Converting a YouTube video to text means transcribing the spoken audio into readable, searchable words. Here's the fastest way to do it — and what to do when there are no captions.
Every word spoken in the video, written out — so you can read, search, quote, or repurpose it instead of watching.
Paste the URL into RecapGPT. It converts the audio to clean text in about 30 seconds, with timestamps and speaker labels.
Many free converters depend on existing captions. Audio-based conversion works on any video, captions or not.
Once it's text, you can summarize it, turn it into notes, pull quotes, or draft an article — all from the same paste.
Grab the URL.
Drop it in the box above.
Read, search, and export the full text of the video.
Turn spoken content into a written starting point.
Search and cite the exact words.
Make video content readable for everyone.
Paste the video link into a converter like RecapGPT. It transcribes the audio into clean, readable text in about 30 seconds — no manual typing.
Yes. RecapGPT offers 3 free conversions per month with no credit card. YouTube's own transcript feature is also free for captioned videos.
Markdown, plain text, .docx, and subtitle formats like .srt and .vtt.
Yes — most video-to-text tools support many languages and detect the spoken language automatically.
3 notes free every month. Pro is $5.99/mo. No credit card required to start.
Get started — free →