About live captions and transcripts
Live captions turn spoken words into on-screen text as someone is speaking.
A transcript is a written record of what was said, usually available afterwards (and sometimes during the meeting too).
These tools can make meetings, training, and videos easier to follow – especially if you have a hearing impairment, your computer’s sound quality is poor, or you are in a noisy environment.
Who this can help (and how)
Live captions and transcripts can be useful for:
- D/deaf or hard of hearing people: follow speech in real time and review afterwards
- People with auditory processing difficulties: reading alongside listening can improve understanding
- Neurodivergent colleagues (e.g., ADHD, autism): helps maintain focus, reduces cognitive load, and supports note-taking
- People with fatigue, brain fog, or stress: supports concentration when listening feels effortful
- Anyone in a noisy office or quiet space: follow a meeting without needing loud audio, or with headphones off
- People joining in a second language: reading along can make speech easier to understand
What you will need
- A device with Windows (for Windows Live Captions) or access to Microsoft Teams (for meeting captions or transcripts)
- A microphone or audio source that is reasonably clear – captions work best with less background noise
- If you want transcripts in Teams, your organisation may need to allow that feature
Tips for effective use
- Use Clear Microphones: Each speaker should use their own device or microphone to ensure accurate speaker identification.
- Avoid Background Noise: This helps the transcription tool capture speech more accurately.
- Share Computer Sound: If playing a video, enable “share computer sound” so the transcript captures it.
- Note Limitations: External guests may not have access to transcripts after the meeting.
Accuracy tips
Captions are much better when:
- People speak one at a time
- Microphones are close to the speaker
- Background noise is reduced
- The correct language is selected
- Speakers avoid talking too quickly
If you are hosting a meeting, a quick reminder of these tips at the start can improve caption quality for everyone.
Using live captions in Microsoft Teams
Turn on live captions
- Join the Teams meeting
- Select More (the “…” menu)
- Choose Language and speech (it might be called Captions and transcripts, depending on your Teams version)
- Select Turn on live captions
Change the spoken language (if needed)
In the same menu area, look for Spoken language and choose the correct one. If the language is wrong, captions will be much less accurate.
Adjust captions to suit you
Look for Caption settings (sometimes under Accessibility in Teams settings) to change:
- Size of text
- Position on screen
- Whether captions are shown over video
Transcripts in Microsoft Teams
Start a transcript (if available)
- In the meeting, select More (the “…” menu)
- Choose Record and transcribe (it might be called Captions and transcripts, depending on your Teams version)
- Select Start transcript
Find the transcript after the meeting
Transcripts are usually saved with the meeting:
- In the meeting chat, or
- In the meeting details (depending on how it was scheduled and your organisation’s settings)
Why transcripts are helpful
- You can review key points, check decisions, and catch anything you missed
- Useful for note-writing, actions, and follow-ups
- Can reduce pressure to take accurate notes while listening and help you stay present in the conversation
Live captions in Windows
Windows also has system-level live captions that can caption most audio playing on your device, not just Teams.
Turn on Windows Live Captions
- Open Settings in the Start menu
- Go to Accessibility (or press Windows + U)
- Select Captions
- Turn on Live captions
Windows may prompt you to download a language file the first time – this is normal and usually only happens once.
Use and move the captions box
Captions will appear in a box you can usually:
- Move to a comfortable place on the screen
- Change the size or theme (depending on your Windows version)
Live captions are useful for:
- Videos
- Webinars
- Recorded training
- Audio messages
- Anything that plays sound on your computer
Privacy and good practice
- Captions and transcripts involve processing spoken content
- In meetings, Teams normally tells participants if transcription or recording is running.
- It is important that participants know they are being recorded and what will be done with the recording.