Burned-in MP4
open-caption MP4 for TikTok, Reels & Shorts
An MP4 with captions permanently baked into the pixel data — always visible on every platform, no toggle needed. The standard export format for TikTok, Reels, Shorts, and X where separate caption tracks are unreliable or invisible.
In depth
A burned-in MP4 has captions baked directly into the video frames during export. The captions are visible to every viewer on every platform regardless of caption support — there's no separate text track to lose. The trade-off: viewers can't toggle captions off, switch languages, or restyle. Burned-in MP4s are the standard delivery format for short-form social where captions don't survive cross-posting (TikTok, Reels, Shorts, X).
When to use it
Export a burned-in MP4 for short-form social, ad creative, and any deliverable where you don't trust the destination's caption rendering. Use a separate SRT for long-form YouTube and accessibility-critical contexts.
Frequently asked
How is a burned-in MP4 different from a regular MP4?+
Same container, same codec — only the pixel content differs. A burned-in MP4 has captions rendered into the frames; a regular MP4 has separate or no caption tracks.
Can a burned-in MP4 also have a soft caption track?+
Technically yes — you can mux a sidecar SRT track into the MP4 container alongside the burned-in captions. Most workflows ship one or the other, not both.
Hardcoded subtitles (also called burned-in or open captions) are permanently rendered into the video pixels — identical on every player and platform, but viewers can't turn them off. Required for TikTok, Reels, and Shorts where caption tracks are hidden during feed autoplay.
Subtitles rasterized into the video pixels during export. Identical on every platform, but viewers can't toggle them off.
Captions burned permanently into the video frame so every viewer sees them. The opposite of closed captions, which can be toggled.