Shotcut has two completely different ways of getting subtitles into an export, and only one of them puts the text onto the picture. If your captions look right in the Subtitles panel but are invisible in the exported file, you almost certainly took the first route while expecting the second.
The two routes, in Shotcut's own wording
The Shotcut User Guide describes the first route in a single short paragraph:
"Embedding Subtitles When exporting a Shotcut project, subtitles will be embedded in the output file if the file format supports it. Formats that commonly support subtitles include MKV, MOV and MP4."
Two things in that sentence do most of the work. The first is the condition "if the file format supports it" — embedding is conditional on the output format, not guaranteed by the export. The second is the phrasing of the list: these are formats that commonly support subtitles, introduced with "include". MKV, MOV and MP4 are named as examples; the sentence is not a whitelist, and it does not rule anything else in or out.
The second route is a video filter, and the guide is specific about where it can live:
"The Subtitle Burn-In Filter can overlay subtitles that have been authored in the Subtitles Panel. The filter can only be added to the Timeline Output."
That is the route that makes the text part of the video image. Embedding puts subtitles inside the container alongside the video; burning in makes them pixels in the video itself. If you need the words visible no matter what opens the file, the filter is the documented way to get there.
Both features arrived together. The guide notes that "The Subtitles Panel was added in Shotcut 24.08" and that "The Subtitles Burn-In Filter was added in Shotcut 24.08".
The fastest fix: burn them in instead of embedding
If the export needs to show subtitles unconditionally, stop relying on embedding and add the filter.
- Finish your timeline edit first. The guide is explicit: "We recommend to save subtitle editing until the timeline editing is complete because moving or cutting clips on the timeline will break the subtitle synchronization."
- Select the Timeline Output track — not a clip, not a video track. The filter "can only be added to the Timeline Output", and the release note for 24.08.29 repeats it: "Added Subtitle Burn In video filter (only works on Output track)."
- Add the Subtitle Burn-In video filter there.
- Pick the track you want. Per the guide: "After you add the Subtitle Burn-In Filter to the Timeline Output, select the subitle track name from the Subtitle Panel that you want to overlay." (The typo is in the official text.) This step matters if you built more than one subtitle track — the guide notes that multiple subtitle tracks can be added, and that only the currently selected one is shown in the Subtitle panel and the Timeline.
- Style it. The guide says "The subtitle overlay text can be configured similar to the Simple:Text filter - including the preview window controls for size and position."
Adding the filter to a clip instead of the Output track is the single most likely reason a burn-in produced nothing: Shotcut lets you place it, and the official constraint is stated in two separate places.
Try it right here
Runs in your browser. Your file is not uploaded anywhere.
If you already have a finished video file and an SRT beside it, the tool above burns the text in directly in your browser — no re-editing the project, and the file never leaves your device. It is also the practical answer when the person who needs the captions is not the person with the Shotcut project.
The checkbox that only shows up in the release notes
There is a switch that turns embedding off, and it is worth knowing about because of where it is documented.
As of Release 24.08.29, Shotcut's release notes record: "Added Export > Other > Disable subtitles checkbox."
That is the source for it. The User Guide's Subtitles section describes embedding and the Burn-In filter, but it does not describe this checkbox — so if you go looking for an explanation of what it does or when it defaults on, the guide is not where you will find it. Check the Export panel's Other tab directly, and check the official documentation for its current behaviour before assuming anything about the default state.
This matters for a specific scenario: a shared or inherited export preset. The guide says presets are "really a list of thing to change from the defaults" and that they are saved as files you can share with others. If you imported someone else's preset and your subtitles stopped embedding, the Other tab is worth a look before you rebuild the project.
Other causes, in order of likelihood
You exported from something other than the Timeline. Shotcut's Export panel has a From dropdown, and the guide says subtitles "can only be added to the Timeline. They can not be added to the playlist or clips." The From options include Current Playlist Bin, Each Playlist Bin Item, Source and Marker. Timeline is the default "if you have added anything to the Timeline", so check that it has not been changed.
You exported a range Marker. This one has a documented history: "Fixed using Export > From > Marker with subtitles creates a bad output (broke in v24.08)." That is Release 24.11.17, meaning it describes a bug that existed and was fixed — not a current state. If you are on an older build and exporting a marker range, updating is the direct move.
The subtitles are there, but in the wrong place. The guide warns: "Subtitles are imported at the current cursor position.So be sure to place the cursor before importing subtitles from a file." (The missing space is in the original.) If the playhead was parked somewhere unexpected when you imported an SRT, the whole file lands there.
You edited the timeline after writing the subtitles. Moving or cutting clips "will break the subtitle synchronization", per the guide. Symptomatically this reads as "the captions are late" rather than "nothing shows", but it sends people hunting through export settings for a problem that is upstream.
An invalid container and codec combination. The guide lists among common pitfalls "Choosing a codec not supported by the selected container" and says these issues can "Cause export failure Produce unplayable files Result in silent audio or missing video". If your export is misbehaving in more ways than just the captions, start by clicking Reset in the Export panel — see Shotcut export failed for that whole path.
How to tell it worked
Check what Shotcut thinks it has before you check the output file. The guide states: "Subtitles can be exported to a file. Subtitles are exported in SRT format." Export the subtitle file and open it — if the timings there are wrong, the export settings were never the problem.
Then open the video. Burned-in text is visible immediately with no player controls involved. An embedded subtitle track is a separate stream in the container, so look in your player's subtitle or track menu for it.
FAQ
Does Shotcut embed subtitles into MP4? The User Guide says subtitles "will be embedded in the output file if the file format supports it" and names MKV, MOV and MP4 among formats that commonly support subtitles. The condition on the file format is part of the official sentence, so treat it as conditional rather than automatic.
Why is my Subtitle Burn-In filter doing nothing? The most likely reason is placement. Shotcut's documentation states in two places that the filter can only be added to the Timeline Output track. After adding it, you also have to select which subtitle track name to overlay.
Can Shotcut export subtitles as VTT? No — the guide says subtitles are exported in SRT format. Import is wider: "Supported subtitle import formats include: SRT, VTT, ASS, and SSA." If you need VTT, convert the exported SRT afterwards with SRT to VTT.
Where is the setting that disables subtitles on export?
Shotcut's release notes for 24.08.29 record the addition of an Export > Other > Disable subtitles checkbox. The User Guide does not cover it, so check the Other tab in the Export panel and confirm current behaviour against the official documentation.
My subtitles show but are a frame or two off. Is that a bug? Shotcut's release notes record "Fixed off-by-one frame errors in subtitle bar in Timeline and Subtitle Burn In video filter" in Release 26.8.1. That is a record of a fix in that version, not a statement about your build — check which version you are running.
Still stuck on the export side rather than the subtitle side? Start with our fix guides, or go straight to all Clapr tools if you would rather do the job in a browser tab than in the Export panel.
