Typography · 28 August 2026
Why captions cover on-screen text
Native captions are a separate layer. Here is the geometry of the caption well, why burned-in subtitles collide, and how to keep both readable.
By the FramePad editorial desk · 8 min read · Updated 2026-08-28
Two text layers, one pair of eyes
Burned-in type is pixels in the file. Native captions are a UI layer the app composites at play time. They are not the same object. When they occupy the same coordinates, the UI wins. The file does not get a chance to “go on top.” Designers who preview a ProRes in a desktop player never see the native caption, so they ship a lower-third that is unreadable on a phone.
The fix is not “turn captions off.” Captions are how a muted autoplay still communicates, and they are how accessibility works. The fix is to stop using the caption well as a poster. Put the hook in the title-safe centre. Leave the transcript to the native field. If you need burned-in titles for brand, keep them short and higher in the frame than feels natural in a 16:9 timeline.
Where the well actually sits
On TikTok, treat the band from about y = 72% to the tab bar as occupied once a two-line caption is present. The username sits above the caption. The music ticker sits below it. On Reels the well is taller. On Shorts the title sits in a similar band but the right side is more aggressive. Exact pixels are in the specification tables on each tool page; this article is the rule of thumb.
Font scaling on iOS (“larger accessibility sizes”) expands the well. A caption that is two lines for you can be four lines for a viewer. That is why we recommend a conservative burn-in: above y = 68% if the same file might run as a Reel, above y = 71% if it is TikTok-only.
Hooks, end cards, and the 1.5-second read
A viewer who cannot read the hook in the first second and a half swipes. If the hook is in the caption field, it is competing with the username and the music ticker. If the hook is burned in under the caption, it is competing with both. Put the hook in the picture. A face, a product, a three-word title in the centre. Then let the caption be the sentence that search and accessibility need.
End cards fail the same way. “Link in bio” in the bottom 20% is under the tab bar. Move it up. Hold it. Check it against the overlay. The TikTok checker is the fastest way to see the collision before the comments fill with “can’t read this.”
Open the matching tool
Keep reading
TikTok vs Reels vs Shorts: where the overlays actually differ
A measured comparison of TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts UI overlays on a 1080×1920 canvas — caption wells, action rails, and where on-screen type survives.
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Instagram Story vs Reel safe zones
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