Premiere Pro how-to
How to add captions in Premiere Pro (auto-transcribe in 4 steps)
Short answer
Premiere creates captions from a transcript. Switch to Window > Workspaces > Captions and Graphics, make sure the media is transcribed (turn on Automatic Transcription when importing to save time), then choose Captions > Create captions from transcript. In the dialog set the caption preset, maximum length, duration, gap and one or two lines, and click Create captions; they land on a caption track aligned to the speech.
Checked against: Adobe Premiere (formerly Premiere Pro), 2026 releases, Windows and Mac.
Step by step: Speech to text
Transcribe on import
When creating the project and importing media, select Automatic Transcription so a transcript is ready immediately.
Open the captions workspace
Switch to the workspace built for captions.
WindowWorkspacesCaptions and Graphics
Create captions
Choose Captions > Create captions from transcript.
CaptionsCreate captions from transcript
Set the options
Choose a Caption preset (Subtitle default suits most videos), Format, Style, the length in characters, duration of each caption, the gap between captions, and single or double lines. Then click Create captions.
Fix words and style
Correct names and terms in the Text panel, then style the caption track (font, size, background) so it stays readable on a phone.
Caption settings that read well on short-form video
| Setting | Value | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lines | 1 | Leaves room for the platform caption and buttons |
| Max characters | about 32 | Fits a 1080 px wide frame at a readable size |
| Position | Middle to lower-middle third | Bottom third is covered on TikTok, Reels and Shorts |
If it doesn't work
| What you see | Fix |
|---|---|
| Create captions is greyed out | Transcribe the sequence first (Text panel > Transcript > Transcribe sequence). |
| Captions don't show in the export | Choose to burn captions into the video in the export settings, or export a sidecar file. |
| Wrong language recognised | Set the language before transcribing and transcribe again. |
| Captions hidden behind app buttons | Move the caption track up; keep it above the bottom third of the frame. |
Questions people ask
Does Premiere Pro have auto captions?
Yes. It transcribes speech and then creates captions from the transcript with Captions > Create captions from transcript.
Is Premiere's transcription free?
Speech to Text is included with a Premiere subscription.
Should I burn in captions for TikTok and Reels?
Burned-in captions show for everyone, including people with sound off. Keep them away from the bottom third, where the app's own caption sits.
More Premiere Pro guides
Sources and how we checked
- Adobe Help: Create captions (checked 2026-10-05; Adobe blocks automated readers; text read from the Internet Archive copy of 1 Oct 2026)
Reviewed October 5, 2026 by the Koldflux team. Each step is compared with Premiere Pro's own documentation (linked above) and with the top search results for this task; where they disagree, the maker's documentation wins. Steps without a source link follow the menu names that several current guides agree on.