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Caption Styles for TikTok, Reels and Shorts

Preview every style in Exemplary AI's caption library, from bold word-by-word looks to clean boxed text, then put one on your video and export an MP4.

Choose from 26 caption styles: bold word-by-word looks for TikTok, Reels and Shorts, clean text for interviews and lessons, and expressive lettering for creative stories.

Preview each look below, then apply it to your video. In a captions project, place the text at the top, center or bottom and export an MP4 (H.264) with the captions burned in. Free plan: 500 one-time credits; files up to 500 MB and 30 min long; 720p video exports with a watermark.

Caption styles at a glance

Facts checked .

Styles
26 named styles
Looks
Bold, clean and creative
Position
Top, center or bottom of the frame, in a captions project
Word emphasis
Highlights, colored pills, underlines and word-by-word effects
Export
MP4 (H.264) with the captions burned in
Free plan
500 one-time credits; files up to 500 MB and 30 min long; 720p video exports with a watermark
How it works

How to add a caption style to a video

A vertical video with plain captions next to the caption style list

The caption styles, by look

Bold, word by word, for high-energy shorts. TikTok sets uppercase Montserrat and pops the spoken word onto a gold pill. Bounce uses heavy uppercase Impact and enlarges the spoken word in orange-red. Hustle snaps a red pill behind the spoken word. Beast is chunky comic italic caps with a thick black outline, two words at a time, the spoken word flashing green. Mogul shows one to three condensed capital words at a time, the spoken word glowing yellow. Impactful shows one giant word at a time. Spotlight puts a solid yellow pill behind each spoken word. Flame turns the spoken word red with a glow.

Highlight the spoken word. Karaoke fills the line as it is spoken, with sung words held in a cyan glow. Focus keeps the line soft and out of focus, and pulls each word sharp as it is spoken. Underline simply underlines the spoken word.

Clean, for interviews and education. Default is clean boxed text in Inter with a slight lift on the spoken word. Classic is a clean sans-serif with a blue pill on the spoken word. YouTube is boxed, translucent Roboto with a blue highlight. Soft sets muted gray text on a white card and turns the spoken word dark. Elegant is Playfair Display italic, underlining the spoken word.

Themed. Neon glows white with a violet sweep. Retro is gold display type with a hard orange drop shadow. Graffiti is marker lettering on a near-black card, the spoken word in yellow. Code is monospace on a blue card, highlighting the spoken word like a search hit. Typewriter is green monospace that reveals words as they are spoken. Handwritten is Caveat script with a soft green highlight. Royal puts gold spoken words on a deep violet card. Candy is a pastel pink card with the spoken word in teal. Glitch is bold caps on a slow push-in, the spoken word splitting into red and cyan and jittering.

Stacked. Stack builds wide, heavy capitals into a tight two-line block, word by word, and turns the spoken word violet.

Putting a style to work

For clips cut from a long video, start in AI Clips, which picks the moments and captions them; the YouTube Shorts maker walks through the vertical format. For a video that is already short, burn the subtitles into the video in a captions project.

What it does

Why Use Exemplary AI's Caption Styles?

A library of named looks, applied to captions that already follow your words.

See them before you choose

The gallery on this page previews every style by name, so you can pick a look before you start a project.

Match the mood of your video

Keep an interview calm and readable, make a short clip bold, or give a creative story its own character.

Timed to each word

Captions come from a transcript timed word by word, which is what lets the highlight and word-by-word styles follow the speaker.

Placed where they read

In a captions project, set the captions at the top, center or bottom, so they stay clear of faces and of the buttons that apps lay over vertical video.

Questions

Common questions

What caption styles can I use on TikTok videos?
All 26 styles in the library work on a vertical TikTok video. Bold word-by-word styles such as TikTok, Beast, Mogul and Hustle suit fast, high-energy clips; Karaoke and Focus highlight each word as it is spoken.
Which caption style works for interviews or tutorials?
A clean one. Default, Classic, Soft and YouTube keep the text boxed or simply set, so it stays easy to read over long stretches of talk without pulling attention from the speaker.
Are the caption styles animated?
Every style marks the word being spoken: it pops, gets a pill or a highlight color, comes into focus, or fills in karaoke-style. Some move more than others; Impactful shows one word at a time, and Glitch makes the spoken word jitter.
Can I move the captions to the top or center?
Yes. Set them at the top, center or bottom of the frame. On a vertical video, center or top keeps them clear of the buttons and post text that TikTok, Reels and Shorts lay over the bottom of the screen.
Do the caption styles look the same on Reels and Shorts?
Yes. The style is burned into the exported MP4, so the captions look the same on Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, TikTok or anywhere else you upload the file.
Can I change the caption style after picking one?
Yes. Pick another style on the captions project's page, or in the editor's caption gallery, before you export. The words you corrected stay as they are.
Which caption styles can I pick for AI clips?
Any of the 26, when you start a shorts project or in the Generate shorts dialog, where you also pick a target length and framing for an AI Clips run. New clips start on Beast, and the editor's caption gallery has all 26 once the clips are made.
Can I try the caption styles for free?
Yes, on the Free plan: 500 one-time credits; files up to 500 MB and 30 min long; 720p video exports with a watermark.

Give your words a place on screen

Upload a video to review its transcript, adjust the captions, and export the finished result.