How to Enable or Disable Captions in Microsoft Teams
Live captions in Microsoft Teams show real-time text of what people say during your meetings, appearing right on the screen.
This feature acts like a live subtitle for your calls, making it easier for everyone to follow along, especially if you’re in a noisy place or have trouble hearing.
Microsoft Teams can turn speech into captions in over 30 languages as it’s happening, helping you catch every word.
Unlike meeting transcripts saved later, these captions only show up while the meeting is live.
Enable live captions by going to Settings, then Accessibility, and toggling “Always show captions in my calls and meetings.” To disable them, simply toggle the same switch off.
How to Enable or Disable Captions in Teams
You can turn Microsoft Teams captions on or off for all your meetings directly from the app’s settings. To do this, open the Teams app, click the three dots next to your profile picture, and go to Settings, then Accessibility. This lets you control whether captions appear by default in your meetings.
1. Launch the Microsoft Teams app from your Start menu.
2. Click the Settings and more (…) button near your profile picture.
3. Select Settings from the menu.
4. Click the Accessibility tab on the left.
5. Under Captions, toggle the switch for Always show captions in my calls and meetings.
Meetings will now automatically display text at the bottom of the screen.
Changing Spoken Language During a Meeting
If your Microsoft Teams meeting is in a different language, you can change the spoken language for captions right inside the meeting. Click the ‘More’ button in the top toolbar, then select ‘Language and speech,’ and finally choose the language being spoken to get accurate captions.
- During a meeting, click the More (…) button in the top toolbar.
- Select Language and speech.
3. Choose Spoken language and select the language being spoken.
Teams will now accurately transcribe the language being spoken.
Administrative and Policy Controls (Admin Only)
IT administrators can manage Microsoft Teams caption settings for everyone in the company using the Teams admin center (a web-based portal for managing Teams) or PowerShell (a command-line shell and scripting language). Companies can meet data privacy standards by disabling auto-captioning, which prevents sensitive spoken information from being recorded in meeting transcripts for all users.
See Also
Summary
Turning on Microsoft Teams captions makes meetings easier to follow and understand for everyone, especially those who are hard of hearing.
Does Teams store caption data?
Live captions are processed in real-time and are not stored by Microsoft after the meeting ends. However, if you enable live transcription, the transcript file is saved to the meeting organizer’s OneDrive or SharePoint storage, depending on your organization’s data retention policies (rules about how long data is kept).
Who has access to live caption data?
Only participants in the meeting can see live captions as they appear on their screens. If a transcript is saved, access is restricted to the meeting participants and those with permissions to the file location where the transcript is stored within your organization’s cloud storage.
Can I prevent participants from copying meeting transcripts?
Yes, administrators can restrict the ability to download or copy transcripts through the Teams admin center by adjusting meeting policies. You can stop people from saving or sharing meeting text by disabling the transcription feature or restricting file permissions.
What is the difference between captions and transcripts?
Live captions are temporary; they disappear once the meeting ends. They’re designed for immediate accessibility. Live transcripts, on the other hand, are permanent records saved as a document. This lets you search, download, and review the entire conversation later.
What are Teams Premium features for captions?
Teams Premium offers advanced features like live translated captions. This allows participants to see captions in their preferred language, even if the speaker is using a different language. It also provides more granular control over meeting security and branding for professional organizations.
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About the Author
Richard
Tech Writer, IT Professional
Richard, a writer for Geek Rewind, is a tech enthusiast who loves breaking down complex IT topics into simple, easy-to-understand ideas. With years of hands-on experience in system administration and enterprise IT operations, he’s developed a knack for offering practical tips and solutions. Richard aims to make technology more accessible and actionable. He's deeply committed to the Geek Rewind community, always ready to answer questions and engage in discussions.
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