How to get a transcript of a YouTube video
On a computer, open the video, click …more under the title, then Show transcript at the bottom of the description; it opens next to the video and you can copy it. In the YouTube app, tap the description, then Show transcript; you can read it but not copy it. YouTube's mobile website has no transcript. To copy one on a phone, or ask questions about it, use a transcript tool or Puley in ChatGPT or Claude.
YouTube makes a transcript for most videos, from the creator’s captions or from its own automatic captions. Getting to it is easy on a computer and awkward on a phone.
On a computer
- Open the video on youtube.com.
- Under the title, click …more to open the full description.
- Scroll to the bottom of the description and click Show transcript. The transcript opens to the right of the video, with a timestamp on every line.
- Click any line to jump to that moment, or select the text and copy it.
To hide the timestamps before copying, click the three dots at the top of the transcript panel and choose Toggle timestamps.
In the YouTube app (iPhone and Android)
- Open the video in the app and tap the description under the player.
- Scroll to the bottom and tap Show transcript.
- The transcript replaces the description. You can scroll it and tap a line to jump there, but you can’t select or copy the text.
On a phone’s web browser
YouTube’s mobile website doesn’t offer a transcript. Use the app to read one, or a tool to copy one.
No Show transcript button?
There’s nothing for YouTube to show. Common reasons:
- The creator turned captions off.
- The video is new and automatic captions haven’t been made yet.
- It’s mostly music, or the audio is too poor to caption.
- It’s a live stream that’s still running.
In those cases a transcript tool has to transcribe the audio itself. Puley does that when a video has no captions.
Get the transcript into ChatGPT or Claude
You have two options.
- Copy and paste. On a computer, copy the transcript and paste it into the chat with your question. Long videos may need pasting in parts, and you lose the link between the text and the video.
- Paste the link instead. With Puley connected, paste the YouTube link into ChatGPT or Claude and ask your question. Puley fetches the full transcript with timestamps, so you can ask “what did she say about pricing?” and get the answer with the minute it was said, on a phone as easily as on a computer.
How good are YouTube’s automatic transcripts?
Good enough to search and summarize, not good enough to quote blindly. YouTube’s own help page warns that automatic captions can misrepresent what’s said because of mispronunciations, accents, dialects or background noise. Check names, numbers and technical terms against the video before you quote them.
The full transcript of any YouTube video, with timestamps, on any device. Puley does it inside ChatGPT and Claude.
Questions
Why don't I see Show transcript on a YouTube video?
The video has no captions YouTube can show. The creator may have turned them off, the video may be too new for automatic captions, it may be mostly music, or it may be a live stream that's still running.
Can I copy a YouTube transcript on my phone?
Not in the YouTube app, which shows the transcript but doesn't let you select it, and the mobile website has no transcript at all. Use a transcript tool, or paste the link into ChatGPT or Claude with Puley connected.
How do I get a YouTube transcript without timestamps?
On a computer, open the transcript, click the three dots at the top of the panel and choose Toggle timestamps. Then copy the text.
Are YouTube's automatic transcripts accurate?
Usually close, not perfect. YouTube itself warns that automatic captions can be wrong because of mispronunciations, accents, dialects or background noise. Names, numbers and jargon are the usual mistakes.
Can I download a YouTube transcript as a file?
YouTube has no download button for viewers. Copy it into a document on a computer, or ask your AI to give it to you as plain text or subtitles (SRT).