Transcribe YouTube Videos to Text

Paste any YouTube URL to get a full text transcript. Works with regular videos, Shorts, and live streams. No download needed.

How it works

  1. Paste the YouTube video URL. Copy the link of any public YouTube video from your browser address bar or the share menu and paste it into the input field on DomeScribe.
  2. Pick the spoken language. Select the language spoken in the video. If the video features multiple languages, choose the primary one — DomeScribe will focus on the dominant audio track.
  3. Start the transcription. Press Transcribe and DomeScribe will fetch the audio from YouTube and run it through speech recognition. Even hour-long videos typically finish in a couple of minutes.
  4. Review and export the text. Read through the generated transcript on screen, make any quick edits if needed, and download it as a text file or copy it to your clipboard for use in blogs, subtitles, or notes.

Transcription at a glance

Languages
99, with automatic language detection
Input
URLs from 8 platforms, or upload MP4, MP3, WAV, M4A, FLAC, WebM, MOV
Output
Full text transcript with optional timestamps; speaker detection on paid plans
Export
Plain text (TXT) free; DOCX, PDF, and JSON on paid plans
Free tier
30 minutes of transcription to start
Speed
Most files are transcribed in about a minute
Privacy
Uploads deleted after processing; transcripts AES-256 encrypted, auto-deleted after 30 days

Frequently asked questions

Can I transcribe any YouTube video?

You can transcribe any public or unlisted YouTube video by pasting its URL into DomeScribe. Private videos are not accessible because YouTube does not expose their audio to third-party tools.

Does DomeScribe use YouTube's built-in captions?

No. DomeScribe runs its own speech recognition on the audio track rather than pulling YouTube's auto-generated captions. This often produces more accurate results, especially for videos where YouTube's captions are missing or low quality.

Can I transcribe a YouTube live stream?

DomeScribe works with completed YouTube videos that have a stable URL. Live streams that are still in progress cannot be transcribed, but once the stream ends and YouTube publishes the recording, you can transcribe it like any other video.

Is there a length limit for YouTube video transcription?

DomeScribe can handle YouTube videos of virtually any length, from short clips to multi-hour lectures. Longer videos simply take a bit more processing time, but there is no hard cutoff.

Will transcribing a YouTube video affect my YouTube account?

Transcribing a video with DomeScribe does not interact with your YouTube account in any way. DomeScribe only reads the publicly available audio — it does not log in, comment, or modify anything on YouTube.

What is the best free tool to transcribe a YouTube video to text?

DomeScribe transcribes YouTube videos to text free: paste the video URL — regular videos and Shorts both work — and get the full transcript in any of 99 languages, with optional timestamps, in about a minute. It runs its own speech recognition rather than copying YouTube's auto-captions, which is usually more accurate, and there is no software to install and no need to download the video first.

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