Convert MOV to MP4
Your files are processed on your device. We never upload them.
Video is read and written with Mediabunny, under the Mozilla Public License. Browsers without their own AAC encoder use FFmpeg's, under the GNU LGPL.
How to convert MOV to MP4
- 01A ▸Choose your MOV videos, or drop them on the page. Several at once is fine.
- 02A ▸Keep Copy for the fastest result, or pick Re-encode to H.264 for an old player or TV.
- 03A ▸Select Convert to MP4, then download each video.
About MOV to MP4
Where MOV files come from
MOV is Apple's QuickTime format. iPhones, iPads, Macs, and many cameras save video as MOV. Windows apps, Android phones, websites, and upload forms often ask for MP4 instead, and some refuse MOV outright.
What changes
- With Copy, the picture and sound are moved into the MP4 exactly as they are, so nothing about quality, size, or frame rate changes.
- The rotation of a video filmed upright on a phone is kept, so it plays the right way up.
- iPhone extras that only Apple's apps read, such as Live Photo pairing and Cinematic mode depth, are not carried over. Extra sound tracks and subtitles are left out; the main picture and sound are kept.
- Re-encode to H.264 makes a new copy of the picture in H.264 for old players. That takes longer, and the file size can change.
Measured
Our one-minute 1080p sample at 30 frames a second with stereo AAC sound, H.264 at 8 Mbit/s (a synthetic test pattern, which is easier to encode than real footage), converted in Chrome on a laptop. Phone timings are still to be measured.
| MOV file | 61.1 MB |
|---|---|
| MP4 file, Copy | 61.3 MB |
| Time with Copy (Chrome, laptop) | 0.2 seconds |
| MP4 file, Re-encode to H.264 | 47.3 MB |
| Time with Re-encode (Chrome, laptop) | 4.8 seconds; real footage takes longer |
| Time on phones | still to be measured |
In your browser
Copying works in every current browser, because it needs no video decoder. Re-encode to H.264 uses the browser's own video encoder (WebCodecs), found in Chrome, Edge, and Firefox, and in Safari 16.4 and later; an HEVC video can be re-encoded only where the browser can decode HEVC, which Safari does, as do Chrome and Edge on most recent computers.
Limits
- MOV files in ProRes (from some cameras and editing apps) can be copied into MOV or MKV, but not into an MP4 that plays everywhere. Use the video converter and pick MOV or MKV, or re-encode on a computer whose browser decodes ProRes.
- Very old QuickTime files with codecs such as Sorenson or Cinepak can't be read here.
Other options
- MP4 to MP3: keep only the sound of the video.
- Trim video: cut the start or end before sharing.
- Video converter: convert to WebM, MKV, or back to MOV instead.
Questions
Does converting MOV to MP4 lose quality?
Not with Copy, the default. Most MOV files hold H.264 or HEVC video and AAC sound, which MP4 holds too, so the picture and sound are copied into the new file exactly as they are. Only Re-encode to H.264 makes a new copy of the picture.
Are my videos uploaded?
No. Your files are processed on your device. We never upload them.
Why is it so fast?
Because nothing is re-encoded. MOV and MP4 are close relatives (MP4 grew out of Apple's QuickTime format), so converting is mostly rewriting the file's index around the same video and sound.
My iPhone video still won't play on an old TV or player. What now?
Recent iPhones record in HEVC (H.265), which many older players and some Windows PCs can't decode. Choose Re-encode to H.264 and convert again. It takes longer, but H.264 plays almost everywhere.
Is there a file size limit?
No daily limit and no watermark. Files over 100 MB show a warning first because they can be slow on phones, and you can go ahead anyway. The video is read and written in pieces, so long videos don't need to fit in memory.