Clioos › Guides › SRT Translation
How to Translate SRT Files
If you already have subtitles, you do not need transcription — you need translation that leaves timing alone. An SRT-only job with Subtitle Translator translates cue text and returns cue numbers and timestamps unchanged, as SRT or VTT. Billing follows the subtitles themselves: the end time of the last cue, rounded up, minimum 1 minute. The free tier is 10 minutes per email (one-time), and the same proofreading rule applies: machine output is a draft until a human checks it.
At a glance
- SRT-only jobs skip the transcription step entirely — no audio is processed, only the cue text is translated.
- Cue numbers and timestamps return unchanged; only cue text changes. That is the property to verify on every output.
- SRT/VTT uploads cap at 2 MB per file; max 60 minutes of subtitle duration per job.
- Billing: by the end time of the last cue, rounded up, minimum 1 minute. A file whose last cue ends at 11 seconds bills as 1 minute.
- Download SRT or VTT. Files are deleted within 1 hour, so save the result immediately.
- Machine translation only — no accuracy guarantee, no platform-approval promise, and CJK languages show as Coming soon per the methodology page.
Steps
- Check your SRT before uploading: it should be UTF-8 text with numbered cues, one timestamp line per cue (for example 00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:04,000), and a blank line between cues. Fix broken numbering or missing timestamps first — translation cannot repair a malformed file.
- Open https://clioos.com/subtitle-translator/ and upload the .srt or .vtt file (up to 2 MB, max 60 minutes of subtitle duration). Enter your email for the free 10 minutes if you have not used them; no forced account signup is required.
- Pick source and target languages and run the job. SRT-only jobs skip ASR transcription; the translator works cue by cue and must return each cue's index, start, and end identical to the input.
- Preview side by side and verify the structure before reading the words: same cue count, same timestamps, no merged or split cues. Then proofread the text — names, numbers, and idioms first.
- Download .srt or .vtt and save it immediately. Source and result files are deleted within 1 hour after the job completes or fails, so there is no later re-download.
Why SRT-only is a different job from video translation
Translating a video means two uncertain steps: hearing the speech correctly, then rendering it in another language. Translating an SRT file removes the first uncertainty. The timing is already decided by a human or an earlier pass, the cue breaks are already chosen, and the only thing that changes is the text inside each cue. That makes verification simple: if the timestamps moved, something went wrong; if they did not, the remaining question is purely whether the words are right.
The service enforces this structurally. Its methodology page states cue numbers and timestamps are returned unchanged and only cue text is translated, and its translation path re-asks once if a returned payload breaks that rule, failing safely rather than shipping shifted timing. For subtitle work, that structural guarantee matters more than any fluency claim.
Worked example (tested 2 November 2026)
Test method, disclosed honestly: this run used the service's own code on the server — its SRT parser, its machine-translation route, and its SRT writer — on a 3-cue English sample, translating English to Spanish. It was not clicked through the online tool UI, and no account or payment was involved. The no-code version of the same job is the subtitle-file input on https://clioos.com/subtitle-translator/ . The live tool's default translation route is a hosted LLM (the route run here is the service's no-key backup machine-translation route), so live wording may differ; the timing preservation and billing rule below are what this test verifies.
| Stage | Result |
|---|---|
| Input | 3 cues parsed from SRT; cue 1: 00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:04,000; cue 2: 00:00:04,500 --> 00:00:08,000; cue 3: 00:00:08,500 --> 00:00:11,000 |
| Translation time | 0.97 seconds for all 3 cues (provider: google-web-translate, the service's backup MT route) |
| Output | Same 3 cue numbers, same 3 timestamp lines, text replaced: “Hola, bienvenido a la demostración.” / “Esta es una breve prueba de subtítulos.” / “Por favor revise cada línea antes de publicar.” |
| Round-trip check | Re-writing the translated cues as SRT reproduces the original timing block-for-block; only the text lines differ |
| Billing on this sample | 1 minute: last cue ends at 11 seconds, rounded up, minimum 1 minute |
Note what this test does not show: it does not show how the translator handles long cues, multi-line cues, formatting tags, or a 60-minute file. Test those on your own material, on the free 10 minutes, before buying a pack.
What it can't do
- It cannot fix a broken SRT: missing timestamps, unnumbered cues, or garbled encoding must be repaired before upload. Translation preserves structure; it does not invent it.
- It cannot promise translation quality: no accuracy percentage, no platform-approval promise, and no claim that output is publication-ready without proofreading.
- It cannot re-time your subtitles: if the original timing is wrong (a cue that runs too long for its text), translation returns the same wrong timing. Fix timing in a subtitle editor first.
- File caps apply: SRT/VTT up to 2 MB, max 60 minutes of subtitle duration per job. Split longer files into separate jobs.
- CJK languages are Coming soon: per the methodology page, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean options appear as “Coming soon” until the CJK switch is turned on after quality probes.
- Files disappear within 1 hour: there is no later re-download. Save the translated SRT/VTT as soon as the job finishes.
Before you publish checklist
- Cue count matches the original, and every timestamp line is identical to the original.
- Encoding is UTF-8 so accented and non-Latin characters survive in your editor and uploader.
- Names, numbers, dates, and brand terms checked against the source — these are where machine translation fails most visibly.
- Each translated cue still fits its time window when read aloud; a correct translation that is too long to read is still a bad subtitle.
- A final spot-check in the actual player (not just the preview), because players differ in how they wrap and display cues.
Frequently asked questions
Does translating an SRT change its timing?
No. Cue numbers and timestamps return unchanged; only cue text is translated. If timing moved, treat the output as faulty and re-run it.
How is an SRT job billed?
By the end time of the last cue, rounded up, minimum 1 minute. Media jobs bill by audio duration instead.
What size SRT can I upload?
SRT/VTT files up to 2 MB, with max 60 minutes of subtitle duration per job.
Can I get the result as VTT instead of SRT?
Yes. Preview the cues side by side, then download .srt or .vtt.
Do I still need to proofread an SRT translation?
Yes. Machine translation can mistranslate names, idioms, and numbers. The tool makes no accuracy promise, so a human pass comes before publishing.
Related guides: How to translate subtitles · Subtitle Translator tool · Subtitle Translator methodology · All guides · Tool: PDF Probe