WebVTT (Web Video Text Tracks) is a plain-text format for timed text associated with video or other media. A WebVTT file uses timed cues to display text during playback; it is not a video file. To add captions to an HTML video, create a .vtt file and reference it with a <track> element inside the <video> element.
What WebVTT captions are—and what a VTT file contains
A WebVTT file starts with the WEBVTT header, followed by blocks. A timed block, or cue, specifies when its text begins and ends. The text can be dialogue, a speaker label, a sound description or another kind of timed information, depending on the track’s declared purpose.
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For example, this small file has two cues: one describing a sound and one identifying a speaker.
WEBVTT
00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:03.000
[Door closes]
00:00:03.200 --> 00:00:05.000
<v Maya>Hello, everyone.The cue times synchronize the text with playback. Cues may also use settings for position and presentation. The W3C WebVTT specification says, “A WebVTT file must only contain data of one kind, never a mix of different kinds of data.” For example, keep captions in a captions file rather than combining them with chapter data in the same file.
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Captions or subtitles: choose what viewers need
Captions communicate dialogue and relevant audio information, such as meaningful sound effects or musical cues. Subtitles commonly present dialogue only, often as a translation for viewers who can hear the audio. Terminology varies by region, so the label alone does not tell viewers everything a track contains.
If a sound matters to understanding the video, include it in the text rather than transcribing dialogue alone. W3C WAI’s guidance describes captions as including dialogue and relevant audio information. Its HTML technique is one documented way to meet WCAG; it is not the only conforming technique.
Add an external WebVTT file to an HTML video
- Create the file. Save plain text with a
.vttextension. Start withWEBVTT, then add cues with start and end times and the text to display. Use one data kind per file. - Make it available to the page. Upload the VTT file to a URL the page can load. The example below uses
/media/lesson.en.vtt; replace that path with the actual location of your file. - Add a track inside the video element. Set
kindtocaptionsfor a caption track,srcto the file path,srclangto the track’s language code, andlabelto a clear name for users. - Check the result in the target player. Play the video, enable the track and verify timing, legibility and track selection.
<video controls>
<source src="/media/lesson.mp4" type="video/mp4">
<track
kind="captions"
src="/media/lesson.en.vtt"
srclang="en"
label="English captions"
default>
</video>The kind attribute identifies the track’s purpose; srclang identifies its language; and label supplies a user-facing name. The optional default attribute marks a preferred track to enable when user preferences do not select a better match. Use it on no more than one track for a media element. For additional languages, add separate track elements pointing to separate files, each with its own language and label.
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Author cues in a file or create them with JavaScript
External VTT file
A separate .vtt file is the straightforward option for a track that you can prepare and update independently of the page. The HTML <track> element references it directly.
JavaScript text tracks
For dynamically generated text, JavaScript can create a TextTrack, set its mode and add VTTCue objects. This changes how cues are supplied, not their purpose: the cue text still needs suitable timing and must communicate the intended information.
Styling cue text
The CSS ::cue pseudo-element can style cue text. MDN documents ::cue-region, but notes that browsers do not support it; do not rely on it for region-specific styling.
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Check the track before publishing
- Confirm that the file begins with the
WEBVTTheader and that every cue has sensible start and end times. - Verify that the page can load the VTT file at the
srcpath you supplied. - Play the video and check synchronization, spelling, speaker identification and relevant non-speech audio.
- Make the language code and visible label understandable to viewers.
- Test enabling and selecting tracks in the actual player where the video will appear. Browser documentation does not establish how every individual site or player behaves.
- Use a separate file for another language or another kind of timed data.
Common problems and fixes
The captions do not appear
Check that the <track> element is inside <video>, that its src points to the right file, and that the page can load that URL. Confirm the file starts with WEBVTT and is referenced as a VTT track.
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Review cue start and end times against playback, then watch the video with the track enabled. Correct the cue timing where the text arrives too early, too late or remains visible for the wrong interval.
The track has the wrong name or language
Set srclang to the language of the track and give label a clear user-facing name. For multiple languages, provide an individual track element and file for each one.
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Viewers cannot understand an important sound
Check whether the track contains dialogue only. Add relevant sound effects, musical cues or other audio information when needed to understand the video; a dialogue-only transcript may not serve as captions.
The preferred track is not selected as expected
Check that no more than one track on the media element has the default attribute, and test selection in the player viewers will actually use.
Archival metadata is a separate consideration
For audiovisual collections and archival workflows, FADGI’s “Guidelines: Embedded Metadata in WebVTT Files” lists version 2.0 dated September 1, 2026. The guidance addresses provenance, administrative history and context, including information that can help explain a file’s data kind, origin and when, where and how it was made. It is specialized collection guidance, not a universal requirement for ordinary web caption tracks.
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