# Open Captions > Open captions are captions burned into the video frames, so they are always visible and can't be turned off; they're also called burned-in captions or hardcoded subtitles. Closed captions sit in a separate track the viewer toggles. Kenerate's Auto Subtitles makes open captions: it transcribes the speech and burns it into one MP4. URL: https://kenerateai.com/open-captions Publisher: Kenerate AI (https://kenerateai.com) Last updated: 3 October 2026 ## Key facts - Also called: Burned-in, hardcoded - Viewer can turn off: No - Needs player support: No - Kenerate makes: Open captions only - Separate file: None - Styles: 10 - Kenerate Auto Subtitles (Open (burned in)): Finished clip up to 4 min → MP4 with captions in the frames. Social feeds, ads, venue screens. - Editor burn-in export (Open (burned in)): Caption track in a video editor → Re-encoded video with the captions drawn in. Hand-edited open captions. - Instagram Captions sticker (Open, on the Reel): A Reel in the mobile app → Captions drawn on that post. Quick Reels made on a phone. - YouTube captions (Closed): A video on YouTube → A CC track viewers switch on. Long videos, several languages. - TikTok captions (Closed): A clip in the TikTok editor → Captions viewers can switch off. Posts that stay on TikTok. - SRT or VTT file (Closed): A timed text file → A track the player loads. Websites, archives, translation. ## Steps 1. Start from the final edit — Open captions can't be removed, so caption the finished cut. 2. Keep an uncaptioned master — Save the original in case you need closed captions or another language later. 3. Upload it to Auto Subtitles — MP4, MOV or WebM up to 4 minutes and 100 MB. 4. Choose style, position and shadow — Simple at the Bottom is the classic open-caption look. 5. Burn in and check — After about 1–3 minutes, compare Original vs Captioned and download. ## In depth ### A short history of open captions Open captions came first. Regular open-captioned broadcasts began in 1972 with The French Chef on PBS, and the first regularly scheduled closed captioning on American television followed on 16 March 1980 [1]. Closed captions won on television because viewers could hide them; online, open captions came back with muted autoplay feeds. ### Why the words are permanent Burning in means the captions are drawn onto each frame and the video is encoded again, so the text becomes part of the image [1]. There's no caption track left to edit, translate or remove. Plan for that: finish the edit and check the spelling of names before burning in, and keep the clean master. ### Open captions in accessibility guidance The W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative describes most web captions as closed captions viewers can turn on, and open captions as always displayed [2]. It also defines captions as covering both speech and the non-speech audio needed to follow the video. Automatic open captions handle the speech; add sound cues yourself when they matter. ### Where open captions earn their place Use them where the player is out of your hands. - Autoplaying social feeds, where many people scroll on mute. - Paid ads, which must make sense with the sound off. - Screens in shops, lobbies and trade-show booths. - Videos shared in messaging apps and email. - Clips reposted by others, where your captions travel with the file. References: [1] Closed captioning — Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed_captioning [2] W3C Web Accessibility Initiative — Captions/Subtitles, checked 3 October 2026: https://www.w3.org/WAI/media/av/captions/ [3] Subtitles — Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subtitles ## FAQ Q: What is the difference between open and closed captions? A: Open captions are burned into the picture and always visible; closed captions are a separate track that viewers switch on or off, and sometimes restyle, in the player. Open captions work everywhere, including players with no caption support. Closed captions allow several languages and later edits. Kenerate makes open captions only, as one MP4 with the text in the frames. Q: Are burned-in captions the same as open captions? A: Yes. Burned-in, hardcoded, baked-in and open captions all describe the same thing: caption text drawn into the video frames so it becomes part of the image. People tend to say hardcoded subtitles for translated dialogue and open captions for same-language text, but both are made the same way and share the same trade-offs. Q: Can open captions be removed from a video? A: Not cleanly. Once captions are burned in, they are pixels in the image like everything else, so there's no track to delete. That's why you should keep the uncaptioned original file. If you need a version without captions later, export it from that master rather than trying to erase text from the captioned copy. Q: Are open captions good for accessibility? A: They help, with limits. Open captions are always on, so nobody has to find a CC button, which helps viewers who don't know the setting exists. But viewers can't enlarge or restyle them, and W3C notes that captions should also cover meaningful non-speech audio. Kenerate's captions transcribe speech only, so add sound cues separately when they matter. Q: When should I use open captions? A: Use them when you control the look and the video may play where captions can't be switched on: social feeds that autoplay on mute, ads, screens at events or in shops, and messaging apps. Prefer closed captions for long videos, multilingual audiences and anywhere viewers expect a CC button, such as YouTube or a course platform. Q: What is an open caption movie screening? A: It's a cinema showing where the captions appear on screen for everyone in the room, rather than on a personal device. Theatres do this with burned-in captions or with text projected alongside the film. The idea is the same as open captions online: one version of the picture, with the words included, for every viewer. ## Related pages - Add subtitles to video: https://kenerateai.com/add-subtitles-to-video - Auto subtitle generator: https://kenerateai.com/auto-subtitle-generator - YouTube subtitles: https://kenerateai.com/youtube-subtitles - How to add subtitles to video: https://kenerateai.com/how-to-add-subtitles-to-video - Add captions to video: https://kenerateai.com/add-captions-to-video ## Sources - Kenerate Auto Subtitles (tool): https://kenerateai.com/app/tool/subtitles - Closed captioning — Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed_captioning - W3C Web Accessibility Initiative — Captions/Subtitles, checked 3 October 2026: https://www.w3.org/WAI/media/av/captions/ - Subtitles — Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subtitles