# How to Turn On Live Captions on Mac and Windows (2026)

> Both macOS and Windows 11 have free, built-in Live Captions that caption any audio the computer plays. On a Mac, turn them on in System Settings → Accessibility → Live Captions. On Windows 11, press Windows + Ctrl + L or go to Settings → Accessibility → Captions. They are good for everyday listening but support a limited set of languages and don't show the original and a translation side by side. For multilingual calls, Unicaption adds live captions with side-by-side translation in 60+ languages, beside any platform, with 30 free minutes every week.

Published 2026-09-28 · The Unicaption Team · Human-readable version: https://unicaption.com/blog/turn-on-live-captions-mac-windows.html

## Turn on Live Captions on a Mac

**1. Open System Settings**
Click the Apple menu, then **System Settings**, then **Accessibility** in the sidebar.

**2. Switch on Live Captions**
Choose **Live Captions** under Hearing and turn it on. A floating caption window appears and starts captioning audio your Mac plays, from any app.

**3. Add your microphone if you need it**
Click the microphone button in the caption window to also caption what's said in the room, for example during an in-person conversation.

**4. Adjust how it looks**
Back in Accessibility settings you can change the font, size, and colors so the captions stay readable over a video call.

Live Captions on the Mac run on the device and are available on recent macOS versions on supported Macs, in a limited set of languages. Apple's list of supported hardware and languages changes with each release, so check Apple's current support page if the option doesn't appear.

## Turn on Live Captions on Windows 11

**1. Use the shortcut**
Press **Windows + Ctrl + L**. The first time, Windows asks you to agree to on-device processing and download the speech files for your language.

**2. Or go through Settings**
Open **Settings → Accessibility → Captions** and turn on **Live captions**. You can also find it in the Quick Settings accessibility panel.

**3. Pick a position**
Captions can dock to the top or bottom of the screen or float in a window. Docked mode keeps them from covering a meeting's shared screen.

**4. Include the microphone**
In the Live captions settings gear, turn on **Include microphone audio** if you want your own side, or a person in the room, captioned too.

> Windows Live captions need a recent version of Windows 11. On some newer PCs, Microsoft also offers live translation of captions into a small set of target languages. Check Microsoft's current documentation for what your hardware supports.

## What built-in captions do well

- **They're free and already there.** No account, no install, no subscription.
- **They caption everything.** Because they read system audio, they work on videos, podcasts, voice messages, and calls on any app.
- **They stay on the device.** Both run locally once the language files are downloaded, which is reassuring for casual use.
- **They're simple.** One shortcut on Windows, one switch on a Mac.

For a deaf or hard-of-hearing person catching a YouTube video, or anyone following a podcast on a noisy train, they're often all you need. If you're not sure how any of this works under the hood, our explainer on [how real-time speech recognition works](/blog/how-real-time-speech-recognition-works.html) covers it without the jargon.

## Where built-in captions run out

- ⚠ **Other languages.** Language support is limited, and translation, where offered at all, goes into only a few target languages.
- ⚠ **No side-by-side view.** You see captions, or a translation, but not the original and translation together to check against each other.
- ⚠ **No vocabulary control.** You can't teach them a client's name, a drug name, or a legal term, so specialist words get mangled.
- ⚠ **Mixed-language calls.** A call that switches between two languages is hard for a captioner set to one.
- ⚠ **Work you're accountable for.** They're built for general listening, not for an interpreter who has to render every word correctly.

None of these are flaws, exactly. The built-in features are designed for general accessibility. Professional multilingual work is a different job, and the tools for it are built differently.

## When you need more: Unicaption

Unicaption reads the same system or microphone audio as the built-in captions do, so it works beside any call or video. It adds what multilingual and professional work needs.

- ✓ **60+ languages** with automatic language detection, including calls that switch languages
- ✓ **Side-by-side translation**: the original and the translation on screen together, in real time
- ✓ **Custom dictionary** for names and terms, plus built-in medical, legal, and government terminology
- ✓ **Works beside anything**: Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, Webex, phone lines, or in person, and nothing joins the call
- ✓ **Nothing kept**: end-to-end encrypted, audio never stored, transcripts deleted when the session ends
- ✓ **Browser, Chrome extension, macOS and Windows apps**, with **30 free minutes every week**, no credit card

For phone calls specifically, see [how to caption phone calls in real time](/blog/caption-phone-calls-real-time.html). For meetings, see [live translated captions in Zoom, Teams, and Meet](/blog/live-translated-captions-zoom-teams-meet.html).

## Which should you use?

| Situation | Use |
| --- | --- |
| Watching a video or podcast in your own language | Built-in Live Captions |
| A casual call in your own language | Built-in Live Captions |
| A call or meeting in a language you don't speak well | Unicaption, with side-by-side translation |
| Interpreting, medical, legal, or client calls | Unicaption, with your custom dictionary |
| A call that switches between two languages | Unicaption, with automatic language detection |

## Frequently asked

**How do I turn on live captions on my Mac?**
On a Mac, open System Settings, choose Accessibility, then Live Captions, and turn it on. A caption window appears and captions any audio the Mac plays. Click its microphone button to caption in-person speech too. Support depends on your Mac and macOS version and covers a limited set of languages; check Apple's support page if the option is missing.

**What is the shortcut for live captions on Windows 11?**
Press Windows + Ctrl + L to open Live captions on Windows 11. You can also turn them on in Settings → Accessibility → Captions. The first time, Windows downloads the speech files for your language. Live captions caption any audio your PC plays, and can include your microphone if you enable it in the captions settings.

**Can Mac or Windows live captions translate a call into another language?**
Built-in captions focus on captioning in a limited set of languages. Some newer Windows PCs can translate captions into a few target languages. For calls in any of 60+ languages with the original and translation side by side, Unicaption works beside any call platform by reading your system audio, with 30 free minutes every week.

**Why are my live captions getting names and technical terms wrong?**
Built-in live captions use a general vocabulary and can't be taught custom words, so names, drug names, and legal terms often come out wrong. Tools with a custom dictionary fix this. Unicaption lets you add names and terminology before a call and includes built-in medical, legal, and government terms.

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*[Unicaption](https://unicaption.com) is a real-time AI captioning and translation copilot for human interpreters — live captions and translation in 60+ languages, end-to-end encrypted, nothing stored. 30 free minutes every week, no credit card required.*