Free YouTube tool
YouTube Transcript Generator
Generate clean, timestamped caption text from a supported YouTube URL. Free, with nothing to install.
Free · No sign-up · Requires retrievable captions
Generate a transcript from a URL, not a file upload
Most transcript generators want you to download the video first and upload a file. This one takes the URL directly and asks JumpWatch's service to retrieve the caption track YouTube already has. Timing varies with caption availability and upstream conditions.
The output is plain, timestamped text — no watermarks, no partial previews, and no paywall in the middle of a long transcript.
URL in, text out
No downloading the video, no uploading a file, no waiting in a processing queue.
Nothing to install
Your browser sends the URL to JumpWatch's service, which requests and formats the caption data. No desktop software, account, or extension is needed for the transcript itself.
Complete, not truncated
You get the whole transcript, not a teaser cut off at the point where the tool asks you to upgrade.
How to generate a YouTube transcript
- 1
Paste the YouTube URL
Copy the link to a supported public YouTube video and paste it into the field above.
- 2
Generate
Press the button. The tool reads the video's caption track and formats it into a readable transcript.
- 3
Copy or keep reading
Copy the text straight into your notes, or use the timestamps to jump back into the video.
Common uses
Creators
Mine podcasts and interviews for quotes, scripts, and references, or repurpose your own videos into blog posts and show notes.
Students
Turn a long lecture into text you can search, quote, and revise from without scrubbing the video for one definition.
Accessibility
Produce a readable text version of a video for anyone who cannot or would rather not watch it with audio.
Translators
Start from the source transcript rather than transcribing by ear, then translate from clean, timestamped text.
Transcript generator FAQ
Is this YouTube transcript generator free?
Yes. The public transcript tool is free, requires no account, and is subject to rate and capacity limits. The extension is free to install; AI summaries and chat require sign-in and follow your account's plan limits.
Do I need to download the video first?
No media-file download or upload is required. Your browser sends the URL to JumpWatch's service, which requests the video's existing caption track and returns formatted text when available.
Can it generate a transcript for a video with no captions?
Not currently. The generator reads the video's caption track, so a video with neither creator captions nor auto-captions has nothing to read.
Do I need an account or an extension?
No account or extension is required for the public transcript tool, which is free and subject to rate and capacity limits. The JumpWatch Chrome extension is free to install; its AI summaries and chat require sign-in and follow your account's plan limits.
Keep the context
Take transcripts, summaries, and Ask onto YouTube.
Add the free extension for transcript search and assistant handoffs. Premium adds server-powered Brief and Ask on the video page.
Add to Chrome — FreeOr browse recent transcripts.