Extract subtitles from MKV
A free MKV subtitle extractor. Drop in an MKV or WebM video, pick a subtitle track and save it as an SRT file. It runs in your browser, so your video never leaves your device, even a 20 GB movie.
Drop an MKV file here
Any size. WebM files work too.
Your video never leaves your device. The subtitles are read in your browser.
Save as
How to extract subtitles from an MKV file
To extract subtitles from an MKV file, drop the video into the extractor above. It lists every subtitle track in the file with its language, picks the default one and shows it as an SRT file. Choose another track, or another format (VTT, TXT, or the original ASS file with its styles), then click Download. It is free, needs no signup or software, works with files of any size, and your video never leaves your device.
How it works
- Step 1
Add your MKV
Drop an .mkv or .webm video onto the box, or choose it. Big movie files are fine: only the subtitles are read.
- Step 2
Pick a subtitle track
Every subtitle track is listed with its language, its format, and whether it is the default or forced track.
- Step 3
Choose a format
SRT for most players and editors, VTT for web players, TXT for just the words, or the original ASS file with its styles.
- Step 4
Download the file
It is named like Movie.eng.srt, so players such as VLC and Plex find it when it sits next to the video.
What the extractor reads from your MKV
- Text subtitle tracks in SRT, ASS, SSA and WebVTT, including tracks that were saved compressed.
- Each track’s language, its name, and whether it is the default or forced track, so you can tell them apart.
- Italics, bold and line breaks. Save an ASS or SSA track as ASS to keep its fonts, colours and positions too.
- WebM videos with WebVTT subtitles, and MKA and MKS files, which use the same format as MKV.
- Image subtitles, PGS from Blu-ray and VobSub from DVD, are listed but can’t become text here: they are pictures of words, so they need OCR software first.
- Files of any size. It reads the video from your disk in pieces and skips the picture and sound, so a full movie takes seconds and nothing is uploaded.
Want the subtitles burned into the video?
Upload your video and AutoSubtitles writes the subtitles from the speech, then burns them in as styled, animated captions that show on every phone and app. Free to start, with no account.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I extract subtitles from an MKV file?
Drop the MKV into the extractor at the top of this page. It lists the subtitle tracks inside and shows the default one as an SRT file. Pick the track you want, choose SRT, VTT, TXT or ASS, and click Download.
- Can I extract SRT from MKV without installing anything?
Yes. This page does it in your browser, on Windows, Mac, Linux or a Chromebook. You don’t need MKVToolNix, ffmpeg or any other software, and the video isn’t uploaded.
- Why can’t PGS or VobSub subtitles be saved as SRT?
Blu-ray (PGS) and DVD (VobSub) subtitles are stored as pictures of the words, not as text. Turning them into SRT means reading each picture with OCR software, such as Subtitle Edit. The extractor shows these tracks so you know they are there.
- I can see subtitles in my video, but no tracks are found. Why?
The subtitles are burned into the picture (hardcoded), so there is no subtitle track to extract. To get a subtitle file for that video, upload it to AutoSubtitles: it writes the subtitles from the speech, and you can download them as SRT with Pro.
- Which file should I download: SRT or ASS?
SRT works almost everywhere: media players, video editors, YouTube. It keeps the words, timings, italics and bold. ASS keeps the track’s fonts, colours and positions too, which matters for anime and karaoke subtitles, but fewer apps read it.
- Does it work with MP4 or AVI files?
No. It reads MKV and WebM files, plus MKA and MKS. MP4 and AVI store subtitles differently.
- Is there a file size limit?
No. The extractor reads the file from your disk in pieces and only looks at the subtitles, so a 20 GB movie works as well as a short clip.
- How do I put the subtitles back on a video?
Save the SRT next to the video with the same name, like Movie.mkv and Movie.eng.srt, and most players show it. To have the subtitles on the video itself, so they show on phones and social apps too, burn them in with AutoSubtitles.
- Is my video uploaded anywhere?
No. Your browser reads the file on your device. Nothing is sent to a server, so it works for private and unreleased videos too.
More free tools
- Subtitle editorFix the words and timings in an SRT or VTT file, with your video alongside.
- Subtitle shifterMove every subtitle earlier or later, or fix a frame rate mismatch.
- Add text to a GIFPut a caption or meme text on an animated GIF, in 28 caption styles.
- Subtitle converterConvert between SRT, VTT, SBV and TXT in one click.
- VTT to SRTTurn a WebVTT file into an SRT for editors and social platforms.
- SRT to VTTTurn an SRT into a WebVTT file for web players and course platforms.
- SRT to TXTTurn an SRT into a clean transcript with no numbers or timings.
- VTT to TXTTurn a VTT file or a Zoom or Teams transcript into plain text.
- TXT to SRTTurn a plain text script or transcript into a timed SRT, VTT or SBV file.