Shift Subtitles
Make subtitles match the video again: move them by a few seconds, or fix the ones that slowly drift out of sync.
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Shift Subtitles in 3 steps
- Select the SRT or VTT subtitle file.
- Type how many seconds to move it (a minus sign for earlier), or set the right time of the first and last line.
- Click Shift subtitles and download the file, with the same name, ready to load next to the video.
Delay, drift and frame rate: three different problems
If every line comes the same amount too early or too late, the fix is a constant shift: find the first spoken line, see how far off its subtitle is and type that number. 2.5 makes the subtitles appear two and a half seconds later, -2.5 earlier. Players such as VLC can shift subtitles while you watch, but only until you close them; here the corrected file is saved, so it works on every player, TV and upload.
If the subtitles start right and slowly fall behind, or race ahead, they were made for a version with another frame rate or another cut. Subtitles timed for a 25 fps (PAL) release run 4% fast against a 23.976 fps video: about a minute off after 25 minutes. Pick the frame rate change, or type the correct time of the first and last line and every line in between is stretched to match. Only the times change: text, line breaks, italics, positions and the original encoding stay exactly as they were.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know how many seconds to shift?
Play the video and pause when the first line is spoken. Compare that moment with the time of the first subtitle, which the page shows once you choose the file. If the line is spoken at 0:51 but the subtitle is set for 0:53, type -2.
My subtitles start in sync but get worse over time. Why?
That is drift, not delay: the subtitles were timed for a version with a different frame rate (25 fps against 23.976 fps is the usual case) or with an extra scene. Choose the drift option and type the right time of the first and last line, or choose the frame rate change; every line in between is corrected in proportion.
Does it work with WebVTT files?
Yes. A VTT file keeps its header, notes, styles and cue settings, and the word-by-word timings inside lines (karaoke style, as in YouTube captions) are moved too.
Will accents or other alphabets break?
No. Only the digits of the times are rewritten, so a file saved in an old encoding (Windows-1252, Cyrillic, Greek, Arabic…) comes back byte for byte as it was, and players read it exactly as before.
What happens to lines that end up before 0:00?
Lines pushed entirely before the start of the video are removed, and the numbers of an SRT are renumbered from 1. A line that only starts before 0:00 now starts at 0:00.
Are my subtitles uploaded?
No. The subtitles are read and converted by your browser on your own device and never sent to a server.
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Part of: Video tools