Thanks to the built-in AI features in the latest Vegas pro version, you no longer need to do subtitles manually.
But how does Vegas Pro handle subtitles, exactly? Can you generate them automatically? Import your own? Style them? Animate them? What about the subtites in former version ?
In this guide, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know.
Yes, Vegas Pro latest versions do include a built-in auto caption feature.
Since Vegas Pro 18, the tool provides an AI Speech to Text tool. This feature lets you generate subtitles directly inside your video timeline, without having to use any third-party tool or service.
But here’s the thing — while the auto caption tool is great, the initial transcription may not be perfect. You’ll likely need to clean up the text a bit. Fortunately, Vegas Pro lets you edit the transcript before generating the final subtitles.
With the latest versions, the software comes packed with an AI-powered Speech to Text tool. This means you can transcribe your video and create captions right inside the editor. No need for external apps or plugins.
Here’s how it works, step by step.
First, open your project in VEGAS Pro and load your video on the timeline. Make sure your audio is clear and clean, as this will help the AI give more accurate results.
Now, go to the top menu and click on “Tools” > “Speech to Text.” This is where the magic happens. You’ll find this under the AI-powered tools section.
Once inside the tool, select the audio track you want to analyze. Usually, it’s the primary dialogue track, but double-check if your video has multiple layers of audio. Then click “Analyze.”
VEGAS Pro will start processing the audio and converting it into text. Depending on your video length, this might take a few minutes. When it’s done, you’ll get a full transcript of your video’s speech.
Before moving on, take a moment to check the transcription. Sometimes the AI might miss a word or two, especially with background noise or strong accents. You can correct these directly in the interface — just click and edit.
Once your transcript is ready, it’s time to generate the subtitles.
Choose from the available subtitle presets. These presets control how your subtitles will look — font, size, position, background, and so on. For now, stick to the default subtitle preset to get things started.
Click “Generate Subtitles,” and VEGAS Pro will place your captions directly onto the video timeline, synced with the dialogue.
But let’s make them look better.
Right-click on one of the subtitle events in the timeline and choose “Edit Generated Media.” This will open the style editor.
Here, you can customize everything — font size, type, alignment, colors, and background opacity. You can reposition the text, make it bold, or switch to a different style that fits your video’s mood.
Unfortunately, VEGAS doesn’t let you apply these changes to all subtitles at once. But there’s a trick — once you're happy with the look, save it as a new preset. Just name your style, hit the “Save Preset” button, and next time, you can apply it to all your captions right from the start.
Once everything looks good, you’re ready to export.
Go to the “Render” menu and select your preferred format. You don’t need to do anything special to embed the subtitles — they’re already placed on the timeline. When you render the video, the subtitles will automatically be burned into your final export.
Sometimes, you don’t need to generate subtitles from scratch. Maybe you’ve already created them with another tool. Or maybe you’re working with a translated SRT file. Either way, VEGAS Pro makes it easy to import existing subtitles and sync them with your video.
Here’s how to do it step by step.
Open your project in VEGAS Pro and make sure your video is already on the timeline.
Then go to the top menu and click “Insert” > “Subtitles from File.” A window will open asking you to choose your subtitle file. Find the SRT file you prepared earlier and click “Open.”
VEGAS Pro will instantly read the subtitle data and place the captions onto your timeline. You’ll see them appear in a new track above your video — one subtitle block per line of text, timed to your audio.
That’s it. Your subtitles are now part of your timeline and ready for fine-tuning.
Most of the time, the subtitles should sync perfectly. But sometimes you’ll notice slight mismatches. Maybe the original video was trimmed. Maybe the subtitles were created using a different audio version.
No problem — you can adjust things easily.
Just drag each subtitle event left or right on the timeline to shift its timing. For finer control, zoom into the timeline so you can align captions down to the exact frame.
You can also adjust the duration of a subtitle by dragging its edge. This helps if the caption disappears too quickly or lingers too long.
Now it’s time to make the subtitles match your video’s look.
Right-click on any subtitle block and choose “Edit Generated Media.” This opens the customization window where you can adjust the font, size, color, and positioning.
Want white text with a black outline? Or bold yellow text at the top of the screen? You can set all that here.
If you plan to reuse this style, don’t forget to save your design as a preset. That way, you won’t have to redo everything each time.
Once you’re happy with how the subtitles look and feel, go to “Render As” to export your video.
Since the captions are already on the timeline, VEGAS will automatically burn them into the final render. That means the subtitles become a permanent part of the video — perfect for platforms that don’t support separate subtitle files.
If you want your subtitles to do more than just sit still on screen, you’re not alone. Animating your captions can bring energy and style to your videos — especially on social media where attention spans are short.
While VEGAS Pro doesn’t offer a one-click animation tool for subtitles, there’s still a way to get creative. It takes a few steps, but if you’re aiming for more dynamic captions, it’s totally worth it.
Start by opening your project in VEGAS Pro. Make sure your video is on the timeline and ready to go.
Now, click on “Insert” > “Subtitles from File” or generate them using the Speech to Text tool — whichever method you prefer. Make sure your subtitle preset is already set to the style you want to animate.
Once your subtitles appear in the timeline as individual blocks, right-click on one of them and choose “Edit Generated Media.”
Here’s where the animation begins.
Inside the “Edit Generated Media” window, you’ll see different animation options — position, scale, and more. To animate your captions, you’ll work with keyframes.
Let’s start with a simple pop-up effect.
Find the “Scale” property and click the little diamond icon to create a keyframe. This lets VEGAS know you’re setting an animation point.
Now set the first keyframe at the start of the caption with a scale of 1.8 (slightly larger). Add another keyframe just a few frames later with a scale of 2.2, then a final one that settles back to scale 2.0. What you’ve created is a short bounce effect — it makes your subtitle feel like it’s popping onto the screen.
Play it back and check the result. Nice, right?
Now here’s the catch — VEGAS Pro doesn’t let you copy animation settings to all subtitle blocks at once. But there’s a workaround.
Go back into “Edit Generated Media” and hold down Shift while selecting your keyframes. Once selected, copy them using your keyboard shortcuts (Ctrl+C on Windows or Cmd+C on Mac).
Then, for each new subtitle block, open the same edit window and paste the keyframes. It’s a bit manual, but if you don’t have hundreds of captions, it’s totally doable. And the final result? A full video with animated subtitles that stand out.
Bonus Tip: Mix Up Your Animations
Want to get creative? You can also animate position, rotation, or even opacity using the same keyframe technique. Try sliding captions in from the side, or fading them in with a blur effect. Just remember to stay consistent with your style — too many effects can get distracting.
Once your animations are set, head over to Render As and export your video.
The subtitles, now part of the timeline and full of movement, will be burned into your final render. Perfect for Instagram, TikTok, or any platform where visual motion boosts engagement.
Manually syncing subtitles or animating them one by one takes time. And if you’re working on multiple videos, or dealing with different languages, it gets even more tedious.
That’s where AI subtitle generators like Checksub can completely change your workflow. They’re fast, reliable, and built for video creators like you. Let’s see how to use them with VEGAS Pro and save yourself hours of work.
Head over to checksub.com and log into your account. If you’re new, no worries — signing up takes less than a minute.
Once you're in, click “New Project” and upload your video. You can drag and drop your file, or paste a link if your video is already hosted online. Checksub supports most video formats, so you won’t run into any file issues here.
Now choose your original language. If you’re planning to add subtitles in more than one language, you can activate translation here too.
Checksub uses advanced speech recognition to analyze your video’s audio. In just a few minutes, it’ll generate a full transcript — complete with proper punctuation and timing.
Unlike manual transcription, Checksub handles things like filler words, multiple speakers, and even background noise pretty well. You get clean, readable subtitles almost instantly.
Once the AI has done its part, it’s time for you to polish it up.
Use the built-in editor to make changes. You can fix names, adjust line breaks, or improve timing. Everything is visual and intuitive — no coding or timeline dragging. It’s designed to feel like editing a text document.
And since the subtitles are already synced to your audio, you don’t need to worry about timecodes or formatting.
Want to take things a step further? You can customize your subtitles in Checksub before you even import them into VEGAS Pro.
Adjust the font, size, color, and background. You can also apply basic animations or use presets that match your branding. This way, when you bring the subtitles into VEGAS, they’re already styled and ready to go.
Once your subtitles are reviewed and styled, export them in SRT or VTT format — both are fully compatible with VEGAS Pro.
Then jump back into VEGAS and go to Insert > Subtitles from File. Choose your exported file, and your captions will appear in the timeline, fully synced and formatted.
Want to speed up your subtitle workflow on Vegas Pro ? Try Checksub for free.
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