srt-translator

SRT Translator

Translate subtitles while preserving timing and formatting.

Supported Formats

Format	Extension	Description
SubRip	.srt	Most common, numbered entries
WebVTT	.vtt	Web standard, supports styling
Plain Text	.txt	Transcript without timing

SRT Format Reference

1
00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:04,000
This is the first subtitle line.

2
00:00:04,500 --> 00:00:08,000
This is the second subtitle line.
It can have multiple lines.

3
00:00:08,500 --> 00:00:12,000
And so on...

Translation Guidelines

Preserve Structure

ORIGINAL (English):
1
00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:08,500
Welcome to my channel!

TRANSLATED (Spanish):
1
00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:08,500
¡Bienvenidos a mi canal!

✅ Same timing, same number
✅ Natural translation (not word-for-word)
✅ Appropriate punctuation for target language

Handle Line Length

PROBLEM: Translation is longer than original
SOLUTION: Split or abbreviate while keeping meaning

ORIGINAL:
1
00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:13,000
Click the subscribe button

GERMAN (longer):
1
00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:13,000
Klickt auf den
Abonnieren-Button

✅ Split into two lines if needed
✅ Keep within ~42 characters per line
✅ Maintain readability

Cultural Adaptation

DON'T just translate - LOCALIZE:

Original: "That costs about 20 bucks"
Spanish (Latin America): "Eso cuesta unos 20 dólares"
Spanish (Spain): "Eso cuesta unos 20 euros"

Original: "Super Bowl Sunday"
French: "Le dimanche du Super Bowl" (keep cultural reference)
Chinese: "超级碗周日" (may need explanation)

Translation Output Format

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
SUBTITLE TRANSLATION
Source Language: [Language]
Target Language: [Language]
Total Entries: [X]
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

TRANSLATION NOTES:
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
• [Any cultural adaptations made]
• [Technical terms kept/translated]
• [Idioms adapted]

TRANSLATED SRT:
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,500
[Translated text]

2
00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:07,500
[Translated text]

[Continue for all entries...]

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
COPY-PASTE READY FILE:
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
[Clean SRT output without notes]

How to Use

Full SRT Translation

Translate this SRT file to [Language]:

[Paste SRT content]

Batch Translation Request

Translate to multiple languages:
Languages: Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Chinese

[Paste SRT content]

With Context

Translate this gaming video subtitle to Korean:
- Game: [Game name]
- Tone: [Casual/Professional]
- Technical terms: [Keep English / Translate]

[Paste SRT content]

From Transcript to SRT

Convert this transcript to SRT format, then translate to [Language]:

[00:00] Hello everyone, welcome to the video.
[00:05] Today we're going to talk about...

Translation Tips by Language

Spanish (ES/LATAM)

• Use ustedes (LATAM) vs vosotros (Spain)
• "Click" = "Haz clic" / "Da clic"
• Keep brand names in English
• Informal tone often preferred for YouTube

French (FR/CA)

• Tu (informal) vs Vous (formal) - YouTube usually tu
• "Subscribe" = "Abonnez-vous" / "Abonne-toi"
• Quebec French has unique expressions
• Keep anglicisms when commonly used

German (DE)

• Du (informal) vs Sie (formal) - Du common on YouTube
• Compound words can be very long - may need line breaks
• "Daumen hoch" = Thumbs up
• Technical terms often kept in English

Japanese (JA)

• Casual (だ/である) vs Polite (です/ます)
• YouTube content usually casual-polite mix
• Keep brand names in katakana or English
• Consider vertical text for some contexts

Chinese (ZH-CN/ZH-TW)

• Simplified (CN) vs Traditional (TW)
• No spaces between words
• "Subscribe" = 订阅 (CN) / 訂閱 (TW)
• May need shorter text (faster reading)

Korean (KO)

• Honorific levels matter (해요체 common for YouTube)
• "Subscribe" = 구독
• Mixing English is common and accepted
• Konglish terms often preferred

Portuguese (PT-BR/PT-PT)

• Brazilian vs European Portuguese differ significantly
• "Você" vs "Tu" usage varies
• "Subscribe" = "Se inscreva" (BR) / "Subscreva" (PT)
• Brazilian audience is larger on YouTube

Arabic (AR)

• Right-to-left text
• Modern Standard vs Colloquial
• Numbers may need adjustment
• Consider dialect for specific regions

Hindi (HI)

• Devanagari script
• English mixing (Hinglish) is common
• Formal vs informal forms
• Regional language considerations

Quality Checklist

Before finalizing translation:

• Timing unchanged from original
• Line numbers sequential and correct
• No missing entries
• Line length readable (≤42 chars)
• Natural language (not robotic)
• Cultural references adapted
• Technical terms consistent
• Punctuation correct for target language
• Character encoding correct (UTF-8)
• Format valid (SRT/VTT structure)

Common Issues & Solutions

Issue	Cause	Solution
Text overflow	Translation longer than original	Split lines, use abbreviations
Timing mismatch	Reading speed different	Adjust text length, not timing
Encoding errors	Wrong character set	Save as UTF-8 with BOM
Broken format	Extra line breaks	Validate SRT structure
Awkward phrasing	Literal translation	Localize for natural speech

Multi-Language Workflow

EFFICIENT BATCH PROCESS:

1. Get original transcript/SRT
2. Identify top languages for your audience:
   - Check YouTube Analytics for viewer locations
   - Common targets: ES, PT-BR, FR, DE, JA, KO, ZH

3. Translation priority order:
   Tier 1: Spanish, Portuguese (largest non-EN audiences)
   Tier 2: French, German (strong markets)
   Tier 3: Japanese, Korean (dedicated fandoms)
   Tier 4: Chinese, Hindi (massive populations)

4. Upload workflow:
   - YouTube: Add via Studio > Subtitles
   - Filename: videoname.[lang].srt (e.g., video.es.srt)

Integration with YouTube

Upload Subtitles

YouTube Studio > Video > Subtitles > Add Language

File types accepted:
- .srt (SubRip)
- .sbv (YouTube format)
- .vtt (WebVTT)
- .sub (SubViewer)

Naming convention:
videoname.en.srt (English)
videoname.es.srt (Spanish)
videoname.ja.srt (Japanese)

Auto-Translate Warning

⚠️ YouTube's auto-translate is poor quality.
   Always provide human-quality translations for top languages.

Priority: Upload translated subtitles for your top 3-5 viewer countries.