There are so many different video formats around, a free video converter is an essential piece of software for any PC. The best video converters are simple to use, and can handle a huge array of different file types. There are many reasons why you might want to convert a file to a different format. You might want to play a particular video on a device that has limited storage and there need to reduce the size of the file. You might want to keep your entire video collection in the same format, but have a few rogue entries messing up your system. Or you might want to change a video recorded in a strange format on your phone into something that is more easily shared with others. If you're converting videos from YouTube, bear in mind that downloading videos is against its terms of service.
Another highly efficient tool to compress video files. You can easily convert and compress your HD video files to fit in your media players without loss of quality. It’s an all-in-one video conversion and compression tool. The software provides 5X faster speed and it can also process files in bulk to save time and efforts.
It's also potentially a copyright infringement unless you have permission from the copyright holder, or the video is in the public domain. With that in mind, here's our pick of the best free video converters.
Excellent format support When it comes to the number of supported file formats, certainly doesn't disappoint. It handles online as well as offline files, meaning that if you like the look of some videos on YouTube, you can quickly and easily convert them into a format suitable for offline viewing on your mobile without worrying about your data allowance. More than just YouTube, you can also download and convert videos from Facebook, Vimeo, Metacafe and more, and Any Video Converter Free also features the option to rip audio from CDS and DVDs.
You'll find support for all of the video formats you can shake a stick at, including ready made profiles for different devices, and editing options such as trimming, cropping and rotating allow for basic cleanup tasks. If you want to get creative, you can experiment with video effects to achieve a unique look as well. If you need more options, Developer Anvsoft also offers a premium video converter, Any Video Converter Ultimate, which can remove DRM protection, convert videos in batches and burn videos to disc. Converts videos hosted online Freemake has built up something of a name for itself for producing powerful yet easy to use software, and making it available free of charge. Is no exception, continuing the company's enviable track record. The free video converter can not only convert files from your hard drive to almost any format, it can also be used to download and convert online videos from the likes of YouTube. With simple editing tools to trim unwanted footage, the ability to add subtitles, and convert to and from DVD, Freemake Video Converter has all of your everyday conversion needs covered – and more.
When you first install Freemake Video Converter, some features (including converting YouTube videos) will be locked. After three days you'll receive a free Web Pack as a gift, which will lift this restriction. Look out for a notification in the System Tray telling you when the Web Pack is available. Ready-made device profiles prides itself on being so easy to use that its website features. This might seem like an exaggeration, but it's actually true.
You can drag and drop a video onto the program interface, or use the selection menu, select the format or destination device and hit the Run button. That really is all there is to it. You'll be pleased to know that the software's convenience doesn't come at the expense of features. While you can start the conversion process in a matter of seconds, you may wish to spend a little more time customizing the output. Cutting, cropping and impressive special effects are all on hand to give your videos the look you want, and the way destination formats are presented is highly intuitive.
Beginners can select a profile tailored to a specific playback device, while more advanced users can make a manual selection and customize things further. Utilitarian design is a free video converter that's well known to Mac users, but less famous in the world of Windows. It is worth noting that this is still something of an experimental program and it hasn't even reached version 1.0 in its Windows incarnation, but that doesn't mean it should be overlooked. Available for Mac, Windows and Linux, Handbrake is a great choice for anyone who works on multiple platforms, but is also great for anyone who is dedicated to Windows. A slight word of warning: the other programs featured in this roundup have very approachable interfaces, but the same cannot really be said of HandBrake.
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The program is powerful, but utilitarian. There are a lot of features that allow for precise control of video conversion, including cropping, advanced filtering and frame rate adjustment, as well as presets for those who just want quick results. Handbrake may take a while to get used to, but the output is worth it. Earlier this year the Mac version of HandBrake was, but the software is now secure and safe to download.
Converted videos are watermarked DVDVideoSoft is known for its superb free media software that performs exactly as advertised, and is no exception. Its interface is clean and uncluttered, and it can convert batches of videos with ease.
Free Video Converter has a small set of output options (MP4, AVI, MPEG and MP3 are available, plus an option optimized for iOS devices), but that might be plenty if you're not used to working with video files, and the likes of Handbrake or MediaCoder look excessively complicated. There's a choice of quality settings, and you can merge several clips into a single file while they're converted.
It's a shame that videos converted with Free Video Converter are watermarked. The mark isn't terribly intrusive, but it prevents this otherwise excellent software ranking higher in this list. Want to know more?
Find out Check out our video below for the best free video editors.
Video files are big. They take up loads of space on your computer or mobile device — up to 10.5 GB of space per minute of uncompressed 1080 HD footage! Large video files also require lots of bandwidth to send, download, or stream. If you’ve ever endured a buffering video, you know how painful a large video can be to watch on a slow internet connection. So, just about all videos are compressed before being uploaded to the internet. But striking the right balance between a small file size and a watchable end product is both an art and a science. While experienced video editors can debate the various merits of different formats and, for most web videos, there’s no need to get quite so technical.
In fact, if you’re using (and we hope you are!) you’re already in good shape. Videos made with Biteable are already compressed to the current industry-standard level of 627 kb/s with a resolution of 720p, which is ideal for online sharing. This means your downloaded videos will maintain high image quality while staying as small as possible. They’ll be quick to upload to YouTube and will stream smoothly for visitors to your website.
However, if you want to compress your video file size even further, you have a number of options. What’s a video compressor, and how does it reduce file size? A is a piece of software that reduces your video file size by removing details in the data. There are lots of different codecs (that’s short for coder/encoder) which are used to compress video files for different formats or programs. MPEG-4 (mp4) or WMV (Windows Media Video) are two you might be familiar with.
But they all work in one of. Lossless compression works by eliminating redundant information and is not typically used for the web. It’s more commonly used by professional editors who want to share video files with each other without losing quality. Lossy compression, on the other hand, noticeably removes detail. You can, however, still use a lossy method to compress an image or audio file quite a bit before most people will notice much of a difference. Example of a large image compressed to various smaller file sizes But if you compress a file over and over again, you’ll definitely start to notice a decline in quality (think pixelation and muddy-sounding audio.) So it’s always a good idea to keep a master version of your uncompressed video, just in case you ever want to convert it to a different format or do more editing on it. The best video compressor software Most video compressors are also video converters.
These allow you to convert a video from one file type to another, while also offering control over the final output size. We should note that many editing programs, as well as default programs like also typically offer different file formats and resolution/bitrate options. A video compressor is usually a better way to go, however, as they will usually allow more control over the final result. Online These online video compressors run in your browser, so there’s no bulky software to download. If you only need to compress videos occasionally, an online video compressor should be just fine. FREE This free online video compressor allows you to convert from one video file type to another, and compress videos for a smaller file size. Pros.
No limits on video length, no watermarks, and a wide range of resolutions, output sizes, bitrates, and more. Queue up multiple videos at once. Includes some editing tools — add a filter, crop/trim, adjust frame rate, or add your own watermark. Cons. Not as full-featured as Apowersoft’s paid program, Video Converter Studio. Runs entirely in your browser, but you’ll need to download the small launcher plugin. PAID With CloudConvert supporting 218 file formats, you can convert practically any file type you can think of into any other one.
Pros. Supports a massive list of more than 200 different video, audio, document, archive, image, and presentation formats. Free version can handle files up to 1GB in size and up to 25 minutes of video per day. Paid packages are reasonably priced, with an $8.00 option that gets you 500 minutes, or recurring subscriptions starting at $8USD/month. Select files from desktop, Google Drive, Dropbox, and others.
Cons. If you don’t need to convert other file types (i.e. Images, PDFs, presentations, etc.) you may find yourself with a lot of features you don’t need. In that case, you may be better off going with a video-specific tool. Windows If you need to compress video on a Windows machine, you have a few good options. FREE With over 93 million users, this Windows-only free video compressor is a popular option. It offers several different ways to, including multiple codecs, resolutions, and frame rate options.
Pros. Supports 500+ formats and devices. No registration, time limits, or upgrade costs. Can also burn DVDs or export directly to YouTube. Cons. Limited editing tools — you’ll need another tool for anything but the most basic edits.
Some features (like exporting from YouTube) are locked at first. You’ll receive a Web Pack unlocking these features after three days. PAID Though the free version of this tool is fairly limited, the pro version offers a number of great features to help you compress video files quickly. Pros. 200+ video/audio formats supported including HD and 4K.
Preset parameters for a wide range of devices. Batch convert video and audio files. Free trial, lifetime software license with upgrades is a reasonable $29.95. Cons. Although Wonderfox claims their conversion is 50x faster, some users say converting to/from 4K UHD is a bit slow.
Pro version doesn’t include DVD features (those are in a separate product). But if you’re looking for a video compressor, that’s likely not a concern. Mac As we mentioned above, Apple’s default video program QuickTime does offer some tools to help you compress video files. But if you need a more robust video compressor, these are two good options. FREE This free video compressor has no limitations and supports hundreds of video inputs, outputs, and devices. Pros.
Also includes features to download or extract videos/audio and rip or burn CDs or DVDs. Allows you to compress video size to lossless quality and claims 30x faster conversion speed. Intuitive and streamlined user interface. Includes additional editing tools, filters, and effects. Cons. The Mac version seems to be lacking some of the Windows features, like 4K downloading and NVIDIA NVENC accelerated encoding.
The program is free to use but does include other bundled software you may not want. Be sure to uncheck those options in the installer if you’d prefer to install only the video converter. PAID Available for Windows and Mac, Wondershare’s premium video converter promises 30x faster speed and more than 1000 supported formats. Pros. Offers a range of settings and tools, including to reduce video file size. All-in-one tool also includes tools for downloading video, DVD burning, editing, streaming to other devices, and other features. Supports batch compression for reducing multiple video files at once.
Easy to use with extensive online support documentation and tutorials. Cons. Most expensive option at $59.95 for a lifetime license, but a free trial is available.
say that Wondershare’s program has fewer built-in device optimization profiles than other video compressor/converter tools. To sum up Anyone who creates or shares videos online needs a decent video compressor. Depending on your video, you can opt to reduce file size by changing to a smaller size format, adjusting settings like frame rate, bitrate, or resolution or cropping/trimming your video’s length or size. All of these tools will enable you to compress video in some of these ways, and most support all of these video compression methods.
The choice comes down to your system, budget, preferred formats, and how much control you want to have over optimization settings. Of course, if you don’t need that level of control, or don’t want to spend the time, you can always rely on Biteable to compress your videos to the perfect level for high-quality viewing and reduced file size without you having to worry about a thing.