Ijharul Islam
To add an SRT to a Facebook video on a computer, open the post, click Options, then Edit post, click Edit, then Add captions, and next to Upload captions click Upload and pick your .srt file. Facebook's naming rule is filename.[language code]_[country code].srt, case sensitive, so US English is filename.en_US.srt. Pages can also auto-generate captions.
More on this topic: Subtitles and captions, every guide in one place.
Older guides disagree about the naming rule and the menus, so this page sticks to what Facebook's own Help Centre says today, covers profiles and Pages separately, and lists the SRT formatting problems that make Facebook reject a file.
The short answer
Desktop, existing video: Options > Edit post > Edit > Add captions > Upload captions > Upload, choose the .srt, Save. New Page video: Photo/video > Add photos/videos > Next > Closed captions, then auto-generate or upload an SRT. Name the file
filename.en_US.srt(lowercase language, uppercase country). Use UTF-8, timecodes like 00:00:01,500, numbering from 1, and nothing after the last block.
Key takeaways
- Facebook takes SubRip (.srt) files; the name must end in a language and country code, such as
.en_US.srt. - The codes are case sensitive: language lowercase, country uppercase, and only combinations on Facebook's list work.
- Pages can auto-generate captions instead of uploading a file; review them before you rely on them.
- Uploaded captions are closed captions that viewers can switch off. Burn them in if they must always show.
- Since September 2025 Facebook shares every video as a reel, so these steps cover reels too.
Disclosure: we make QuickVeed and show how to do this in it, along with other ways. Details about other products come from their public pages, checked in October 2026 and linked at the end.
How do you add an SRT file to a Facebook video?
You add an SRT file by editing the post on a computer and uploading the file under Add captions. These are the steps on Facebook's Help Centre page for adding captions to your own video:
- Post the video as usual (Photo/video, Add photos/videos, choose the file, Post).
- Wait for the notification that the video is ready to view.
- Find the post, click the Options menu at the top right and select Edit post.
- Click Edit in the composer, then Add captions.
- Next to Upload captions, click Upload and select your .srt file.
- Click Save. Repeat the caption steps for each extra language.
Checked on 26 October 2026 against Facebook's Help Centre pages on adding captions, .srt naming and .srt formatting. Facebook notes that since September 2025 every video posted to Facebook is shared as a reel, whatever its length or orientation, so a long landscape video goes through the same caption flow.
What should an SRT file be named for Facebook?
Facebook's naming rule is filename.[language code]_[country code].srt. Its naming article says the codes are case sensitive, with the language code in lowercase and the country code in uppercase, and gives filename.en_US.srt as the example for US English. Only the language and country combinations on Facebook's list are accepted.
| Language | Example file name | Status |
|---|---|---|
| English (United States) | launch.en_US.srt | Facebook's own example |
| English (UK) | launch.en_GB.srt | Same pattern; check Facebook's list |
| French (France) | launch.fr_FR.srt | Same pattern; check Facebook's list |
| Wrong case | launch.EN_us.srt | Fails: codes are case sensitive |
| No code | launch.srt | Fails the naming rule |
Third-party guides give conflicting codes for some languages, Spanish in particular (some use es_LA, others es_ES). Facebook's naming page has the full list of valid pairs; pick the code from there rather than from an old blog post. The part before the first dot can be anything, so launch-video.en_US.srt is fine.
How do you add captions to a Facebook Page video?
On a Page you choose captions during upload. Facebook's Page article gives these desktop steps:
- Click the “What's on your mind?” box at the top of the Feed and select Photo/video.
- Click Add photos/videos and choose the video.
- When the upload finishes, click Next.
- Select Closed captions on the left, then choose to auto-generate captions or upload a SubRip (.srt) file.
- Click Next, then Post.
For a video that's already up, find it on the Page's timeline, click Options, select Edit post and follow the same steps. Facebook's page on editing Page videos also says that if you have task access to a Page, you must use Meta Business Suite to edit its videos, so if the Edit post option is missing for you, open the post from Business Suite instead. Meta's menus differ between Business Suite, the Page and the app, so look for the Closed captions or Captions setting in the video's options.
Facebook says viewers who watch with sound off see captions automatically, viewers with sound on have to turn them on, and captions show in each viewer's preferred language when you've uploaded that language.
Why won't Facebook accept my SRT file?
Facebook usually rejects an SRT because of its name or its formatting. Facebook's article on caption problems lists these rules for .srt files:
| Rule | Correct | What breaks it |
|---|---|---|
| Sequence numbers | Start at 1 and count up with no gaps | Duplicates, gaps, or starting at 0 |
| Timecodes | 00:01:02,500 --> 00:01:05,000: hh:mm:ss,fff with all digits | Missing leading zeros, a full stop instead of the comma, extra colons |
| Encoding | UTF-8 | ANSI or UTF-16; re-save as UTF-8 under a new name |
| Block layout | Number, time line, text, then one blank line | Two blank lines, or none, between blocks |
| End of file | Nothing after the last block | Trailing spaces or empty lines |
| File name | name.en_US.srt | No language code, or the wrong case |
A WebVTT file won't work here; Facebook asks for SubRip. If you have a .vtt, change the full stops before the milliseconds back to commas and remove the WEBVTT header, or see SRT vs VTT for the differences. If the captions upload but run early or late, the file was made from a different cut of the video; how to fix out-of-sync subtitles shows how to shift them.
Can Facebook generate captions automatically?
Yes, for Page videos. When you upload to a Page, the Closed captions step offers auto-generated captions, and Facebook's Page video article lists “Add auto-generated captions” under Video options on a computer. For reels, Facebook also creates translated captions on some videos: its reel captions page lists 11 languages, including English, Spanish (Latin America), Hindi, Arabic and Brazilian Portuguese, and says viewers pick the language from the Closed captions button.
Automatic captions save time but get names, brands and numbers wrong, and you can't fix what you don't review. If the words matter, upload a file you've checked.
How do you make an SRT for Facebook in QuickVeed?
You can make the SRT in any subtitle tool; how to make an SRT file covers doing it by hand or for free. In QuickVeed it works like this:
- Open auto subtitles (Captions & subtitles in the sidebar) and upload the video, up to 3 hours long, or pick one from your library.
- Pick a caption style (11 to choose from) and a position: bottom, middle or top. Untick the captioned-video option if you only want subtitle files.
- Press Transcribe. Allow about a minute of processing per 10 minutes of video.
- On the Edit tab, click a time to jump to it, correct the text and save. Saving clears any translations, so edit before you translate.
- On the Translate tab, tick up to 5 of 32 languages at a time. Each line keeps its timing.
- On the Download tab, get an SRT, VTT or TXT file per language. On the Burn in tab, make a captioned copy per language; it's saved to your library.
A transcript costs 1.5 credits a minute, rounded up (2 credits for a 1-minute video, 15 for 10 minutes). Each burned-in copy is a credit a minute, 3 at least, for videos up to 30 minutes, and translation usually adds a credit or two per language. Rename each downloaded file to Facebook's pattern before you upload it, for example launch.en_US.srt and launch.fr_FR.srt, and open it in a text editor to delete any blank lines after the last block.
Should you upload an SRT or burn captions into the video?
Upload an SRT when you want viewers to be able to turn captions off or pick a language. Burn them in when they must show on every screen, including when the video is shared or reposted elsewhere.
| SRT upload (closed captions) | Burned-in captions (open) | |
|---|---|---|
| Viewer can switch off | Yes | No |
| Several languages on one video | Yes, one file per language | One language per video copy |
| Styling | Facebook's player style | Any style you choose |
| Survives re-uploads and shares | No | Yes |
| Searchable text | Yes | No |
Many teams do both: burned-in captions for the feed and an SRT for accessibility and search. Open vs closed captions and how to burn subtitles into a video explain each, and Facebook video ad specs covers the sizes if the video will run as an ad.
Frequently asked questions
What is the SRT naming format for Facebook?
filename.[language code]_[country code].srt, with the language code lowercase and the country code uppercase. Facebook's example is filename.en_US.srt.
Can I add an SRT to a Facebook video on my phone?
Facebook's help pages describe the SRT upload on a computer. Use a desktop browser to upload the file.
Does Facebook accept VTT files?
Facebook's caption pages ask for a SubRip (.srt) file. Convert a VTT to SRT first.
Can I add captions to a Facebook video after posting?
Yes. Open the post, click Options, Edit post, then Edit and Add captions, and upload the file.
How do I add captions in more than one language?
Upload one SRT per language, each named with its own code, such as .en_US.srt and .fr_FR.srt. Facebook shows each viewer their preferred language.
Why do my Facebook captions show as one block?
The blocks probably aren't separated by exactly one blank line, or the numbering is broken. Fix the layout and upload again.
Try it with your own video
Get an accurate SRT for every language you post in, or burn styled captions into the video. Upload a video, fix the transcript, and download the SRT ready to rename and upload. QuickVeed plans start at $18/month, and new accounts get a 14-day trial with 250 credits, no card needed. Sign up or see pricing.
Sources
Competitor details in this post were checked against these public pages in October 2026. Products and prices change, so confirm with each vendor before you decide.
- Facebook Help Centre: add or remove captions on your video
- Facebook Help Centre: naming conventions for .srt files
- Facebook Help Centre: problems adding captions to your reel (.srt formatting)
- Facebook Help Centre: add captions to your Page's video
- Facebook Help Centre: post or edit a video on your Facebook Page
- Facebook Help Centre: turn captions on for videos
- Facebook Help Centre: translated captions for reels
- QuickVeed Help: add captions and subtitles
