How to translate a video into English or another language

The three ways to translate a video

A translation changes what viewers read or what they hear. The three routes differ in effort, in cost and in where the translated version can live.

• Subtitles

  • Viewers read
  • Original voice stays
  • You supply the text

  You keep the original audio and put translated text on top. On YouTube you add a language under Subtitles in Studio, then upload a subtitle file or type the text. YouTube's automatic captions are a transcript, not a translation: they come in the video's default language only.¹ DubSync doesn't make subtitle files.

  Dub vs sub for creators

• Platform auto-dubbing

  • Viewers listen
  • Built into the platform
  • A track on that video

  The platform translates the speech and adds a dubbed audio track to the video. On YouTube this is on by default for eligible creators, and auto-dubbed videos are marked in the description.² YouTube said in February 2026 that the feature covers 27 languages.³ Meta's AI translation dubs Reels at no charge for Facebook creators with 1,000 or more followers and for public Instagram accounts in countries where Meta AI is available, and every translated reel carries a label.⁴

  YouTube auto dubbing

• A dubbed version you make

  • Viewers listen
  • Paid per minute
  • A file you keep

  You run the dub yourself and get a video file back. In DubSync that is an MP4 in which each speaker has a voice created from their own, with the music and background sound kept. You can post the file on any platform.

  How to dub a video

Which one fits your video

Two questions settle it: will your viewers read or listen, and where will the video be published?

• You only want to understand a video

  You don't need to make anything. Turn on the captions and, if your language isn't listed under Subtitles/CC, choose Auto-translate there.⁵ When the video has more than one audio track, switch the language in the player settings.⁶

• Your viewers are happy to read

  Use subtitles. They reach viewers who speak another language as well as viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing.¹ They work less well for small children and for people who listen while doing something else.

• You post on one platform and its dub sounds right

  Keep the automatic dub and review it. An automatic dub on YouTube can't be edited, but you can hold dubs for manual review, and unpublish or delete a language that sounds wrong.²

• You need the file itself

  Make the dubbed version yourself when the video goes to several platforms, a course, an ad account or your own site, or when the platform doesn't dub into the language you need.

The routes combine. A dubbed video can still carry subtitles for viewers who prefer to read.

Translate a video with DubSync, from file to dubbed MP4

This is the third route in practice. You need the video as a file.

1. Get the original file

   Use the export from your editor or the recording from your phone: MP4, MOV or M4V, up to 150 minutes and 1 GB. DubSync has no link import. If the video now exists only on YouTube, Studio lets you download your own upload as an MP4 in 720p or 360p,⁷ so prefer the original export when you still have it.

2. Cut what shouldn't be dubbed

   Minutes are counted for the whole upload. Trim anything you don't want in the new version before you upload, and keep the final mix of voice, music and effects in one file.

3. Upload it and choose the language

   The spoken language is detected automatically, so there is nothing to set for the original. You choose the target: one of 28 languages. Each language is its own project and uses the video's minutes again, so start with one.

4. Check the minutes and confirm

   You see how many input minutes the video needs and what the dub costs. Nothing starts until you confirm the price, your rights to the video and every speaker's consent.

5. Download the dubbed MP4

   Each speaker has a voice created from their own, so it should sound similar, not identical. The background audio is kept and there is no visible watermark.

6. Add lip-sync only when a face speaks to the camera

   Lip-sync is an optional paid add-on for a finished dub. It is priced per minute, you see the quote before it starts, one run covers up to 5 minutes and the whole video is charged. It works best with a clearly visible face. Narration, screen recordings and animation don't need it.

Plans from $4.90/month. You see the minutes and the cost before anything starts. See pricing

How to translate a video to English

For other language pairs the platform covers less. In October 2026 YouTube's help page listed 20 dub languages for a video made in English, and English as the only dub for most other originals. A Spanish original could also get Arabic and Portuguese.² If the pair you need isn't on that list, make the dub yourself.

From English into another language, the DubSync steps are the same. Pick a language below to open its page.

• Arabic
• Bulgarian
• Chinese (Mandarin)
• Croatian
• Czech
• Danish
• Dutch
• English
• Finnish
• French
• German
• Greek
• Hindi
• Indonesian
• Italian
• Japanese
• Korean
• Malay
• Polish
• Portuguese
• Romanian
• Russian
• Slovak
• Spanish
• Swedish
• Tamil
• Turkish
• Ukrainian

Check the translation when you don't speak the language

DubSync has no script editing, and automatic translation makes mistakes. YouTube says the same about its own dubs: they can contain errors, and proper nouns, idioms and jargon are hard to translate.² You can catch a lot without understanding a word.

Then check the meaning

• Names and brand terms. They usually stay recognizable in any language, so listen for each one and check that it is still there.
• Back-translate the parts that matter. Play the opening, every number or price and the call to action to a translation app with voice input, and read what comes back in your language.
• Ask one native speaker. Send the MP4 with three questions: is anything wrong, does anything sound odd or rude, and would you keep watching?
• For legal, medical or safety content, have a qualified native speaker approve the video before it is published.

Translate the title, description and on-screen text too

A dub changes what viewers hear. Everything they read stays in the original language until you change it, and DubSync doesn't write or translate any of it.

• Title and description

  On YouTube, open Subtitles in Studio, add the language and fill in the fields under Title and description.⁸ YouTube says a translated video can be found when viewers search with a translated title and description.⁶

• Thumbnail text

  Words on a thumbnail stay in the original language. For long-form videos, YouTube's help page describes localized thumbnails: you add an image for a language under Languages in Studio, and viewers see the one that matches their language setting.⁶ Where you don't have that option, use a thumbnail with little or no text.

• Text inside the picture

  Burned-in captions, lower thirds, slides and price tags are part of the image. Replace them in your editor and export a new file before you dub, or accept that they stay as they are.

• Links and the call to action

  Point the description link to a page in the viewer's language, and check that an offer, a price or a discount code you mention is valid where the new audience lives.

Do this for every language you add. Otherwise the new audio sits under a title its audience can't read. The same goes for captions: YouTube keeps automatic captions in the language of the original audio track.⁶

Publish the translated video

The dubbed MP4 is a normal video file, and you publish it yourself. You have three places to put it.

• 01

  The same YouTube video

  Add the dub as another audio track. YouTube takes an audio-only file roughly as long as the video, so export the audio from the dubbed MP4 in any editor, then add it in Studio under Languages. The channel needs access to advanced features, and an automatic dub in the same language has to be deleted first.⁶ The multi-language audio guide has the full steps.

• 02

  A channel for that language

  Upload the dubbed MP4 as its own video, with its own translated title, description and thumbnail.

• 03

  Other platforms

  Post the same MP4 as a Reel, a TikTok or a lesson in your course, or place it on your own site.

Before you publish, check the platform's rule on AI-generated content. YouTube's examples exempt cloning your own voice for a dub from disclosure, while content that makes a real person appear to say something they didn't say has to be disclosed.⁹ That example is about your own voice, so read the rule again if other people speak in your video, and check the rules of any other platform you post on.

Questions before you start