Guide
Convert MOV to MP4 online: an MP4 that plays on every device
Drop a MOV, WebM, MKV or AVI above and press Convert to MP4. You get an MP4 that plays on every phone and computer, and your file is never uploaded.
In short
- This free converter turns MOV, WebM, MKV and AVI files into MP4, right in your browser.
- The MP4 has H.264 video and AAC sound, the pair every phone, browser and player can open.
- An iPhone video recorded on Most Compatible converts in seconds, with no loss in quality.
- An iPhone video recorded on High Efficiency (HEVC) is re-encoded once, which takes about as long as it plays.
- Your file is never uploaded, and you need no account.
Video to MP4
Runs in your browser · files never leave this page
Drop a MOV, WebM, MKV or AVI here
or
The engine reads the file first. An H.264 picture with AAC sound is copied into the MP4 with no re-encode. Anything else is written as H.264 + AAC.
Your file never leaves this page. The engine downloads once, the work happens in this tab, and there is no upload, no account and no storage. Close the tab and the file is gone unless you downloaded it.
More free tools: Video compressor · Video resizer · Video to MP3 · Video clipper · all tools
- Inside every MP4 this tool makes: the pair every player opens
- H.264 + AAC
- The AAC sound the tool writes when the sound has to be converted
- 160 kbps
- The video engine your browser downloads once per visit
- 32 MB
How to convert MOV to MP4 online
Drop your MOV, WebM, MKV or AVI file in the box above and press Convert to MP4. The tool first reads which picture and sound formats are inside the file.
If the picture and sound already fit an MP4, it copies them across without touching a frame, which takes seconds. If not, it re-encodes them once. A note says which one happened.
What happens when you press Convert to MP4
Read the file
What is inside it
H.264 and AAC inside?
Copied across in seconds
Something else?
Re-encoded once to H.264
Write the MP4
It starts playing as it downloads
Read the note
Copied or re-encoded
What is the difference between MOV and MP4?
A video file is a container that holds a picture track and a sound track. MOV is Apple's container, and MP4 is the standard one. Both are built the same way.
Whether a file plays depends on what is inside, not on the letters at the end. An iPhone on Most Compatible records H.264 with AAC sound, which is exactly what an MP4 holds.
- An iPhone MOV recorded on Most Compatible converts in seconds, even when it is long, with nothing lost.
- An iPhone on High Efficiency records HEVC, also called H.265. Many Windows computers, older browsers and players cannot open it.
MOV and MP4 side by side
An iPhone records MOV. What decides where it plays is the picture format inside it.
| Container | Who made it | What opens it |
|---|---|---|
| MOV | Apple, for QuickTime | Macs and iPhones always, other players sometimes |
| MP4 | MPEG, the standards group | Every phone, browser, TV and editor |
Container: MOV
- Who made it
- Apple, for QuickTime
- What opens it
- Macs and iPhones always, other players sometimes
Container: MP4
- Who made it
- MPEG, the standards group
- What opens it
- Every phone, browser, TV and editor
This is the whole editor
Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.
When the video has to be re-encoded
HEVC video fits in an MP4, but many computers cannot play it, so the tool re-encodes it as H.264. WebM, MKV and AVI files often hold formats an MP4 cannot hold.
Those are decoded once and written as H.264 with AAC sound, so they play everywhere. This takes about as long as the video plays on a laptop, and longer on a phone.
- The loss in quality from one re-encode is hard to see.
- Sound that is not AAC is written as AAC at 160 kbps.
- If the picture is already H.264 but the sound is MP3 or Opus, only the sound is rewritten, and the picture is copied.
What the tool does with each file
The tool reads the file first. The note under the result says which row applied.
MOV with H.264 and AAC
- What happens to the picture
- Copied
- How long it takes
- Seconds, nothing lost
MOV with HEVC (High Efficiency)
- What happens to the picture
- Re-encoded to H.264
- How long it takes
- About as long as it plays
WebM (VP8 or VP9)
- What happens to the picture
- Re-encoded to H.264
- How long it takes
- About as long as it plays
MKV or AVI
- What happens to the picture
- Copied if it is H.264, re-encoded if it is not
- How long it takes
- Seconds, or as long as it plays
| What happens to the picture | How long it takes | |
|---|---|---|
| MOV with H.264 and AAC | Copied | Seconds, nothing lost |
| MOV with HEVC (High Efficiency) | Re-encoded to H.264 | About as long as it plays |
| WebM (VP8 or VP9) | Re-encoded to H.264 | About as long as it plays |
| MKV or AVI | Copied if it is H.264, re-encoded if it is not | Seconds, or as long as it plays |
Why H.264 and AAC, and not something newer
Newer formats make smaller files, but some computers and phones still cannot open them. A file that will not open is no use to the person you send it to.
H.264 with AAC opens on every phone, browser, TV and editing program from the last fifteen years. The tool also writes the MP4 so it starts playing while it is still downloading, which is what a website needs.
- If you need a smaller file, compress the MP4 afterwards with our free video compressor.
- If you only need the sound, our free video to MP3 converter saves it for you.
Three video formats compared
| Format | File size | Opens on |
|---|---|---|
| H.264 | The baseline | Every phone, browser, TV and editor from the last 15 years |
| HEVC (H.265) | Noticeably smaller | Not on many Windows computers, older browsers or players |
| AV1 | Smaller still | Not on some older computers and phones |
Format: H.264
- File size
- The baseline
- Opens on
- Every phone, browser, TV and editor from the last 15 years
Format: HEVC (H.265)
- File size
- Noticeably smaller
- Opens on
- Not on many Windows computers, older browsers or players
Format: AV1
- File size
- Smaller still
- Opens on
- Not on some older computers and phones
Nothing is uploaded, and the limits
The tool runs ffmpeg, a free video program, inside your browser. It downloads once, about 32 MB, and then opens your file in this tab. Nothing is sent to a server or stored.
A copy is quick and light, because no frame is decoded. Re-encoding is heavy, so the tool warns above 500 MB. A file it cannot read at all is rare and usually damaged.
- If the tab runs out of memory, cut the part you need with our free video trimmer, then convert the short clip.
- A damaged file is usually a recording that was interrupted or a download that stopped early.
- Subtitle and data tracks are left out, because an MP4 made to play everywhere cannot carry them.
The limits at a glance
| Item | Limit |
|---|---|
| Engine download | About 32 MB, once per visit |
| Size warning | Above 500 MB |
| Copy | Seconds |
| Re-encode | About as long as the video plays |
| File you get | MP4, H.264 with AAC |
Item: Engine download
- Limit
- About 32 MB, once per visit
Item: Size warning
- Limit
- Above 500 MB
Item: Copy
- Limit
- Seconds
Item: Re-encode
- Limit
- About as long as the video plays
Item: File you get
- Limit
- MP4, H.264 with AAC
From a phone video to a finished video
Many MOV files come straight from an iPhone. If yours is a video of you talking, Cutroom can turn it into a finished video. It accepts MOV files as they are.
Film one clip of up to three minutes and upload it. It comes back as a finished 9:16 video in about a minute, ready for Reels, TikTok or Shorts.
- Cutroom cuts the pauses, adds captions timed to your voice, puts b-roll on the phrases you highlight and writes an opening headline.
- Your first video is free, with no card, and you have seven days to make it.
- The free video carries a Cutroom mark. Lite at $19.99 a month removes it.
- The converter above stays free and stays in your browser either way.
What one clip becomes
One 9:16 MP4 with the headline, the captions and the b-roll added.
Questions people ask
- How do I convert MOV to MP4?
- Drop the MOV file in the box above and press Convert to MP4. If it holds H.264 video, it is copied in seconds with nothing lost. If it holds HEVC, it is re-encoded once. Then download the MP4.
- Does converting MOV to MP4 lose quality?
- Not when the MOV holds H.264 and AAC, which is what an iPhone on Most Compatible records. Then the picture and sound are copied as they are. HEVC or WebM is re-encoded once, and the loss is hard to see. The note says which happened.
- Why won't my iPhone video play on Windows?
- Most likely it is HEVC, which an iPhone records on the High Efficiency setting. Many Windows computers and older players cannot open it. Convert it here and it is re-encoded as H.264, which plays everywhere.
- Why did my file convert in seconds when another took minutes?
- The quick one was copied: H.264 and AAC moved into a new file without decoding a frame. The slow one was re-encoded frame by frame, which takes about as long as the video plays.
- Is my MOV file uploaded anywhere?
- No. The tool runs inside this tab after a one-time download of about 32 MB. Nothing is sent, nothing is stored, and closing the tab clears everything except your download.
- Can it convert an MKV or an AVI too?
- Yes. The tool reads what is inside. An H.264 picture is copied, and anything else is re-encoded. Subtitle and data tracks are left out, because an MP4 made to play everywhere cannot carry them.
- Who should not use this MOV to MP4 converter?
- Anyone with a file over about 500 MB that needs re-encoding, or a batch of fifty files, because a desktop converter handles that better. And if the MOV is a video of you talking that still needs editing, upload it to Cutroom as it is.
Convert your file above, or upload the MOV to Cutroom as it is. Your first video is free.