Input example
approved script + final voiceover audio for this publishing workflow
Subtitle workflow guide
Fix subtitle line breaks: word-boundary rewrap for SRT and VTT files
Long subtitle lines break viewers' reading flow. When a single subtitle line exceeds 42 characters, the viewer's eye has to track further across the screen — and on mobile, the text often wraps awkwardly. This guide shows how to detect and fix long subtitle lines without touching timestamps or rewriting your script.
Output asset example
SRT/VTT subtitle assets plus quality notes for downstream upload or editor handoff
Common review point
Late narration edits shift subtitle timing against the approved script.
Decision points
Why line length matters
Broadcasters and streaming platforms cap subtitle lines at 42 characters for Latin-script languages (fewer for CJK). Lines longer than this reduce readability and fail most professional delivery checks. Reading speed violations and long display durations often share the same root cause: a subtitle line that was never properly segmented.
What the free tool does
The TimedSubs subtitle checker finds every line in your SRT or VTT file that exceeds the threshold. For fixable lines, the repair button folds text at word boundaries so each line stays within the limit — without changing timestamps, wording, or subtitle count.
What the tool cannot fix
If your subtitles were chunked by an automatic speech recognition tool, segmentation boundaries may not align with natural phrase breaks. Lines that look too long because the audio segment is wrong need to be re-timed from the original script and audio — that is what the paid Script + Audio workflow handles.
Practical workflow
- 1
Upload your SRT or VTT subtitle file to the free subtitle checker.
- 2
Review the report for long-line warnings — the tool shows which lines exceed the threshold.
- 3
Click 'Fix long lines' to apply word-boundary rewrap in your browser.
- 4
Download the fixed subtitle file and verify timestamps are unchanged.
- 5
If segmentation problems remain, create a TimedSubs project from your approved script and audio.
Product boundary
The free subtitle checker repairs formatting within existing subtitle boundaries. Re-timing from audio is a separate paid workflow.
FAQ
Does fixing line breaks change my timestamps?
No. The free rewrap tool only changes where line breaks appear within a subtitle line. Start time, end time, and display text are unchanged.
Why does the tool skip some long lines?
Lines where every word is already longer than the threshold cannot be shortened by line folding. The tool reports these as remaining issues.
Does this work for Chinese or Japanese subtitles?
The current free rewrap is available for Latin-script languages (English, Spanish, etc.). CJK rewrap requires different word-boundary rules and is coming soon.
When do I need the paid Script + Audio workflow instead?
When your subtitle timing is wrong — not just formatted poorly. If the subtitle boundaries don't match where the speaker pauses, only re-aligning from script and audio will fix segmentation. Line-break rewrap only fixes readability within correct subtitle boundaries.