Where Does Subtitle Edit Store Settings?
Subtitle Edit keeps settings, rules and backups in a platform data folder. Settings.xml paths for Windows, Linux and macOS.
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Subtitle Edit keeps its settings in one XML file in a platform data folder: Settings.xml under Roaming\Subtitle Edit on installed Windows, under ~/.config/Subtitle Edit on Linux and macOS. Rules, shortcuts, waveform options and OCR parameters all live in that file, with logs and language files beside it.
The install type changes the answer. Portable Windows builds keep Settings.xml next to the program instead, which batch OCR scripts exploit by swapping prepared settings files before each run. The in-app shortcut Ctrl+Alt+Shift+D opens whichever data folder your build actually uses. Back up the single XML before upgrades; a zeroed settings file has eaten real rule sets.
Where Subtitle Edit stores this, by platform
%APPDATA%\Subtitle Edit\Settings.xml
Settings.xml holds rules, shortcuts and OCR parameters; logs and Languages sit beside it. Portable builds keep the file next to the exe instead. Open the live folder with Ctrl+Alt+Shift+D. Copy the XML with the app closed to migrate; delete it to reset.
~/.config/Subtitle Edit/Settings.xml
Same Settings.xml layout under the XDG-style config path, confirmed in the translation docs. Flatpak and native packages share this location. The open-data-folder shortcut works identically. Portable-style file swapping applies to scripted Linux OCR workflows too.
~/.config/Subtitle Edit/Settings.xml
Same Settings.xml under the config path like Linux. Use Cmd+Alt+Shift+D to open the data folder. Same single-file backup and reset story as other platforms.
Frequently asked questions
how do i move subtitle edit settings to a new pc
Copy Settings.xml to the same data path on the new machine with Subtitle Edit closed. Rules, shortcuts, waveform and OCR settings travel in that one file. Custom word lists and profiles ride along inside it too. Portable installs keep the file next to the exe instead.
how do i open the subtitle edit data folder
Press Ctrl+Alt+Shift+D (Cmd variant on macOS) with the main window focused. Subtitle Edit opens its own data folder directly, no hunting required. The maintainer recommends this shortcut in every path thread because install types move the folder around.
can i run subtitle edit with custom settings
Use the portable build, which keeps Settings.xml beside the program instead of in AppData. Scripted OCR workflows swap prepared Settings files in and out before invoking the command-line converter. Installed builds always read the AppData copy, so match the file to the build type.
Notice an outdated path? Let us know.