Export a Video or GIF Locally

Local export saves a finished video straight to your device instead of to a share page. Pick MP4 for a standard video file, or GIF for a short, silent, looping clip.

​

Export video (MP4)

1. In the editor, click Export in the upper-right corner.
2. Select the Video tab.
3. Choose Local export as the destination.
4. Adjust your export settings (see Export settings below).
5. Click Export.

Your video will be saved to your computer as an MP4 file.

​

Export a GIF

Previously, exporting GIFs was its own tab in the export panel. Now you’ll find GIF export as a Format option under Local Export → Video.

​

Export settings

When exporting video or GIFs, you can configure the following settings. Some options are format-specific.

​

Video watermark

Exports from a Free drive will include a Descript watermark in the bottom-right corner. Upgrading to a paid Hobbyist, Creator, or Business plan removes the watermark from all future exports. Existing exports must be republished or exported again after upgrading.

​

Embedded subtitles

Subtitle tracks are automatically embedded in exported video files. Platforms that support embedded subtitles allow viewers to toggle captions on or off. Descript’s embedded subtitles are not burned in. To burn captions directly into your video, see add custom captions.

​

How do I format embedded subtitles?

Embedded subtitles only contain text and timestamp data. Once you import the video into a destination app (Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, or a hosting platform), you can change how they look — font, size, color, and position.