Convert to MP4
The video format that plays everywhere: turn your videos into MP4.
5 conversions to MP4
- GIF MP4 Convert GIF to MP4 Turn your GIFs into much lighter, more compatible MP4 videos.
- MOV MP4 Convert MOV to MP4 iPhone and Mac videos that play on Windows, Android and the web.
- MKV MP4 Convert MKV to MP4 MKV recordings and videos that play on phones, TVs and editors.
- AVI MP4 Convert AVI to MP4 Old AVI videos in a format that plays on today’s devices.
- WebM MP4 Convert WebM to MP4 Web videos and browser recordings that play on any device.
MP4 is the video format that every phone, computer, smart TV, messaging app and website can play. If a video won’t open, can’t be uploaded or doesn’t play on someone else’s device, converting it to MP4 is usually the fix. Choose the conversion above according to your video’s format.
What the MP4 format is
MP4 (MPEG-4 Part 14) is a container: a file that holds the image, the sound and the information to play them in sync. The MP4 files that play everywhere carry the image in H.264 and the sound in AAC, the combination that phones, browsers and TVs have supported for over a decade.
The container alone doesn’t guarantee anything: an MP4 or MOV recorded in HEVC or with 10-bit colour can still fail on an older computer. That is why our conversions always deliver H.264 in 8 bits with AAC sound.
When to convert a video to MP4
- When it doesn’t play: MOV from an iPhone on Windows, MKV on a TV or a phone, AVI on a Mac, WebM on an iPhone.
- When a website or an app won’t accept it: many forms, online shops and messaging apps only take MP4.
- When you are going to edit it: iMovie and many editors don’t open MKV or WebM.
- When it is too large: an old AVI usually takes up much more than the same video in H.264.
MP4 compared with other video formats
| MP4 | MOV | MKV | AVI | WebM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plays on | Everything | Apple; elsewhere it depends on the codec | Computers with VLC; few phones and TVs | Computers; few phones | Browsers; not the iPhone’s apps |
| Typical use | Sharing and publishing | iPhone and Mac videos | Recordings, films | Old cameras | Web, screen recordings |
| Multiple audio tracks and subtitles | Limited | Yes | Yes | Limited | Yes |
What to know when converting to MP4
- If the video is already in H.264, we only change the container: it is instant and loses no quality.
- If it isn’t (HEVC, VP9, AV1, old MPEG-4), we re-encode it with a balanced quality. Re-encoding is demanding, so very long videos have to be trimmed first.
- One video at a time, up to 100 MB, without metadata (date, location or camera model).
Frequently asked questions
Which formats can I convert to MP4?
Right now, MOV, MKV, AVI and WebM videos, and animated GIFs. Each conversion has its own page with advice for that kind of video: from an iPhone, from OBS, from an old camera, from a browser…
Is MP4 the same as H.264?
No. MP4 is the container and H.264 is the way the image inside is compressed. An MP4 can contain other codecs, such as HEVC or AV1, which some devices don’t play; that is why we always deliver H.264.
Does converting a video to MP4 lose quality?
If the video is already in H.264, no: we copy the image as it is. If it has to be re-encoded, there is a small loss that is very hard to notice at normal viewing sizes.
Why does a website reject my video even though it is an MP4?
Usually because of the codec or the size: some sites only accept H.264, and many have a size limit. Converting it here gives you a standard H.264 and AAC MP4, often smaller than the original.