Use game and chat transcription on Xbox and Windows devices

Game transcription converts in-game player speech to text that you can read on the screen. It can also read aloud chat text that you type to other players. Chat transcription works in a similar way as game transcription. When a person in your party speaks, their speech is converted into text that you can read, or type something and it’ll be read aloud to those in your party.

Transcription overlay on top of Minecraft

Things to keep in mind:

Game transcription is available on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Windows 10/11 devices in games that support it.
Party chat transcription is only available on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One consoles at this time.
Party chat transcription is not supported for Discord-hosted party chats.

How to enable game and chat transcription

Turn on game transcription

On Xbox

Press the Xbox button to open the guide.
Select Profile & system > Settings > Accessibility > Game and chat transcription.
Note Party chat options apply to standard chats with other players, while Game transcription applies to in-game chats.

To transcribe other players' voices into text, select the Speech-to-text checkbox.
To have your chat text read aloud to other players, select the Text-to-speech checkbox.
To choose the voice that others hear in standard chats, select one of the available voices in the Text-to-speech voice menu. To choose the voice that other players will hear when your chat text is read aloud in games, select one of the available voices in the In-game chat voice menu.
Some games can read aloud certain words that appear on the screen by using the Let games read to me option.

On Windows 10/11 using Game Bar

Note You must be signed in to Game Bar to access Settings. If you don’t know whether you’re signed in, check by pressing Windows key + G and then go to Settings > Accounts > Xbox network.

If you don’t see Settings, make sure that you have the latest version of the app. Update Game Bar by opening the Microsoft Store, and then select Library > Get updates.

To enable transcription, open Game Bar by pressing Windows key + G, and then go to Settings > Gaming features.

Under Game chat transcription, select from the following options:

To transcribe other players' voices into text, select Speech-to-text on.
To have your chat text read aloud to other players, select Text-to-speech on.
To choose the voice that other players will hear when your chat text is read aloud, select one of the available voices in the Text-to-speech voice menu.
Some games can read aloud certain words that appear on the screen by using the Let games read to me option.

Games that support game transcription

To find out whether a specific game supports game transcription by using our speech-to-text and text-to-speech communications feature, go to:

Finding Xbox games with accessibility features

Frequently asked questions

Why does chat transcription lag?

Occasionally, you may experience a brief lag in chat transcription, which might be due to a variety of factors, such as network latency or a lot of speech happening at once.

I’m having trouble using game and chat transcription. What should I do?

First, make sure everyone using game transcription has connected a headset before launching the game. Then, make sure everyone has their privacy communications settings set to Everybody. For details, visit:

How to manage activity feed privacy

Why are some words misspelled?

Several things can affect transcription quality, including environment (such as background noise), enunciation, and how close the speaker is to the microphone.

Why does the chat window move around?

Depending on how a game displays the game chat window, it may move around on the screen during gameplay. For example, the window may move to avoid covering key areas of the game. The location of the game chat window may also vary for each game that supports this feature.

Use game and chat transcription on Xbox and Windows devices

How to enable game and chat transcription

Turn on game transcription

On Xbox

On Windows 10/11 using Game Bar

Games that support game transcription

Frequently asked questions

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