Subtitles

Subtitles come from two places: tracks embedded inside the video file, and sidecar files sitting next to it. The player merges both into one menu, so you never need to care which is which. This page covers how selection works, what plays natively, and the honest list of what doesn't.

What plays without any cost#

Text subtitles in the common formats (SRT, ASS/SSA, WebVTT, and text tracks inside MP4 files) are delivered as separate tracks and drawn by the app. Turning them on never re-encodes the video and adds no meaningful server load.

Styled subtitles keep their styling. ASS subtitles render with their full positioning, colors, and typesetting, and fonts embedded in the file are used, so anime typesetting looks the way its authors intended. If the styled renderer can't start on a device, you get a plain-text version rather than nothing.

PGS subtitles, the image-based format from Blu-rays, are drawn by the app itself on the web player, Android TV, and the Apple apps, so they no longer force a conversion either.

What doesn't work yet#

We would rather tell you than have you wonder:

• VobSub and DVB subtitles (the DVD and broadcast image formats) currently do not display. If a title only has those, add an SRT sidecar next to the file; it shows up after the next scan.
• Bitmap sidecar files (.sup, .idx + .sub) are not picked up. Sidecars need to be text: .srt, .ass, .ssa, or .vtt.
• Tracks in formats we don't recognize are dropped silently. If a track you know exists never shows in the menu, this is the likely reason, and we'd like to hear about the file.

Choosing subtitles#

Pick a track from the subtitle menu in the player. Your choice is remembered per title on that device, including choosing Off, so a rewatch resumes with the same setup and the pre-play popover on the title page shows what will be used.

Your defaults live under Settings, then Audio & Subtitles, and follow your account to every device:

When picking among several tracks in your language, the player prefers full dialogue tracks over partial ones like "signs & songs". Tracks marked SDH (subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing) are labelled in the menu.

If your device or browser is set to a language other than English, subtitles start on in that language by default. English-locale devices start with subtitles off. Either way, your own settings win once you change them.

Forced subtitles#

Forced subtitles are the small ones for foreign dialogue or on-screen text, and they behave the way you'd hope: even with subtitles off, a forced track that matches the audio language you are listening to is shown automatically. A track counts as forced if the file flags it, or if its name says so, for sidecars a forced token in the filename does it.

Burned-in subtitles#

For the few bitmap formats an app can't draw itself, the menu offers the track labelled burn-in. Choosing it composites the subtitles into the picture on the server, which requires re-encoding the video, the same cost as any transcode. Text subtitles are never burned in; they don't need it.

Naming sidecar files#

The short version: Movie (2019).en.srt next to Movie (2019).mkv, with optional forced or sdh tokens, or drop files into a Subs/ folder. The full naming rules live in Name your media files.

If something is off#

• The track never appears. Most often a format we can't serve (see the list above) or, for a sidecar, a filename that doesn't exactly match the video's name as a prefix. Aliens.en.srt will not attach to Alien.mkv.
• Subtitles take a moment to show on a huge file. The first request extracts the full track from the source, which can take a while on a multi-GB file. The player shows a window around your position in the meantime, and the next play is instant.
• Your pick isn't remembered on one title. Tracks with no language tag can't be remembered and fall back to your language preferences each time. Tag the track or use a named sidecar.
• Styled subtitles look plain for the first seconds. The styled version loads right behind the plain one on first play; it catches up on its own.

Still stuck? Getting help & feedback covers what to send us.