Guide · Updated
How to add animated captions and titles to your videos
Make karaoke-style captions, hook titles and lower thirds that pop in word by word, and add them to Reels, TikTok and Shorts.
Many people scroll with the sound off, so on-screen text often carries the message. Animated captions also keep the eye moving from line to line, which is half the reason a video holds attention past three seconds.
1. Start with a caption template
Use the Caption bar for karaoke-style captions, Word-pop captions for the bold one-word-at-a-time style, the Title card for a hook, or the Lower third to introduce a speaker. The rest of captions covers Highlighter text, Quote card, Speech bubble, Checklist reveal, Top 5 countdown list, “Did you know?” fact card and Typewriter terminal caption.
2. Type your text and choose an effect
Most text templates share the same animation list: Typewriter, Fade in, Fade up, Fade down, Slide from left or right, Zoom in, Pop, Blur in, Word by word, Letter by letter, Bouncy letters, Line by line and Wipe reveal. Each one has its own Text speed and Text delay, so you can hold the screen for half a second before the words start.
Emphasis is done in the text itself. In Word-pop captions you wrap a keyword in stars, like *this*, and it gets the keyword color. In Highlighter text and “Did you know?” fact card you wrap words in square brackets and they are marked as if by a highlighter. The Caption bar instead lights each word in turn, karaoke style, and you choose which word is lit in a still image.
3. Style it for a phone
Set the size, width and colors in the Style tab. Useful switches: Uppercase, a dark box behind the text for bright footage, a tilt on each line for a hand-placed look, and a font choice on the word-pop captions.
4. Export on a transparent background
Set Background to None and export MOV, or WebM for CapCut, then place the captions on a track above your clip. Several caption templates already start transparent. Read the overlay guide if the background comes out black.
Caption styles and when to use them
- Karaoke highlight: talking-head videos, where each word lights up as it is spoken.
- Word pop: fast, punchy voiceover, with one to three words on screen at a time.
- Title card: the hook in the first two seconds.
- Lower third: introducing a person, a role or a place.
- Highlighter text: quotes and key takeaways.
- Checklist reveal and Top 5 countdown: list videos, where each item lands on a beat.
- Typewriter terminal: tech and coding content, with typed commands and printed output.
Hooks and stickers that go with captions
captions also holds hooks that sit around a caption, like “Follow for part 2” and the “Wait till the end” hook hook with a progress bar. The platform pieces that go with them are in social & reviews: a Short-video comment reply sticker to answer a comment, a Subscribe button click with a pointer that taps the button, Like, comment, share, save for the same four icons, and a Story poll sticker or Story countdown sticker sticker. A number that counts up, like Stat counter, is in data & stats.
Readability tips
- Lines of two to five words are easier to read on a phone than full sentences.
- Keep captions out of the bottom fifth of a 9:16 frame, where app buttons and the description sit.
- Use a dark box behind white text when your footage is bright or busy.
- Pick one keyword per line to color. Coloring everything is the same as coloring nothing.
- Match the text speed to the voice. If the words finish before the sentence does, slow them down.
Common mistakes
- Captions that outrun the audio. Set the text speed and delay against your own voiceover, not by eye.
- Too many words on screen. Split the line instead of shrinking the type.
- Exporting MP4 for an overlay. The background comes out black. Use MOV or WebM.
- Thin type on busy footage. Turn on the dark box, or switch the look to outline.
- A different font and color every line. Pick one and keep it across the video.
Questions people ask
Does gizzMotion transcribe my audio?
No. There is no speech recognition and no audio at all. You type the words, and you set the pace. For auto-transcribed subtitles, use the caption tool in your editor or in the app you post from.
Can I change the font?
Some templates offer a font choice, and all of them let you set size, width, colors, uppercase and the background. The font list is fixed; you cannot upload your own.
Can I export a caption as a still image?
Yes. Export PNG, which is transparent when the background is None. Templates that animate word by word have a setting for which word is showing in the still.
How long should a caption overlay be?
As long as the line takes to read, plus a beat. Most run two to four seconds. Set the hold in the Motion tab.