Live automated captions are available for all CU Boulder Zoom accounts at no cost. Live automated captions can be used for meetings, webinars, and breakout rooms. The information below outlines how attendees can access automated captions in Zoom sessions. 

If you experience any issues turning on automated captions or the full transcript in a Zoom session, then it’s possible the host needs to update their Zoom settings. There is information available on how Zoom hosts can enable automated captions. 

Important note: Automated captions should not be used as a substitute for providing an accommodation to a person with a disability unless the person requesting the accommodation has indicated that it is an acceptable solution. Contact Disability Services for support with student accommodations, and the ADA Coordinator’s office for all other accommodations (members of the public, faculty, staff, alumni, etc.).

Accessing Automated Captions as a Zoom Participant

Participants can turn on the captions by selecting the Show Captions option from the Zoom Control bar.

Show captions button is highlighted in the Zoom control bar.

If prompted, select the language that will be used in the meeting and Save.

Note: The language can always be changed throughout the meeting, however only one language can be set at any given time. Contact the host ahead of time to request subtitles (captions that are translated from the spoken language).

Menu to select and save the language being used in the Zoom meeting.

Automated captions should now be enabled and displayed during the Zoom session.

The first time captions are enabled in a meeting, all meeting participants will receive a notification that a participant has enabled closed captioning.

Zoom notification telling the host and attendees that closed captioning has been enabled.

You can turn automated captions off at any point during a Zoom session by selecting Hide Captions from the Zoom control bar.

Hide captions button is highlighted in the Zoom control bar.

Breakout Rooms

Once you turn on automated captions for an active Zoom session, if you then move into a breakout room, you will need to turn the automated captions on again upon entering the breakout room(s) and re-entering the main Zoom room. You can set captions to always be displayed as you move from room to room by enabling the Always Show Captions setting for your Zoom account.

Enabling the Always Show Captions Setting

You can adjust your Zoom Accessibility settings so that automated captions start automatically for all Zoom sessions. From your Zoom control bar, expand the menu under the Show Captions or Hide Captions button. Select Caption settings from the menu.

Show captions menu is expanded and the caption settings option is highlighted.

Under Caption Settings, you will find an option to Always show captions. Make sure this box is checked. Once this setting is updated, automated captions should automatically start anytime you join a Zoom session.

Always show captions option is selected.

Enabling the Full Transcript Setting

To view a full transcript during a Zoom session, from your Zoom control bar, expand the menu under the Show Captions or Hide Captions button. Select View Full Transcript.

The captions menu is expanded and the view full transcript option is highlighted.

The transcript will appear in a side panel.

Image of a Zoom session with a transcript on the right side of the screen in a side panel. The transcript panel has a search field available.