Two places to look
Menus differ between makers and change with software updates, so exact button names cannot be given here. What stays fairly constant is the structure. Most devices offer subtitle controls in two places:
- In the app or player you are using, usually reached by tapping the screen or pressing a button during playback.
- In the device settings, usually under accessibility, captions or subtitles, where you set the default for everything.
If one place does not work, try the other. Some apps follow the device’s default, while others use only their own settings.
Turning subtitles on while watching
On many televisions and streaming devices, the quickest route is during playback:
- Start the program.
- Open the playback menu. This is often a speech-bubble icon, a gear, a button labeled with letters such as CC or SUB, or an options button on the remote.
- Choose the subtitle or caption track and pick a language, or choose off to turn text off.
Phones and tablets work in a similar way. Tap the video to show controls, then look for a speech-bubble icon, a gear, or a three-dot menu. In a web browser, the same icons usually appear in the controls bar of many web players.
Some programs list more than one option in a language, such as a standard version and a version that also describes sounds. If you see both, the second is generally meant for people who cannot hear the soundtrack. The names differ because of the distinction between captions versus subtitles, and the choice among subtitle tracks is often just a list of languages.
Setting a default
If you want text on all the time, look in the system settings of your device for accessibility or captions. Typical options include:
- A master switch to show captions or subtitles when available.
- Preferred language.
- A prompt to prefer the version that includes sound descriptions, where offered.
- Appearance options such as size, font and background. Size, color and background can be tuned until text is comfortable.
Televisions often also have an on-set setting for broadcast captions, separate from streaming apps. Cable and satellite boxes may have their own as well. That means you might need to set it in more than one place if you watch from several sources.
Common problems and checks
The option is missing
Not every program has text, and not every language is available for every title. Check the program’s details page, which often lists the languages offered. Live broadcasts may offer captions even when a recording does not, and the reverse can happen too.
Text is on but not showing
- Make sure the volume is not muted by a setting that blocks captions, as some devices handle muted playback specially.
- Check whether the program uses burned-in subtitles, which are always visible, or an image-based track, which may not follow your appearance settings.
- Try turning the subtitle track off and on again, or restart the app.
- Update the app and the device software, since bugs in older versions can cause missing text.
Wrong language
The app may choose a language from your account profile, your device language or the program’s original language. Selecting the track manually usually overrides this for the current program, though a remembered setting may or may not carry to the next one.
Out of sync or odd characters
If text appears too early or too late, switching to another track or restarting playback sometimes fixes it. Garbled letters can come from character encoding problems in external files, which affects mainly files loaded manually.
Subtitle files loaded separately
Some media players let you add an external file to a video you own. Those sidecar files must usually share the video’s name and sit in the same folder, though this varies by player. Check the player’s help pages for its exact method.
Other kinds of screens
- Computers: The player or browser controls the text, and some operating systems also have system-wide caption settings.
- Video calls and meetings: Captions in meeting software are usually switched on by the person using them, from a menu in the call. Details depend on the service and sometimes on the host’s permissions.
- Smart speakers and displays: Screens attached to speakers often follow their own accessibility settings.
- Game consoles: Many games have their own in-game subtitle menus, separate from the console settings, and these often include size and background options.
- Shared family devices: Profiles on some services store subtitle preferences separately, so a setting chosen by one person may not appear for another.
When automatic text is offered
Some devices and apps can generate text from speech automatically. This can be useful when no prepared subtitles exist, but the output may contain mistakes with names, accents or noisy scenes. For important content such as medical or legal information, do not rely on it alone, and ask for a checked version from the source.
A short habit worth building
Once you find the setting, take a moment to note where it lives on each device you use. Menus move around between updates, but the underlying locations rarely change much, so a quick search of the settings for the word subtitles or captions usually finds them again.