made with «Record Audio» on the ribbon; the sound sits on the page as a player
OneNote recordings
Transcribe a OneNote recording to text
OneNote recording to text: the speech of a recording made in OneNote as text with the time of every line, exported as TXT, SRT, VTT or CSV. Up to 30 minutes a file on the free plan, no minute limit on Pro.
3 files a day up to 30 minutes, free99+ languagesSpeaker separation and timestamps
In short
A recording made in OneNote lies on the page of the notebook as an audio file. Take that file and the speech of it comes back as text, one line per segment, with the time of every line. One file holds 30 minutes.
How to transcribe a OneNote recording
- 1
Make the recording in OneNote
On the ribbon of the notebook press «Record Audio», talk, and stop the recording. The sound appears on the page as a small player with a play button.
- 2
Save the audio file
Right click the player on the page and choose «Save As». The file goes to the disk of the computer, and the recording stays on the page of the notebook.
- 3
Upload the file
Put the audio on the widget above and leave the language on automatic detection. The engine reads 99+ languages and picks the language of the file on its own.
- 4
Export the text
The export shows the second of every line. TXT for a document of the lecture, SRT for the video of it, DOCX for a hand-off, and that last one is a feature of Pro.
What you get
- TXT
Plain text for an email, a note or a chat
- SRT
Subtitles for video editors and platforms
- VTT
Subtitles for a browser and a website
- CSV
A table: time, speaker, text
- DOCX
A Word document with speakers and times
- Markdown
Text with headings for notes
What the transcript of a note holds
it turns an audio or a video into a text with the speakers; it takes wav, mp4, m4a and mp3
up to 30 minutes on the free plan, no minute limit on Pro
99+ languages; the language is detected on its own
The case
Why a recorded note is not a text
A lecture was recorded into a notebook page, and the page still holds a player with a strip of minutes on it. The words of the lecture are in the file, and a text of that file turns the page into something you can read, quote and search.
Tips
Save the recording to the disk right after the lecture.
Name the page with the date and the topic of the lecture.
Listen to the first seconds of the file before the upload.
DOCX is a feature of Pro: the other five formats are on every plan.
Questions this page answers
Does OneNote make a transcript itself?
Yes, the panel «Transcribe» of Microsoft turns a recording into a text inside the notebook, with the speakers named. The files it takes are wav, mp4, m4a and mp3.
Where does the recording live?
On the page of the notebook, as a player. The notebook keeps it with the page, and the file comes to the disk when you save it from that page.
Can I put a video on a page?
OneNote can hold a video on a page as well, and the panel «Transcribe» takes an mp4. Our engine takes an audio or a video file, and the picture does not change the text.
How long may one file be?
up to 30 minutes, on every plan. A lecture longer than that is cut into parts before the upload, and every part carries its own timecodes.
Sources
- SMicrosoft: to record an audio or a video note in OneNotesupport.microsoft.com · checked 24 October 2026
- SMicrosoft: to transcribe your recordingssupport.microsoft.com · checked 24 October 2026
Reading: 5 minutesUpdated Transcribsi editorial team
Drop a recording — the text arrives in a minute
Speakers by name, a time on every line, export to TXT, SRT, VTT, CSV and Markdown.
3 files a day up to 30 minutes, free99+ languagesSpeaker separation and timestamps