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Resolve subtitles in the render

DaVinci Resolve leaves subtitles out of a render unless you tell it to include them. On the Deliver page, open the Video settings, tick Export Subtitle and choose Burn into video, then make sure the subtitle track you want is switched on in the timeline.

Updated 28 October 2026

Why the render has no subtitles

  • Export Subtitle is unticked: the option is easy to miss in the render settings, and without it the subtitle track stays out of the file.
  • The format isn't Burn into video: As a separate file writes a subtitle file next to the video, and As embedded captions adds a track most social apps ignore.
  • The wrong track is on: Resolve uses the subtitle track that is enabled in the timeline. With several tracks, a disabled or empty one gives you nothing.
  • A cache problem: on Blackmagic's forum, users describe subtitles that were already burnt in going missing from a render. Clearing the render cache and rendering a short test is a sensible first step.

Fix it in DaVinci Resolve

  • On the Edit page, check that the subtitle track is enabled and switch off any other subtitle track.
  • Go to the Deliver page, open Video in the render settings and scroll down to Subtitle Settings.
  • Tick Export Subtitle and set Format to Burn into video.
  • If the render still has no subtitles, delete the render cache and render a short in-to-out range as a test.
  • Play the result in another player before uploading it.

If YouTube should get a subtitle track as well, render a second time with As a separate file and upload that file next to the video.

Captions that survive any render

  1. Render your edit without subtitles, or bounce just the voice, and add it to the Cuecaps studio.
  2. Click Find words, choose the Language, and fix wrong words, splitting or merging any the model cut in the wrong place.
  3. Pick a style and play it through; each word's timing snaps to the waveform.
  4. Export a Transparent MOV, place it on the track above your edit in Resolve and render with the subtitle settings left alone.

Resolve treats the overlay as a normal clip with alpha, so it renders exactly like your footage, in the free version as well as Studio.

Transparent export needs the Creator or Pro plan. Any plan can download SRT and VTT, and a free account can export the finished MP4 with the captions burned in and a small Made with cuecaps.com mark.

Clean TikTok Sans in normal case, one word at a time, with a soft shadow and no outline.
Use Clean on your video
Boxed Dark TikTok Sans on a white box, up to four words at a time.
Use Boxed on your video
Editorial Instrument Serif with punctuation kept, up to six words on two lines. Words not yet spoken are dimmed.
Use Editorial on your video

Some previews use a frame from Sprite Fright by Blender Studio, CC BY 4.0, cropped.

Questions

Why are my subtitles not exporting in DaVinci Resolve?

Export Subtitle isn't ticked in the Deliver page's Video settings, or its format isn't Burn into video. Tick it, choose the format and render again.

Why do subtitles show in the Resolve viewer but not in the render?

The viewer shows the enabled subtitle track whatever the render settings say. The render only includes subtitles when Export Subtitle is on.

How do I export only the subtitles from Resolve?

Right-click the subtitle track header and choose Export Subtitle to save a subtitle file, or render with Format set to As a separate file.

Does the overlay work with the free version of Resolve?

Yes. It is an ordinary video file with transparency, so it works in the free version and in Studio.

Try it on your video

You can also drop a file anywhere on this page. Or tryTry the demo clip

Fix it in Cuecaps