Can You Get a Transcript for YouTube Shorts?

Published on October 14, 2025

You want to read what’s spoken in a short video. You wonder whether a transcript is possible for a YouTube Short. transcript.you can fetch transcripts and help you turn them into notes, quotes, insights, clips and more.

Quick Summary:
Often you can get a transcript for a YouTube Short by turning its URL into a standard “watch” link and then using YouTube’s “Show transcript” option. Some Shorts don’t have transcripts if captions are disabled. transcript.you can pull that text and feed it into features like speaker ID, notes, quotes, clips, summaries and more for your work.

Why transcripts for Shorts don’t always show up

YouTube Shorts are special in how they are displayed. The “shorts” URL format does not always include the interface to show transcripts. Some creators disable captions or transcripts. But many Shorts do have underlying caption data that can be accessed with the right trick.

One user on Reddit noted:

“copy video url … open it in a new tab. You will have access to the transcript now.” (reddit.com)

A StackExchange answer explains: change the Shorts URL (youtube.com/shorts/ID) to a normal video link (youtube.com/watch?v=ID), then use “Show transcript.” (webapps.stackexchange.com)

Step-by-step: Get transcript for a Short

1. Copy the Shorts URL or click “Share.”
2. Extract the video ID (the part after “shorts/”).
3. Build a regular YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID.
4. Open that link in browser.
5. Click the three-dots or “More” then “Show transcript” from the video description.
6. Copy the transcript text.

One trick in one sentence

Change shorts/XYZ to watch?v=XYZ, then open “Show transcript.”

How transcript.you works with Shorts transcripts

transcript.you can accept that standard YouTube link and fetch the transcript. Then you can apply features like:

• Main Idea: Summarize the Short’s message in one line.
• Extract Insights: List short, clear takeaways drawn from the video.
• Key Insights: Provide quick points that show why the Short matters.
• Short Summary: Give a fast overview of what the viewer said.
• Notable Quotes: Pull exact memorable lines with timestamps.

Tips when a transcript is missing or error-prone

Sometimes YouTube won’t show a transcript. Or auto captions may have errors. In that case:

*play slowly and type key lines yourself* *use an external captioning site* *apply the QEC Method to condense each idea quickly*

Inline checklist for working faster

You can 1) copy the text, 2) paste it into transcript.you, 3) run it through your favorite feature, and 4) export it as notes or clips in seconds.

What if you later add a new Shorts link?

You can paste the new link into transcript.you. It will check the link, convert to watch format if needed, fetch transcripts, and then offer minute marks, quotes, or clips ready for you to use.

Final thought on Short video transcripts

You can often retrieve a transcript for a YouTube Short with a simple URL tweak. Once you do, transcript.you turns that text into powerful content tools. If there’s no transcript available, you can still work manually or use your own note method.