How to add text to a video

Add text in Clipchamp

Clipchamp comes with Windows 11 and runs in a browser on any computer. It has animated titles and plain text, and you choose how long each one stays on screen.

1. Open Clipchamp, create a new video, import your file and drag it onto the timeline.
2. Open the Text tab in the toolbar. Hover over a style to preview its animation; choose Plain text if you want no animation.
3. Drag the style onto the timeline above your video, or use its add-to-timeline button.
4. Select the text field in the property panel and type your words. You can also change the font, size, alignment and color there.
5. Drag the edges of the text on the timeline to set when it appears and disappears.
6. Select Export and choose a resolution. The video is saved with the text burned in.

Add text in iMovie on iPhone

1. Open iMovie, start a new movie project and add your video.
2. Tap the clip in the timeline to open the inspector at the bottom of the screen.
3. Tap the Titles button and choose a title style.
4. Tap the text in the viewer above the timeline, tap Edit, type your words and tap Done on the keyboard.
5. Drag the title to move it and pinch to resize it.
6. Tap Done, then the share button, and choose Save Video.

A clip with a title shows a small T icon in the timeline. To remove a title, tap the Titles button again and choose None.

Add a caption in your browser

When you need one short line of text on the whole clip, such as a label, a date or a call to action, MuteVideo’s Add text page is a quicker option. Type the text, choose Top, Center or Bottom and one of three styles (Minimal, Bold or Caption), and save. The text stays on screen for the whole video and the video is encoded again. It works with MP4, MOV and WebM files, up to 500 MB in total on a desktop or 150 MB on a phone.

Tips for text people can read

• Keep it short. Viewers need time to read, so aim for a few words per line and leave the text up for at least two or three seconds.
• Use contrast. White text with a dark outline or background stays readable on bright and busy footage.
• Pick the position on purpose. Top works for titles and labels, bottom for captions and quotes, and center for a short message over an empty background.
• Mind the app buttons. On Reels, TikTok and Shorts, the right edge and the bottom are covered by buttons and captions, so keep important text away from them.
• Check on a phone. Text that looks large on a monitor can be tiny on a small screen.

Text added this way is burned into the picture and cannot be turned off. If you want subtitles viewers can switch on and off, upload a separate subtitle file where the platform supports it.