTok captions, your video is more likely to show up in search results for relevant keywords.

They Increase Your Audience Reach

Additionally, captions help non-native speakers follow along, especially if your TikTok video includes fast speech, slang, or complex terms, Captions can make it easier for international audiences to understand, which allows your content to better reach out to a global audience, again giving you more opportunities for higher engagement and more followers.

They Help Viewers Better Understand Your Content

Outside of language or hearing impairment issues, sometimes TikTok audio just isn’t clear enough due to background noise or strong accents. Accurate subtitles ensure that your audience fully understands your messages, which can be especially important for educational or informational videos. 

For example, if you’re teaching a skill, captions can reinforce key instructions, helping viewers follow along without replaying the video multiple times. Similarly, if your video includes multiple speakers, captions help clarify who’s talking, making the conversation easier to follow.

3 Easy Ways to Add Captions on TikTok 

The TikTok app offers multiple ways to add captions and text to your videos. Whether you prefer using TikTok's built-in features like autocaptioning, adding text on your own, or utilizing third party tools, you have several options to make your TikTok video content more accessible and creative.

1. Using TikTok’s Auto Captions Feature

TikTok’s auto captions feature is the easiest and quickest way to add captions to your videos. The auto captions feature automatically transcribes your speech and generates captions in real time, and the captions can be easily edited if you choose.

Record or Upload Your Video

• Open the TikTok app and tap the + icon to start a new video.
• You can record a new video, or upload an existing one

Enable Auto-Captions

• Once on the editing screen, tap the Captions option.
• TikTok will automatically transcribe your spoken audio, generating captions for you.

Edit and Style Your Captions

• Review your automatic captions and correct any errors.
• You can also adjust font size, style, and screen placement for the best readability.

Post Your Video

• Tap Next, finalize your settings, and publish your TikTok video.
• Now, viewers will see captions on your video!

2. Adding TikTok Captions Yourself

If the TikTok auto captions feature doesn’t work as expected, or if you simply prefer more control over the text, you can add captions using TikTok’s text tool. This option gives you the freedom to add personalized subtitles to your video, making it an ideal choice for creators who want a more custom experience.

Access the Text Feature

• After recording or uploading your TikTok video, tap the Text (Aa) icon.

Type Out Your TikTok Captions

• Enter the subtitles you want to display, keeping sentences short and easy to read.

Adjust Timing and Placement

• Drag the text to place it where it won’t obstruct your visuals.
• Use the Set Duration feature to time captions alongside the spoken dialogue.

Post Your Video

• After reviewing your TikTok captions, tap Next and publish your video.

3. Adding Captions with Third Party Software

For creators looking for advanced or creative captioning options, third-party software like CapCut or Descript offer additional features, customization, and professional grade captions. These tools are especially useful if you want to create more polished or artistic captions and text that go beyond the basics offered by TikTok.

Choose a Captioning Tool

• Choose a third party captioning tool that suits your needs. CapCut is especially popular for editing and captioning videos directly on your phone or on desktop.
• Install the app or software of your chosen tool and create a new project.

Auto Generate or Add Captions

• Use the tool’s automatic captions feature or type your own captions 

Customize Captions 

• Adjust fonts, text styles and colors for better visibility.
• Do any creative editing you’d like, adding font types, colors, or animating the text.

Export and Upload to TikTok

• Save your TikTok video with embedded captions, and upload it to the TikTok app.
• At this point, you can also link back to your TikTok on your socials and other platforms to help promote your clips; for instance, if you have a Fourthwall shop, you can directly connect that shop to both your TikTok feed and TikTok Shop!

Best Practices for Using Captions on TikTok

Keep Captions Concise and Readable

TikTok moves extremely quickly, so keep your captions short and to the point, as long captions can overwhelm viewers, making them less effective. Break up long sentences into multiple short lines, and ensure that all text appears at a comfortable reading speed.

Use a Readable Font and Color Contrast

If your TikTok captions blend into the video, viewers may struggle to read them. Choose clear, highly readable fonts and font colors that stand out from the background. High contrast combinations, such as white text on a dark background or black text on a light background, work best.

Use Captions for Creativity

You can also use text and captions to enhance the storytelling in your TikTok videos! 

Try using bold text for emphasis; different font sizes or colors on different words to add drama; shadows underneath text to make it stand out more; or animated captions to match up with expressions, emotions, location or vibe.

Place Captions in a Visible but Unobtrusive Area

Avoid placing your TikTok captions over important visuals or TikTok icons (like the bottom text or the like/comment/share buttons). The best positions for subtitles are centered well above the bottom navigation icons, or slightly below the top of the video.

Review Captions for Accuracy

Auto captions on TikTok aren’t perfect, so always check for mistakes; double checking your own written captions is also a good idea. Incorrect subtitles can confuse viewers and reduce engagement, so spend a few extra minutes checking your TikTok captions before posting, in case you need to do any editing.

Pro Tip: What to Do If You Spot Caption Errors After Posting

Unfortunately, TikTok does not allow direct editing of captions after you post your clip. If you notice incorrect auto captions or typos, the best solution is to quickly delete the video, adjust the captions, and reupload your clip. If re-uploading isn’t an option because your video has already started getting views, consider pinning a comment with the correct transcript, or adding an overlay text box in a follow-up video to provide clarification.

Monetize Your TikTok Content with Fourthwall!

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Fourthwall lets you turn your TikTok fans into customers by offering them great custom merchandise, exclusive memberships, behind the scenes content, and so much more. With easy to use tools and plenty of customization options to fit your brand, you can turn your TikToks into income. Join Fourthwall today and start monetizing your TikTok audience!

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