Guide
How to translate a video to English
Updated 2026-11-11
Translate a video into English when you already have the file and the right to use it. VidDub returns a finished video: the picture you uploaded, English subtitles in the frame, and an optional catalog voice timed to the speech.
When an English version is the right next cut
You already filmed the announcement, the lesson, or the product tour in another language. The people who need it next read and listen in English. Recording the whole piece again means booking the same room, the same clothes, and the same product on the table. Translating the file you have keeps that picture and changes the language.
English is also the version you hand to a teammate, a supplier, or a classroom that shares English as the common language. The subtitles live in the picture, so the words stay with the video when someone plays it on a phone. Videos on VidDub are within 10 minutes, so a lesson, a chapter, or a product clip is the right size.
Prepare a file you can actually upload
Export MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI, FLV, or WebM, up to 2 GB. Use the edit you would publish, with the titles and the b-roll already in place. VidDub reads the speech in that file. A separate script is useful for you, as a checklist, while you watch the preview.
Speak, or keep the speech, in one of the 17 source languages. The English output is one of the 18 target languages. If the clip mixes a little English with another language, listen once before you upload and decide which language is the one you want transcribed. A clean voice, closer to the microphone than the street noise, gives you a clearer English line.
You need the right to use the video. Save it on the computer or phone you will use to sign in. The browser and the iOS and Android apps both accept the job.
Sign in and choose English
Open viddubapp.com. Sign in with Google, with Apple, or with email on the website. The workspace is available after sign-in, and the free preview is available after sign-in. Pick English as the target language for this upload.
VidDub transcribes the speech, translates it into English, and writes synced subtitles into the picture. You can keep a single English line, or a bilingual line that shows the source language and English together. Bilingual is the better choice when the viewer may want the original wording beside the English, for names, jokes, or terms you would rather leave visible.
Then decide on the voice. A catalog AI voice can speak the English, timed to the original speech. Basic dubbing is free on the full video. The picture stays as you recorded it. If the original performance is the thing you want people to hear, you can keep that audio and rely on the English subtitles in the frame.
Read the English preview like an editor
Play the free preview after sign-in and read the English out loud in your head. Check product names, people’s names, and numbers. A price, a date, and a street name are the words a viewer will trust or doubt first. If a sentence is too long for the frame, the preview is where you see it, before you spend the minutes on the download.
Listen for pace when you add the catalog voice. The voice follows the original timing, so a fast source language still produces a lively English line. If a sentence feels crowded, the subtitle in the picture is the line your viewer will read even when they mute the phone. That is the line to judge.
The full download uses minutes. One-time packs on the web start at $3.90 for 30 minutes. Under a minute of video counts as one minute. Pro and Max plans are sold in the iOS and Android apps, and those plans are monthly minutes, separate from a one-time pack you buy on the web. A one-time pack stays available until you use it. It is a pack of minutes, not a subscription that resets.
A worked example: a product tour into English
Imagine a four-minute tour filmed in Spanish in a small shop. The owner names three products, a price, and the street the shop is on. You export the MP4 from the phone, sign in, and choose English. The preview shows the same shelves and the same hands, with English subtitles in the picture.
You pause on the price. The number matches. You pause on the street. The name is intact. You add a catalog voice for the English and play the preview again. The voice sits with the original timing, and the picture is still the shop you filmed. You download the full video with minutes and save it the same day.
Finished files are kept for about 24 hours. Treat the download as the copy you will publish, and keep your own backup. The subtitle file comes with the video, so you also have the English text if a teammate needs to paste a sentence into the post that accompanies the video.
If you later need Spanish again, the original file is still yours. The English version is a new file. You can also open the English to Spanish guide when you are heading the other direction, or the Chinese to English guide when the source recording is Chinese.
Publish the English file
Upload the finished video to the place your audience already watches: a product page, a lesson, a feed, or a message to a client. The subtitles are in the picture, so the English remains visible when the platform compresses the audio or when the viewer watches muted.
Related translations
Questions
What do I get back?
A finished video with English subtitles in the picture, an optional catalog voice, and a subtitle file.
Is the preview free?
Yes. The free preview is available after sign-in. The full download uses minutes.
Can the subtitles show both languages?
Yes. Choose a single English line or bilingual subtitles in the picture.
Where does this run?
In the browser at viddubapp.com and in the iOS and Android apps.
How much is a small pack?
One-time minute packs start at $3.90 for 30 minutes. The prices are on the pricing page.