Highlight Keepers and Cuts in the Descript Transcript

Direct answer: To highlight keepers and cuts in your Descript transcript, pick two colors first, for example yellow for lines you want to keep and red for lines to cut or revisit. Select the words, then click the little colorful dot in the menu that pops up to highlight them in yellow (the default). For a cut, click the little down arrow next to the dot and choose red. Highlights are only markers: they don’t remove anything, so go back and delete or ignore the red lines yourself, then clear the highlights when you’re done.

This article was written with AI, based on a real Descript Made Easy lesson by the humans behind Descript Made Easy.

Why use highlight colors for keepers and cuts?

In the Styling Your Transcript lesson (Core Skills / Transcribing and Transcript Editing), Ross shows that you can highlight any selection in the transcript in different colors. Yellow is the default, and the little down arrow gives you more, like red and orange. He calls highlights “really just aesthetic,” and that’s exactly why they work as a review pass: you can mark up a whole recording without changing a single frame of your video. Descript’s own help center describes the same idea, using color-coded highlights to mark standout quotes, edits to revisit, and clips worth repurposing.

Yellow for keepers, red for cuts. The highlight marks the line; you still make the cut.

How do I highlight keepers and cuts in a Descript transcript?

Try it on your next recording:

1. Pick your color code before you start. For example, yellow means “keep this” and red means “cut or revisit.” Any two colors work, as long as you stick with them.
2. Select the words of a line you want to keep. The menu pops up over your selection, the same one you use for bold and italics.
3. Click the little colorful dot to highlight it. It highlights in yellow, the default, as soon as you click.
4. For a line you want to cut, select it and click the little down arrow next to the dot. Choose red so it stands out from your keepers.
5. Go back through the red lines and make the cuts. A highlight doesn’t remove anything, so delete or ignore each red line yourself.
6. Clear the highlights when you’re finished. Select the words, open the same down arrow, and choose the clear option at the very bottom.

Want to reuse your keepers? Descript’s help center explains Copy highlights: press Command+K (Mac) or Ctrl+K (Windows), type “Copy highlights,” choose all highlights or one color, then paste them into another composition. You can also clear a highlight with Command+Shift+H (Mac) or Control+Shift+H (Windows). See Highlight text and copy highlights.

Does a red highlight cut the line from my video?

No. In the lesson, highlighting only changes how your selection looks in the transcript. Your video plays exactly the same until you actually delete or ignore the words. When you’re ready to cut, use Deleting, Ignoring, Removing Words in Descript, and if a red line is just a rambly sentence you want to trim, try Tighten a Rambling Take by Removing Words.

How is this different from bold and italics?

Bold, italics, and highlights all live in the same pop-up menu, and Ross covers all three in the same lesson. In the lesson, bold and italics carry into your captions, so they’re about emphasis your viewers may see. Highlighting is the one with colors, which makes it the easy pick for a private keep-or-cut code. For the full styling walkthrough, read How to Style Your Descript Transcript: Bold, Italics, and Highlight Colors. Ross notes styling can show up in an exported transcript if you choose to keep formatting, so clear your highlights before you export if you don’t want them there.

Watch: the transcript lesson and a related video

The full Styling Your Transcript lesson video (about a minute and a half) is inside Descript Made Easy. The Descript Made Easy with Ross channel doesn’t have a video just on highlighting yet, so for faster transcript editing habits watch You’re Editing Your Transcript the Hard Way.

Get the printable Highlight Keepers and Cuts checklist

Want a one-page checklist (pick your colors, highlight keepers in yellow, cuts in red, make the cuts yourself, optionally copy highlights, then clear them)? Enter your email below and click Get the checklist. Feel free to print.

FAQ

Does highlighting a line in Descript delete it?
No. A highlight only changes how the words look in the transcript. Delete or ignore the line yourself when you’re ready to cut it.

What color is a Descript highlight by default?
Yellow. Click the little down arrow next to the colorful dot to choose another color, such as red or orange.

Which colors should I use for keepers and cuts?
Any two you’ll remember. A simple code is yellow (the default) for keepers and red for cuts or lines to revisit.

How do I remove highlights when I’m done?
Select the highlighted words, open the little down arrow next to the colorful dot, and choose the clear option at the very bottom.

Can I pull just my highlighted keepers into a new composition?
Yes. Descript’s help center describes Copy highlights: open the action bar with Command+K or Ctrl+K, choose Copy highlights for all highlights or one color, then paste into another composition.

Keep learning

• Descript for Beginners
• How to Style Your Descript Transcript: Bold, Italics, and Highlight Colors
• Deleting, Ignoring, Removing Words in Descript: Beginner Guide
• Tighten a Rambling Take by Removing Words in Descript
• Descript Help: Highlight text and copy highlights
• Free getting-started class
• Descript Made Easy

Want live help while you learn? Join the free 1-hour class: https://www.descriptmastery.com/getting-started-with-descript

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