Ever seen a Reel with closed captions and wondered how to add them to your own Reels? Then, today’s tutorial is for you! I’m going to show you two easy ways to add closed captions to your Reels. We’re going to go over both how to add captions in a text box, as well as the automatic option Instagram is now offering! Open up Instagram, pull up your latest Reel, and let’s get started! 

How to Add Closed Captions to Instagram Reels 

Closed captions are very helpful when you upload Reels with original audio. You’ll see captions on face-to-camera Reels where you’re explaining something. Additionally, they’re really important for accessibility and you want to remember that not everyone actually uses Instagram with sound on, anyway. 

Add Text to Your Reel

When you’re ready to add captions, open up your Reel editor. If you need more tips about editing Reels to get them to the point you can add text, check out our tutorial on Inshot here! Otherwise, add your Reel to Instagram’s editor and hit “next”. This is where you can add closed captions directly on the Reel! Tap the smiling face icon in the upper right. Select the blue box that says “CC Captions”. If you do that, it will begin transcribing the audio from your Reel to create captions based on what you’re saying.

As the captions appear, you’ll be able to swipe through font options below and use the rainbow icon at the top of the screen to change font colors. Just remember to keep it easy to read! Another quick reminder – keep your text in the middle third of your Reel so it doesn’t get cut off anywhere. You can also tap on the text that’s populating to adjust any words you might need in the transcription, too! 

From Reel Settings

Now, if you want to use Instagram’s standard captions, you’ll hit “next” from the editor screen. From there, you can look at the posting settings and find “Advanced settings”. Look for Accessibility and toggle “show captions” on. This will create auto generated captions in a grey box on your Reel. You can’t edit these captions – so they may not be exact, but it’s another easy option to add captions. 

There you go! If you need any additional tips to help navigate Instagram Reels and all of their incredible options, check out our 2023 Instagram Reels Tutorial. Still want more help? Check out more of our Instagram resources below! 

Other Instagram Resources 

Learn inside the course ALL of my strategies for seeing real growth on the platform, including gaining loyal followers, monetizing your Instagram, increasing engagement, posting consistently, creating content with ease, and more! Join us at http://stephaniekase.com/instagramgrowth . 

Are you struggling to keep up on Instagram? Are you seeing low engagement, not posting consistently, and not attracting the right followers? I want to help!! Join my free Instagram class: What to Post on Instagram for the Next 30 Days: How to Post Consistently, Grow Your Reach, & Gain Highly Engaged Followers. We’re going to chat about what you should post, how often to post, and how to make Instagram fun! Head to http://stephaniekase.com/instagramclass to watch now.

I also offer a free one-hour Instagram Reels class if you want more help with how to grow your reach, followers, and customers with Reels in 2 hours a month! You can sign up for that HERE. And, if you have questions or want some extra support, I’ve got a FREE Reels Growth Facebook Community that you can join. I absolutely love getting to chat with everyone and help them work through their questions about Reels!

Wondering what to make for your next Reel? Free quiz to find out what type of reel idea you should make next! 

Discover what your next step should be to gain your next 1,000 followers!

Need ideas for Instagram? Grab our free sample Instagram posting schedule here!