Ijharul Islam
To dub a video into another language, you transcribe the original speech, translate each line so it fits the same amount of time, record or generate the new voice, place each line at its original timestamp, and mix it over the video's music and effects. AI tools now do all five steps in minutes; a human studio does them in days, with more control.
This guide explains each step, what goes wrong, and three ways to get it done: by hand with free software, with a dubbing studio, or with an AI dubbing tool such as QuickVeed (which we make), ElevenLabs, HeyGen or YouTube's own automatic dubbing.
The short answer
Dubbing a video means replacing its speech with speech in another language. Transcribe the original, translate each line to fit its original length, voice it (a voice actor, a stock AI voice or a clone of the speaker), line each clip up with its timestamp, and mix it over the background audio. AI dubbing tools do this automatically; review the transcript and translation before you publish.
Key takeaways
- Dubbing is five jobs: transcript, timed translation, voice, timing and mixing.
- The translation must fit the time of each original line, or the dub drifts out of sync.
- Separating the voice from the music lets you keep the original soundtrack under the new voice.
- Fix names and jargon in the transcript first: every later step copies its mistakes.
- Cloning a speaker's voice needs that person's consent.
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.
The five steps to dub a video into another language
Whether a studio or software does the work, every dub goes through the same steps. Knowing them helps you spot where a bad dub went wrong.
- Transcribe. Write down every spoken line with its start and end time. This is the same timed text a subtitle file holds.
- Translate to fit. Translate each line, keeping it short enough to say in roughly the same time. German and Spanish often run longer than English, so translators trim words.
- Voice it. A voice actor records each line, or a text-to-speech voice reads it. With voice cloning, the AI voice sounds like the original speaker.
- Time it. Place each new line where the original started. Lines that run long are sped up a little or rewritten shorter.
- Mix. Put the new voice over the music and sound effects, without the original voice underneath.
The last step is the one people forget. If you only have the finished video, the original voice and the music are on the same track. You either separate them with a source-separation model (such as Meta's open-source Demucs) or lower the whole original track and lay the new voice on top, the way news voice-overs sound.
Three ways to do it
| Method | Good for | What it takes |
|---|---|---|
| Human dubbing studio | Films, TV, ads with a big budget | Translators, voice actors, a studio and a mix engineer; days to weeks |
| Manual, with free tools | One short video, if you have time | A transcript, a translation, your own recording in the new language and an audio editor |
| AI dubbing tool | Business videos, courses, YouTube, product demos | Upload, review the transcript, pick languages; minutes per video |
Manual dubbing with free tools
If you speak the target language, you can dub a short video yourself. Get a transcript (YouTube Studio creates automatic captions you can download, or use any transcription tool), translate it line by line, then record yourself reading each line while watching the video. Line the clips up in a free editor such as Audacity or DaVinci Resolve, lower or remove the original voice, and export. Use our free words-to-minutes calculator to check that a translated script fits the video's length.
AI dubbing tools
AI tools run all five steps for you. They differ in languages, video length, whether they keep the speaker's voice, whether they move the lips to match (lip sync), and price. HeyGen's paid plans translate videos of up to 30 minutes in 175+ languages and dialects, with lip-sync translation. ElevenLabs offers automatic dubbing and a Dubbing Studio editor, billed in credits per minute. YouTube automatically dubs eligible videos between English and a set list of languages, for free, inside YouTube only.
How to dub a video in QuickVeed
QuickVeed's AI dubbing handles videos up to 10 minutes. It keeps one transcript per video and lets you dub it into as many languages as you like.
- Open AI dubbing from the dashboard and upload a video, or pick one from your library. Uploads carry on if you change page.
- Choose Keep music and effects (AI separates the voice from the soundtrack) or Voice-over style (the original audio is lowered under the new voice), then click Prepare for dubbing.
- When the transcript appears, fix names, brands and misheard words, and click Save transcript. Every dub uses this text.
- Under Dub it, pick a voice: The speaker's own voice (cloned) for 23 languages, or one of 11 stock voices for 32 languages. Pick the language.
- Check the price shown on the Dub button and click it. Each line is translated to fit its original time and spoken.
- Download the MP4, plus SRT and VTT subtitle files in the new language. Repeat step 4 for each language.
| Step | Credits |
|---|---|
| Prepare, keeping music and effects | 9 credits per minute of video |
| Prepare, voice-over style (original audio lowered) | 1.5 credits per minute, rounded up (15 for a 10-minute video) |
| Each language in the speaker's cloned voice | 30 credits per minute |
| Each language with a stock voice | 5 credits per minute |
| Translation | Billed by AI usage, usually a credit or two per language |
Example: a 5-minute video with music kept costs 45 credits to prepare, then 150 credits per language in the speaker's voice or 25 with a stock voice. Failed steps are refunded. Only clone a voice you have the right to use: your own, or a speaker who has agreed to it in writing. QuickVeed requires that consent, and so should any tool you use.
What QuickVeed doesn't do: it doesn't move the speaker's lips to match the new language, and it clones one voice from a sample of the speech, so a video with two or more people works best with a stock voice. For lip sync on a short clip, see our AI avatars lip-sync models, or a tool like HeyGen.
How to check a dub before you publish
AI dubbing is fast, but it makes predictable mistakes. Watch the full dub once, ideally with a native speaker, and check these:
- Names and brands. Misheard names in the transcript come out wrong in every language. Fix them in the transcript, not the dub.
- Numbers, prices and units. Check that "$49" and "10 km" survived translation, and decide whether to convert currencies.
- Pace. Lines squeezed into a short gap can sound rushed. Rewrite the original line shorter, or accept a small pause.
- Tone. A formal language (German Sie, Japanese keigo) may need a different register than your casual English.
- On-screen text. Dubbing replaces the voice, not text in the picture. Add translated subtitles or captions for slides and lower thirds.
If on-screen text matters, you can also burn translated captions onto the video with QuickVeed captions, or read AI dubbing vs subtitles to decide which one your audience needs.
Where to publish the dubbed version
You can upload each dub as its own video, for example a separate Spanish channel, or add it to the original video as an extra audio track where the platform allows it. YouTube lets creators with access to advanced features add multi-language audio tracks to one video, so viewers hear their own language automatically. Our guide to multi-language audio tracks on YouTube walks through it.
Frequently asked questions
Can I dub a video for free?
Yes, if you voice it yourself: transcribe, translate, record and mix in free software. YouTube's automatic dubbing is also free for eligible channels, but the dubs only play on YouTube and can't be edited. AI dubbing tools charge per minute.
How long does it take to dub a video?
An AI tool dubs a few minutes of video in minutes. A human studio usually needs days or weeks, because translation, casting, recording and mixing are separate jobs.
Can AI dub a video in my own voice?
Yes. Voice cloning tools copy your voice from a short sample and speak the translation in it. QuickVeed does this in 23 languages. Only clone a voice with the speaker's consent.
Does AI dubbing match lip movements?
Some tools do, such as HeyGen's lip-sync translation and YouTube's experimental lip sync. QuickVeed's dubbing doesn't change the picture; it replaces the voice and keeps the timing.
What is the difference between dubbing and voice-over?
Dubbing replaces the original voice completely. Voice-over keeps the original audio quietly underneath and plays the translation on top, as in news interviews. QuickVeed offers both.
Try it with your own video
Upload a short video and dub it into one language to see how it sounds. Upload a short video, dub it into one language, and judge the result for yourself. QuickVeed plans start at $18/month, and new accounts get a 14-day trial with 75 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.
