How to add subtitles to any video on Android, offline
Most subtitle generators upload your video to a server. VX Player writes subtitles on the phone itself with an on-device speech model, so it works on private videos, on a plane and on slow internet.
How to do it with VX Player
- Open the video in VX Player.
- Tap Subtitles → “Watch in (your language)” for one-tap subtitles in your language, or Generate subtitles to pick the spoken language yourself.
- Not sure what language it is? VX Player listens to a short sample and detects the spoken language first (more reliable since version 1.6.0, when the Whisper speech pack is on the phone).
- Subtitles start from where you are watching and keep ahead of playback; you can keep watching while they are made.
- Optional: translate them on the phone and show both languages, or save the video (or a clip) with the subtitles burned into the picture.
- Have a whole series? Use “Subtitles for all videos” to make them in one go.
At a glance
| Spoken languages | 27: English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Turkish, Arabic, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Thai, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Kannada and Malayalam |
|---|---|
| Language detection | Automatic, on the phone; you can always pick the language yourself |
| Internet | Only to download a speech model once (44–240 MB depending on the language); after that it works offline |
| Translation | On the phone, into many languages, with both lines shown at once |
| Upload | None — the video stays on your phone |
| Share | Save a clip or the whole video with subtitles burned into the picture |
| Price | Free |
Questions
How do I add subtitles to a video on Android for free?
Install VX Player, open the video and tap Subtitles → Generate subtitles. It makes subtitles on the phone, free, without uploading the video.
Does VLC for Android make AI subtitles?
VLC has shown an offline AI subtitle feature planned for VLC 4. VX Player already makes and translates subtitles on Android phones today.
How long does it take?
Subtitles appear within seconds from where you are watching and stay ahead of playback on most phones.
Does it detect the language automatically?
Yes. Before writing subtitles, VX Player listens to a sample and works out the spoken language, so a Spanish video on a Hindi phone gets Spanish → Hindi subtitles. If it guesses wrong, pick the language in the Generate subtitles sheet.
Are the subtitles perfect?
No speech model is. Clear speech comes out well; heavy music, noise or several people talking at once cause mistakes. You can sync the timing with one tap and load a proper subtitle file (SRT) when you have one.
Can deaf or hard-of-hearing people use it?
Yes. Any video with speech can get captions on the phone, including your own recordings and videos without subtitles.