Accessibility

YouTube Transcript for Accessibility

For accessibility-minded publishers, the goal is to offer readable speech when captions are missing. Use the [YouTube transcript](/youtube-transcript) tool on a public link you are allowed to process, then shape the Whisper result for this accessibility job. Timestamps can stay visible or hidden; nothing returns a downloadable video file.

YouTube transcription

Paste a link. Get the words.

Paste a public YouTube URL and confirm rights. We pull captions when YouTube has them, or run Whisper on the soundtrack when it doesn’t — same paste-and-go flow as other transcript sites.

  • 100 languages, or automatic
  • Times you can hide
  • TXT, SRT, VTT, Markdown
  • Transcript pricing

The transcript shows up here

Times are on at first. Turn them off whenever you want, including after the transcript is ready, then copy.

What “offer readable speech when captions are missing” actually requires

Some viewers need text. A transcript of content you control helps reading and search.

Uploading captions to YouTube Studio is a separate step — this tool gives you text to edit first.

ASR errors can harm accessibility if unpublished unchecked.

Unlike a generic file upload, this path starts from a YouTube URL aimed at accessibility-minded publishers. That is useful when the only artifact you hold is the watch link, but it also means refusals for playlists, private uploads, age gates and live events still apply.

Expect to edit: Whisper drafts the speech so you can offer readable speech when captions are missing, yet names, numbers and jargon still need a human pass. If you already have an MP4 on disk, video to text may be simpler than re-hosting on YouTube first.

How to run the accessibility workflow

  1. Open YouTube Transcript for Accessibility intent: drop the public YouTube URL that matches this accessibility use case into the tool above.
  2. Decide whether accessibility needs a fixed spoken language or auto-detect for this recording.
  3. Tick rights specifically for this accessibility source — ownership or permission, not “it was public.”
  4. Confirm rights, upload the soundtrack (yt-dlp on your computer or the one-shot helper), then start Whisper; credits follow ordinary transcript pricing.
  5. When text appears, tune timestamps for offer readable speech when captions are missing, then copy only the spans this workflow needs.
  6. Continue in your editor, notes app or LMS; return to YouTube transcript if you need another permitted link.

Example

Caption draft

A channel owner pastes their video, cleans the transcript, then builds Studio captions from the corrected text.

Practical tips for accessibility

  • Have a human review before publishing captions.
  • Describe non-speech sounds yourself if needed.
  • For accessibility, favour recordings where the main voice sits above music — ASR quality tracks the mix.
  • If accessibility work fails on a private or live URL, wait for a public finished upload or use a file on video to text.
  • Keep a local note of the video id beside every accessibility paste for provenance.

Boundaries for accessibility

  • YouTube Transcript for Accessibility still accepts only one finished public video URL — never a playlist shelf or channel home.
  • Clips over two hours are out of range for accessibility; split in Studio or export parts to video to text.
  • The accessibility output is speech recognition text, not a dump of YouTube’s existing caption track.
  • Instagram, TikTok and Vimeo links are unsupported here; accessibility is YouTube-only.
  • mydubly will not give you the media file after a accessibility run — only the words.

Using the tool on this page

  • Paste one public YouTube video link (not a playlist or channel). Confirm you have the right to transcribe it before you start.
  • Whisper recognises speech in about 100 languages, or detects the language automatically. Videos can be up to 2 hours.
  • You get text you can show with timestamps or as plain copy. The soundtrack is used only to make the transcript, then deleted within 30 minutes — mydubly does not hand you the video or audio file.
  • Pricing matches other transcripts: 1 credit per minute (0.1¢), minimum 5 credits per file. More detail is on the YouTube transcript generator page.

Frequently asked questions

Replace YouTube auto-captions automatically?

No — you edit and upload.

Does the accessibility flow download the MP4 for me?

No. Soundtrack audio is used for recognition, then removed; you keep text only.

How are credits counted for accessibility?

Per started minute of media at the transcript rate, with the usual five-minute minimum.

Can accessibility open a live premiere?

No. Wait until the premiere ends and a normal public watch link exists.

Where do rights rules for accessibility live?

Confirm on the form, then read acceptable use and the rights guide.