How do I open live captions with a keyboard shortcut?

Press the Windows key, Ctrl, and L all at the same time (Win + Ctrl + L) to open Live Captions instantly. The first time you use it, Windows will ask you to download the speech recognition files — tap Yes and wait a moment for the download to finish. After that, the caption bar will appear on your screen.

How do I choose where captions appear on your screen?

At the top of the caption bar, click the gear icon (Settings) and look for the "Position" option. You can dock the captions to the top of your screen, the bottom of your screen, or let the window float so you can drag it anywhere. Many people prefer the bottom so it looks like traditional subtitles.

How do I start playing audio and read the captions?

Play a YouTube video, start a Zoom call, or open a podcast app. The caption bar will immediately start showing text as words are spoken. The text scrolls left to right and wraps to the next line as needed. Captions disappear when no audio is detected, and resume when audio starts again.

How do I caption your own microphone?

To caption live speech — for example, if someone in the room is talking to you — open the caption settings by clicking the gear icon in the caption bar, then turn on "Include microphone audio." Now your microphone will be included in what gets captioned alongside any system audio.

How do I filter profanity and adjust text size?

In the caption settings, you can turn on "Filter profanity" to replace strong language with asterisks. You can also increase the text size for easier reading by clicking the "Caption style" option in settings. Larger text is especially helpful on a TV-connected computer or large monitor.

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Windows 11 includes a Live Captions feature that listens to any audio playing on your computer and displays it as text in real time. This means captions will appear whether you are watching a YouTube video, on a Zoom call, listening to a podcast, or playing a movie — without needing any special software or a subscription.

The feature is especially useful for people who are hard of hearing or deaf, people learning English as a second language, anyone in a noisy environment, or those watching content in a language they are still learning. It works with any audio your computer plays, including your own microphone if you want to caption live speech.

Live Captions in Windows 11 is powered by speech recognition that runs locally on your device. Microsoft does say that audio is processed using Azure Speech Services, so unlike Android's completely offline processing, an internet connection is required for the initial language model download. After setup, it works well even on slower connections.

You can choose where the captions appear: docked to the top of the screen, docked to the bottom, or floating as a window you can move anywhere. You can also filter out profanity if desired.

The quality of captions depends on audio clarity. A good microphone or clear audio source gives better results. Strongly accented speech or fast talking may produce occasional errors, but overall accuracy is quite good for everyday use.

This feature is available on Windows 11 version 22H2 and later. If you do not see it, make sure your Windows is up to date through Windows Update.

Enable Live Captions in Windows 11 for Real-Time Subtitles

Open Live Captions with a keyboard shortcut

Choose where captions appear on your screen

Start playing audio and read the captions

Caption your own microphone

Filter profanity and adjust text size

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