Help and Support

TinkerSub is a web subtitle editor for everyone. Create, translate, and polish subtitles — and extract on-screen text — so your audience can understand your video.

Yes. You can create, edit, and style subtitles manually for free without an account — open the Editor and start right away.

No. You can create, edit, and style subtitles without an account.

Sign in with Google to save projects to the cloud, and to use Transcribe, Translate, and Extract.

Use a recent version of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge.

Video: MP4, MKV, MOV, WEBM, and AVI. Audio: MP3, WAV, M4A, AAC, and OGG. Files must be 2 GB or smaller.

Import SRT or WebVTT. Export SRT, WebVTT, TXT, JSON, or ASS (includes style).

Transcribe and Translate support: English, Chinese (Simplified), Thai, Bahasa Indonesia, Spanish, Hindi, Arabic, French, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, German, Vietnamese, Korean, and Italian.

You can often leave the source language on Auto-detect. Available speech engines may vary by language.

Pro is the paid plan for heavier use. It includes 1000 Transcribe minutes every month and unlimited translation, on top of everything available when you sign in for free.

Pro is billed monthly at $9/mo.

Use the Transcribe tab to turn speech in a video or audio file into timed subtitle cues.

Step 1: Sign in, then open the Transcribe tab.

Step 2: Upload your video or audio file.

Step 3: Choose the spoken language (or Auto) and a transcription engine.

Step 4: Start transcription and wait for processing to finish. Longer files use more of your Transcribe minute credit.

Step 5: Review the cues in the Editor tab, then export or keep working in the same session.

Use the Translate tab to translate your current subtitle document into another language with AI.

Step 1: Sign in and open the Translate tab with cues already loaded (from Transcribe, an imported SRT/VTT, or your session).

Step 2: Choose the target language and AI provider.

Step 3: Run translation for the whole document. Free accounts translate up to 15 cues per operation; Pro is unlimited.

Step 4: Review the results in the Editor. You can also translate individual cues from cue tools when you only need a few lines.

Step 5: Export when you are happy with the wording.

The Editor tab is where you fix text, timing, and structure — free for everyone, with or without an account.

Step 1: Open the Editor tab.

Step 2: Import an SRT or WebVTT file, start blank, or continue from Transcribe / Translate.

Step 3: Click a cue to edit its text; use the timeline to adjust start and end times, and tools to merge, split, or shift cues.

Step 4: Load a video to preview subtitles in sync as you work.

Step 5: Export in your preferred format when ready.

The Style tab controls how subtitles look on the live video preview. Styling does not require an account.

Step 1: Open the Style tab with a video and subtitles loaded.

Step 2: Adjust font, size, color, outline, shadow, and background.

Step 3: Choose one of nine screen anchors and fine-tune horizontal and vertical offsets (or drag the subtitle on the video).

Step 4: Preview live on the video. Export ASS to keep style in a subtitle file, or save a signed-in project to store style with your cues. TinkerSub does not export a burned-in video.

Use the Extract tab to OCR text visible on a single video frame (signs, burnt-in captions, UI). The result stays in Extract for copy or translate — it does not replace your subtitle document, and it does not use Transcribe minutes.

Step 1: Sign in and open the Extract tab.

Step 2: Upload a video and seek to the frame that shows the text.

Step 3: Draw a box around the on-screen text (or use a preset area).

Step 4: Click Extract Text to read that frame region.

Step 5: Correct the text if needed, then copy it or translate it inside the Extract tab.

TinkerSub uses Google sign-in only. Click Sign up or Sign in in the navigation bar.

You will be redirected to Google to authorize your account, then returned to TinkerSub. We do not store a separate password.

Saved projects store your subtitle cues and project metadata in the cloud so you can reopen them later.

Step 1: Sign in with your Google account.

Step 2: Open the editor and load your subtitles (and optionally a video for preview).

Step 3: Click Save project in the editor toolbar.

Step 4: Reopen saved projects anytime from your Dashboard. Re-attach the same local video file when you need preview again.

No. Only subtitle data and project metadata are stored in the cloud. Your video stays on your device. When you reopen a saved project, re-attach the same video file locally to preview and continue working.

Sign in with the same Google email you used when you created the account. Projects are tied to that Google identity.

If you still cannot access your account, email support@tinkersub.com with the Google address you believe is linked.

Pro unlocks 1000 Transcribe minutes per month and unlimited Translate, on top of everything available on Free.

Guests can still use Editor and Style. Signed-in free users get all tabs with the lifetime minute and 15-cue translate limits. Pro is billed monthly at $9/mo (placeholder pricing — subject to change).

Self-serve checkout is not available yet. Email us to activate Pro on your account.

Step 1: Create an account or sign in with Google.

Step 2: Email support@tinkersub.com from your account email and ask to upgrade to Pro. You can review plan details on the Pricing section of the home page.

Step 3: Once Pro is active on your account, monthly Transcribe minutes and unlimited Translate apply.

Self-serve billing and invoice downloads are not available yet.

Email support@tinkersub.com if you need billing help, a receipt, or to update invoice details on your account.

Saved projects are tied to your account and protected by Supabase Row Level Security — only you can access your project data.

Sign-in is handled through Google OAuth; we do not store your Google password.

No. Video and audio may be processed temporarily during transcription or related server work, but they are not stored long-term in the cloud. Only subtitle project data is saved when you choose to save a project.

Google — for sign-in.

Supabase — for authentication and saved project storage.

AI providers (such as xAI / Grok and Qwen Cloud / DeepSeek, and speech engines including Fun-ASR where available) — when you use Transcribe, Translate, or related AI tools.

PostHog — product analytics.

Sentry — error monitoring and performance (with masked session replay).

Email support@tinkersub.com with your question. Include your account email, what you were trying to do, what happened, and any error messages you saw.

If your question is not covered here, send as much detail as possible — we are happy to help.