Convert MP4 video to text.

What people transcribe from MP4

MP4 is the default video format for phones, screen recorders, video call apps and most editing software, so it covers almost every video transcription job: recorded meetings and webinars, YouTube or course videos you made yourself, interviews filmed on a phone, product demos, vlogs and social clips.

How browser-side audio extraction works

A transcript only needs the speech, not the picture. When you choose a supported MP4, Media2Text reads the file inside your browser and prepares its audio track locally. Only that audio is uploaded for transcription. A one-hour 1080p recording can be several gigabytes, while its audio is a small fraction of that, so uploads finish faster and your video never leaves your device. The security page explains the data flow.

Tips for better MP4 transcripts

Transcribe the final edit

If you plan to make subtitles, transcribe the version you will publish so the timing matches. Transcribing raw footage and then cutting it means re-timing every caption.

Watch out for music beds

Background music under speech, common in social videos and vlogs, can reduce accuracy. If you edited the video, exporting the dialogue track alone gives a cleaner result.

Check screen-recording audio

Screen recorders sometimes capture system audio and microphone on separate tracks, or miss the microphone entirely. Play the file before uploading to confirm the speech is audible.

Exports

Export TXT, Markdown, DOCX, PDF, CSV, TSV, JSON, SRT or VTT from the same reviewed transcript. For subtitles, the SRT subtitle guide explains readable cue length and how to import captions into editors and YouTube.

Other video formats

Media2Text also accepts 3GP, MKV, MOV, MPG, TS, WEBM and WMV. Apple devices often record MOV; see MOV to text.

MP4 sources that work well

Most MP4 files people transcribe come from screen recordings, downloaded webinars, meeting recordings, phone videos and exports from video editors. All of them work the same way: choose the file, let the browser prepare the audio and start transcription. If you exported the MP4 yourself, transcribe the final cut so caption timestamps match the published video. If you only need the speech from a very long file, trimming silence at the start and end in your editor can save minutes from your allowance.

Reviewing the transcript before you use it

Automatic transcription gives you a fast, timed draft. Before you publish, quote or share it, spend a few minutes on the parts that matter most. Rename the speaker labels so every export shows real names. Use find and replace for names, brands and technical terms that appear more than once. Then click the timestamps for the passages you will actually quote and listen to them: overlapping voices, background music and fast speech are where errors cluster. The editor keeps the text and the audio together, so checking a line takes seconds instead of scrubbing through the whole recording.

Trial and plans

The free trial includes up to 2 lifetime transcription tasks sharing 75 minutes in total, with no credit card. Paid plans have unlimited uploads and accept files up to 5 hours 15 minutes long.