01
So where should they go?
Roughly the lower middle, high enough to clear the platform's own interface but low enough that they do not fight the subject's face. It is a narrow band, and it moves depending on which app you post to, which is why the position is adjustable here rather than fixed. You set it against a preview before the clip is made.
02
Finding the safe band on each app
Post a test clip privately on each app you use and take a screenshot while it plays. Note where the username, post text, buttons and progress bar appear. The area left clear between those elements is where subtitles can sit safely.
Overlay the screenshots from different apps to find a position that works on all of them. That shared band is the most reliable place for your words.
03
Keeping words off the face
Words sitting on a mouth or eyes are distracting and hide expressions that carry meaning. Frame the speaker so their face sits in the upper part of the picture, leaving the lower middle free for text.
If the speaker moves up and down a lot, a slightly smaller text size gives more room to avoid them.
04
Different shapes, different spots
In 4:5 and square clips, apps usually cover less of the picture, so subtitles can sit lower than in 9:16. Adjust the position per shape rather than using one setting for all.
Check each shape once on a phone and save the position that works.
05
Consistency across a series
Once you find a good position, keep it for every clip in a series. Viewers learn where to look, which makes reading faster and the series more recognisable.
Change it only if an app redesign moves its buttons.
06
Hooks and subtitles together
If a clip has a headline at the top and subtitles below, keep both clear of the face and of each other. Two text blocks too close together make the frame feel crowded.
Give the hook the top band and the subtitles the lower middle band, with the face between them.
07
Size and position together
A larger text size needs a slightly higher position so the bottom line still clears the app's buttons. When you change one setting, check the other on a phone before producing a batch of clips.
Save the final combination so the next clip starts from a position you already trust.
08
A test clip for finding positions
Make one test clip with three lines of text at different heights, labelled high, middle and low. Post it privately on each app and screenshot what is covered. Ten minutes of testing replaces months of guessing and gives you a position you can trust for every future clip.
Repeat the test after major app redesigns.
09
A few hundred pixels decide whether it gets read
- Avoid the bottom sixth. That strip belongs to the app, not to you.
- Keep clear of the face. Words across someone's mouth read as a mistake even when they are legible.
- Set it once, keep it. Saved styles on paid plans hold the position across a whole series.
Make one clip and check it against a real feed. Nothing to pay for the first.
Questions people ask
- Can I move the subtitles?
- Yes, position and size are both adjustable before the clip is produced.
- Does the right spot change per platform?
- Somewhat. The safest band is the lower middle, which survives most of them.
- What about 4:5 and square?
- The interface takes less of those frames, so there is more room lower down.
- Can I keep one position across many clips?
- Save a style on a paid plan and the rest of the series inherits it.
- Are the words part of the picture?
- Yes, which is why placement matters. They cannot be moved after the fact.