# YouTube Transcript with Timestamps on iPhone

> Get the full transcript of a YouTube video on iPhone or iPad with SumAI: every line with its timestamp, ready to copy into your notes.

- Source: https://getsumai.app/features/youtube-transcript/
- Last updated: 2026-11-12
- About: SumAI: YouTube & PDF Summary, an AI summarizer app for iPhone and iPad

**Every word. With timestamps.** SumAI shows the full transcript of a YouTube video with timestamps, ready to copy. Use it to quote a speaker accurately, to check a summary against the original words, or to paste the text into your notes.

## Highlights

- **The whole transcript.** Every line of the video, each with its timestamp, in one place next to the summary.
- **Ready to copy.** Copy the transcript and paste it into your notes, a document or a message.
- **The ground truth.** When a summary point matters, the transcript shows the exact words it was based on.
- **Same requirement as summaries.** Transcripts are available for videos with captions or auto-generated subtitles.

## A transcript is the source, in text

Video is slow to search and awkward to quote. Text is neither. A transcript turns an hour of talking into something you can skim, search with your eyes, copy and cite.

SumAI gives you the full transcript of any video it summarizes, with a timestamp on every line.

## What people use transcripts for

- **Quoting accurately.** Copy the exact sentence instead of paraphrasing from memory.
- **Checking a summary.** Read the passage behind a key point to see whether the nuance survived.
- **Taking notes.** Paste the relevant section into your notes app and trim it down.
- **Reading instead of watching.** Some people take in text faster than speech, especially in a second language.
- **Finding a moment.** Use the timestamps to return to the right part of the video.

## How YouTube's own transcript works

YouTube has a transcript too. According to [YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15930243), you open a video's description and select **Show transcript**, and the option is offered for videos that have captions.

It is worth knowing two things about it on a phone. First, it lives inside the YouTube app's video page, so it is built for following along rather than for taking text elsewhere. Second, it depends on the same thing every transcript does: a caption track.

SumAI's transcript sits next to the summary, key moments and Ask AI, and it is made to be copied.

## Which videos have transcripts

A transcript exists when a video has **captions**. There are two kinds:

- **Creator captions**, written or uploaded by the channel.
- **Automatic captions**, generated by YouTube's speech recognition. [YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/6373554) lists the supported languages and notes that quality varies with accents, background noise and audio quality.

YouTube also explains why automatic captions are sometimes missing: the video is still being processed, the language is not supported, the audio is poor, several people talk at once, or the video begins with a long silence.

If a video has no captions of either kind, there is no transcript to show, in SumAI or anywhere else.

## Transcript, summary and key moments together

The three views answer different questions:

| View | Answers |
| --- | --- |
| Summary | What is this video about? |
| [Key moments](https://getsumai.app/features/key-moments-and-chapters/) | Where is each topic? |
| Transcript | What exactly was said? |

Most of the time you read the summary. When something matters, you jump to the key moment. When you need the exact words, you open the transcript.

## How to get a YouTube transcript on iPhone with SumAI

1. **Share or paste the video.** In the YouTube app, tap **Share** and choose SumAI, or copy the link and paste it into SumAI.
2. **Let SumAI create the summary.** Pick a style and a language. The transcript comes with the summary.
3. **Open the transcript.** Open the full transcript to see every line with its timestamp.
4. **Copy what you need.** Copy the transcript and paste it wherever you keep your notes.

## Frequently asked questions

### How do I get the transcript of a YouTube video on iPhone?

On YouTube itself, open the video's description and select Show transcript; this appears only when the video has captions. With SumAI, share or paste the video and you get the full transcript with timestamps alongside the summary, ready to copy.

### Can I copy a YouTube transcript on iPhone?

In SumAI, yes: the full transcript is shown with timestamps and is ready to copy. That makes it easy to move a quote or the whole text into your notes.

### Does every YouTube video have a transcript?

No. A transcript exists only when a video has captions, either added by the creator or generated automatically by YouTube. Videos without any captions have no transcript, and SumAI cannot create one for them.

### Why would I want the transcript if I have the summary?

For exact wording. A summary tells you what was said in fewer words; the transcript tells you precisely how it was said. Use it for quotes, for citations, and to check any summary point you intend to rely on.