SBV to SRT converter YouTube captions your editing app can open.
To convert SBV to SRT, paste the contents of the .sbv file or drop in the file you downloaded from YouTube Studio, then click convert. We number every caption, swap the dot before the milliseconds for a comma and hand back a UTF-8 SRT that Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro and CapCut import.
Free, no sign-upSecond file
For example, the video name and the version up for approval.
This text has no timings. We will build subtitles from reading speed: each line or sentence becomes a block of up to 2 lines.
The JSON has a time for every word. We cut blocks of up to 2 lines of 42 characters, at sentence ends and pauses.
Subtitle report
- Subtitles
- Duration
- Words
- Average CPS
- Max CPS
- Flagged
| # | Time | Duration | Text | Characters per line | CPS | Flags |
|---|
How to convert SBV to SRT
- 01
Get the .sbv from YouTube
In YouTube Studio, open Subtitles, pick the language and download the captions as .sbv. Paste the text here or drop the file in.
- 02
Keep SRT as the output, clean up if needed
SRT is already selected. Optionally fix overlaps and strip sound tags like [Music] before you convert.
- 03
Download the SRT and check the report
The file comes out numbered and in UTF-8. The report lists the duration, characters per line and reading speed of each caption.
What is an SBV file, and why won't my editor open it?
SBV is the caption format behind YouTube's caption editor, a descendant of the old SubViewer format. It's plain text: each block has one timing line with the start and end separated by a comma, followed by the caption text. There's no numbering, no styling and no on-screen position.
The catch is that almost nothing outside YouTube reads .sbv. Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro and CapCut expect SRT, and so do most media players. The timings hold the same information, just written differently: a single-digit hour, a dot before the milliseconds and no arrow. Converting keeps the content identical and puts it in the format your editor understands.
SBV
0:00:04.300,0:00:06.100
Open your Bibles to John 3:16.
SRT
1
00:00:04,300 --> 00:00:06,100
Open your Bibles to John 3:16.What changes going from SBV to SRT
The conversion doesn't touch the words or the timing of any line. Only the way times are written changes, and the numbering SRT requires is added. SBV carries no formatting, so there's no italics or color to lose in this direction.
The >> markers YouTube captions use to show a new speaker stay in the text exactly as they came. If you don't want them on screen, delete them in the result before you download.
| In the SBV | In the SRT |
|---|---|
| No numbers | 1, 2, 3... in time order |
| 0:00:04.300 | 00:00:04,300 |
| start,end on one line | start --> end |
| Caption text | Kept, with the same line breaks |
| >> speaker markers | Kept as text |
| Any encoding | Always UTF-8 |
Where to use the SRT you get from an SBV
Once you have an SRT, the captions you already fixed on YouTube become raw material for cutdowns, other platforms and new versions of the video. The usual destinations:
- Premiere Pro: File > Import, then drag the SRT onto the sequence. It becomes an editable caption track.
- DaVinci Resolve: import it into the Media Pool and drag it to the timeline. A UTF-8 SRT keeps accented names intact.
- Final Cut Pro: File > Import > Captions. For on-frame titles, use the SRT to Final Cut tool.
- CapCut: import the SRT into the project to reuse text you already corrected on YouTube.
- VLC and smart TVs with USB playback: keep the SRT next to the video with the same file name.
Auto-generated YouTube captions: clean them before the edit
Automatic captions often come with sentences split mid-thought and tags like [Music] and [Applause]. Sometimes a block also ends after the next one has started. Turn on fix overlaps and remove sound descriptions before converting, and the file lands on your timeline already tidy.
After converting, the report flags every caption that's too fast to read (over 17 characters per second), has a line that's too long (over 42 characters) or flashes by too quickly. Filter to the problem captions and download the list as CSV to review it properly.
It works the other way too: pick SBV as the output to send a revised SRT back in the format YouTube's caption editor uses.
More than an SBV converter. Captions straight from your video.
See also
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert SBV to SRT?
Paste the .sbv contents or drop the file in, leave SRT as the output and click convert. We number every block, rewrite the times as 00:00:04,300 --> 00:00:06,100 and give you a UTF-8 file. The words and the timing of each line stay exactly the same.
What is an .sbv file?
It's YouTube's caption format, derived from SubViewer. Each block has one line with the start and end times separated by a comma and the text right below it, with no numbering or formatting. Any text editor opens it, but almost no video editor imports it.
Can Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve open SBV files?
Not directly. Both import SRT, not SBV. Convert it here, import the SRT and the captions become an editable track on your timeline. If you need the times snapped to your sequence's frames, run the file through the SRT to Premiere or SRT to DaVinci Resolve tool afterward.
Why do two captions show up at once in my editor?
That happens when a block ends after the next one has already started. YouTube hides it, but an editor shows both captions stacked. Turn on fix overlaps: each block is trimmed to end where the next begins, and blocks that start at the same instant are merged into one.
How do I remove [Music] and [Applause] from captions?
Turn on remove sound descriptions before converting. We delete anything in square brackets or parentheses, like [Music] and (laughs), plus lines that are only ♪. If a block ends up empty, it's dropped and the SRT is renumbered. The rest of the text stays as it was.
Can I convert SRT back to SBV?
Yes. Paste the SRT and choose SBV as the output. The times go back to 0:00:04.300,0:00:06.100, the numbers are removed and formatting such as italics is stripped, since SBV doesn't support it. YouTube also accepts SRT uploads, so you only need SBV when your workflow asks for it.
Skip the .sbv step. Get the SRT straight from the video.
Paste the YouTube link instead of downloading and converting captions. We transcribe the speech, label who is talking and deliver an SRT ready for your editor, plus captioned vertical clips.
See the result on your own recording before adding a card.