How to See a YouTube Transcript on iPhone and Android

Most YouTube viewing happens on phones, but the transcript feature is easy to miss in the mobile app and it does not let you copy the text. This guide shows where to find the transcript on iPhone and Android, and how to copy or download the full text from your phone in under a minute.

Find the transcript in the YouTube app

1. Open the video in the YouTube app.
2. Tap the video title or the description area below it to expand it.
3. Scroll down to the Transcript section and tap Show transcript.
4. The transcript opens below the player. Tap any line to jump to that moment.

The steps are the same on iPhone, iPad and Android. If you do not see a Transcript section, the video may have no captions, or YouTube may not offer the panel for it. This is common on Shorts and very new uploads. See YouTube transcript not showing for all the reasons.

The limits of the app

• You cannot select or copy the transcript text.
• There is no search, so finding a quote in a long video means scrolling.
• You cannot download the transcript or switch to a clean, paragraph view.

Copy or download the transcript on your phone

1. In the YouTube app, tap Share → Copy link.
2. Open your browser (Safari, Chrome or any other) and go to our YouTube Video Transcript Generator.
3. Tap Paste in the input box, or long-press and paste. The transcript loads straight away.
4. Tap Copy to copy everything, or tap the copy icon next to a single line.
5. To keep a file, tap Download and choose Text, Subtitles or Web captions.

The video plays above the transcript, and the current line is highlighted as it plays, so you can read along on a small screen.

Tip: add the site to your home screen. In Safari tap Share → Add to Home Screen; in Chrome tap the ⋮ menu → Add to Home screen. Next time it opens like an app.

Where downloaded files go

• iPhone: the Files app, in Downloads (on iCloud Drive or On My iPhone).
• Android: the Files or My Files app, in the Download folder.

You can open a TXT file in Google Docs, Word or Notes. To turn it into a PDF, see how to save a YouTube transcript as PDF or Word.

Read transcripts comfortably on a small screen

• Switch to Paragraphs for fewer, longer blocks of text.
• Turn off Timestamps if you only want to read.
• Use your browser’s text size setting (the aA button in Safari) to make the text larger.
• Rotate to landscape if you want a bigger video while you read.

Turn on captions while you watch

If you just want words on screen as you watch, tap the player, then the CC button, or the gear icon → Captions. To have captions on for every video, open your YouTube app settings and look for Captions.

Frequently Asked Questions