How to Get Live Captions on Any Video, Stream or Call
Updated 2026-10-18
Your computer may already be able to caption audio for free. Built-in live captions are great for following along in a supported language; a dedicated tool helps when you need other languages, translation into your language, or a saved transcript.
Built-in options
Chrome Live Caption
Chrome can caption media playing in the browser (Settings → Accessibility → Live Caption). It runs on your device and supports a limited set of languages; newer versions can also translate captions for some languages. Availability depends on your Chrome version and platform.
Windows 11 Live Captions
Windows 11 captions any audio on the PC (press Win + Ctrl + L). Language support and translation features depend on your Windows version and device — check Microsoft’s documentation for your setup.
macOS Live Captions
macOS offers Live Captions in System Settings → Accessibility. It captions system audio and FaceTime-style calls; supported languages and regions are limited.
When a dedicated tool is the better fit
- Languages: you need to caption a language the built-in features do not support — LiveToka recognises speech in 55+ languages and bilingual modes.
- Translation into your language: read a Japanese stream in English, or an English sermon in Vietnamese, with the original line underneath.
- Saved transcripts: keep the text, export it as TXT, SRT or CSV, and review it later.
- Presenting: show large translated captions on a projector with a full-screen caption view.
How to caption a video with LiveToka
- Open the video or stream in a browser tab.
- In LiveToka, choose Tab or screen audio in the microphone list (Chrome or Edge on a computer).
- Pick the spoken language, and your language as the target if you want translation.
- Press Start, choose the tab and turn on Share tab audio. Captions appear as people speak.
For desktop apps, use a virtual audio device instead — see the guides for VB-CABLE on Windows and BlackHole on Mac.
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Related guides
- Translated Captions in Zoom, Teams and Meet — and When to Use a Browser Tool
- Capture Computer Audio in Your Browser with VB-CABLE on Windows
- Route Mac Audio into Your Browser with BlackHole
Use cases
- Real-Time Translation for YouTube Live Streams
- Real-Time Lecture Transcription & Translation for Students
Frequently asked questions
Are built-in live captions free?
Yes, the Chrome, Windows and macOS features are free. They differ in supported languages and whether they translate.
Can I save captions as subtitles?
With LiveToka you can download the session as an SRT subtitle file, or copy and download it as text.