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How to Translate Subtitles
Subtitle Translator turns spoken audio or an existing subtitle file into translated SRT/VTT captions. The free tier is 10 minutes per email (one-time); after that you buy one-off minute packs that never expire — $12.99 for 120 minutes, $19.99 for 300 minutes, $29.99 for 600 minutes — with no monthly subscription. One rule runs through everything: AI transcription and translation can mishear names, drop words, or mistranslate, so always proofread before you publish.
At a glance
- Two inputs: a media file (audio/video) or an existing .srt/.vtt file. Media jobs transcribe first, then translate; SRT-only jobs skip transcription.
- Free 10 minutes per email, one-time. Email is required for free minutes; there is no forced account signup.
- Paid minute packs never expire: $12.99 for 120 minutes, $19.99 for 300 minutes, $29.99 for 600 minutes — one-time, no subscription.
- Billed per minute, rounded up, minimum 1 minute. Pure SRT jobs bill by the end time of the last cue, not by file size.
- Limits per job: max 60 minutes, media up to 200 MB, SRT/VTT up to 2 MB. Source and result files are deleted within 1 hour.
- No accuracy or platform-approval promise. Translation runs via a hosted LLM or third-party machine translation services; the output is a draft until a human checks it.
Steps
- Open https://clioos.com/subtitle-translator/ . Enter your email for the free 10 minutes (one-time per email). No forced account signup is required.
- Upload your file: media (audio/video, up to 200 MB) or an existing .srt/.vtt (up to 2 MB). Max 60 minutes per job. Pick the source and target languages from the menus.
- Run the job. A media job transcribes with a configurable ASR backend and then translates; an SRT-only job translates the cues directly. Cue numbers and timestamps come back unchanged — only cue text is translated.
- Preview the cues side by side, proofread every line (names, numbers, and jokes first), then download .srt or .vtt. Source and result files are deleted within 1 hour after the job completes or fails.
- If you run out of free minutes, buy a one-off pack ($12.99 for 120 minutes, $19.99 for 300 minutes, $29.99 for 600 minutes). Packs never expire and there is no subscription to cancel.
What the tool does (and does not do)
Subtitle Translator has two tabs with one shared translation step. The media tab transcribes speech to text with timestamps (a configurable ASR backend — local Whisper or a hosted ASR service) and then translates. The subtitle-file tab skips transcription entirely and translates the cues you already have. Either way, the output is a translated .srt or .vtt file you can drop into an editor or uploader.
What it does not do matters just as much. It does not promise accuracy percentages, platform approval (YouTube or otherwise), “better than human” quality, or publication-ready output without proofreading. The tool page and methodology page say this plainly, and this guide repeats it: the output is a draft, and a human reads it before it goes anywhere.
Worked example (tested 2 November 2026)
Test method, disclosed honestly: this run used the service's own code on the server — its SRT parser plus its machine-translation route — 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 online tool at 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 from the wording below — the structure, timing behaviour, and billing rule are what this test verifies.
| Stage | Result |
|---|---|
| Input | 3 cues, English, last cue ends 00:00:11,000 |
| Translation time | 0.97 seconds for all 3 cues (provider: google-web-translate, the service's backup MT route) |
| Output cue 1 | 00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:04,000 — Hola, bienvenido a la demostración. |
| Output cue 2 | 00:00:04,500 --> 00:00:08,000 — Esta es una breve prueba de subtítulos. |
| Output cue 3 | 00:00:08,500 --> 00:00:11,000 — Por favor revise cada línea antes de publicar. |
| Timing check | All cue numbers and timestamps identical to the input; only cue text changed |
| Billing on this sample | 1 minute: SRT jobs bill by the end time of the last cue (11 seconds), rounded up, minimum 1 minute |
The takeaway is structural, not a quality claim: translation replaced text and left timing alone, and an 11-second subtitle file bills as 1 minute, not as a fraction. Judge translation quality on your own material — and proofread it.
What it can't do
- No accuracy guarantee: AI output can mishear names, drop words, or mistranslate. There is no accuracy percentage to quote, and no platform-approval promise.
- Not publication-ready by itself: the methodology page states translation is not publication-ready without proofreading. Budget a human pass for anything public.
- Chinese, Japanese, and Korean are Coming soon: per the methodology page, CJK options appear as “Coming soon” until the CJK switch is turned on after quality probes. Check the language menus on the tool page before planning a CJK job.
- Size and length caps: max 60 minutes per job; media up to 200 MB; SRT/VTT up to 2 MB. Longer material must be split into separate jobs.
- Files disappear within 1 hour: source and result files are deleted within 1 hour after the job completes or fails. They are not stored for later re-download, not used for training, and not human-reviewed.
- No human translation service: this is machine translation plus ASR, not a translator-for-hire service. If a job needs certified or broadcast-grade accuracy, hire a human translator.
Free vs paid, honestly compared
- Free tier: 10 minutes per email, one-time. Enough to test one short clip or a short SRT file end to end.
- Minute packs (one-off, never expire): $12.99 for 120 minutes, $19.99 for 300 minutes, $29.99 for 600 minutes. No subscription, so an occasional user does not pay for idle months.
- Transcription plus translation is a single charge: a media job bills once by audio duration; it is not charged twice for the two steps.
- Unused minutes follow the refund policy: see the refund page linked from the tool page before buying a large pack.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a subscription?
No. Free 10 minutes per email (one-time), then one-off minute packs that never expire: $12.99 for 120 minutes, $19.99 for 300 minutes, $29.99 for 600 minutes.
Do I need an account?
Email is required for free minutes, but there is no forced account signup.
How is a pure SRT job billed?
By subtitle duration — the end time of the last cue — rounded up, minimum 1 minute. An 11-second SRT file bills as 1 minute.
Does the tool guarantee accuracy?
No. There is no accuracy or platform-approval promise. Proofread every file before publishing.
What happens to my files?
They are uploaded and processed on the servers, then deleted within 1 hour after the job completes or fails. They are not used for training and not human-reviewed.
Related guides: How to translate SRT files · Subtitle Translator tool · Subtitle Translator methodology · All guides · Tool: PDF Probe