AV1 to MP4 Converter
Re-encode AV1 video, from downloads, game captures or WebM files, into an MP4 with H.264 so devices and apps without an AV1 decoder play it smoothly.
Video Converter
or drop MP4, MOV, MKV … files here ·
Max 95 MB per file· Up to 20 files· Deleted after 30 minutes
Files are processed on our servers and deleted after 30 minutes.
Lower is better quality and a bigger file. 18 looks identical to the source, 23 is the default, 28 and above shows visible softening.
Frames per second. Keep the source rate unless a platform asks for a specific one; 15–20 fps is plenty for GIFs.
Only used for PowerPoint files and single still images: how long each slide or picture stays on screen.
Auto uses AAC for MP4/MOV and Opus for WebM. Copy keeps the original sound untouched when the new format supports it.
192 kbps is transparent for music; 128 kbps is enough for speech.
Width of the animation in pixels; height follows the aspect ratio. 480 px suits chats, 720 px or more gives a high-quality GIF but a much larger file.
GIF holds at most 256 colors. Fewer colors make a smaller file but cause banding on gradients and skin tones.
Mixes palette colors in a fine pattern to hide banding. Sierra gives the smoothest result; none gives the smallest file.
Whether the animation repeats endlessly or plays one time and stops.
Optional. Seconds (e.g. 75) or minutes:seconds (1:15). Leave empty to start at the beginning.
Optional. Same format as the start time. Leave empty to keep everything up to the end.
The converted file will be at or just under this size.
How to use this tool
- 1
Upload the AV1 files
Add up to 20 files, 95 MB or less each, whether they end in .mp4, .webm, .mkv or .ivf. What matters is the AV1 video inside.
- 2
Keep H.264 output
Convert to is MP4 and Video codec is H.264, the codec nearly every device made since about 2010 decodes in hardware. Audio codec AAC replaces Opus sound.
- 3
Convert and play
Press Convert to MP4 and play the result on the device that struggled. We remove the uploaded files after 30 minutes.
How do I convert AV1 to MP4?
Upload the AV1 file, keep Video codec on H.264, and press Convert to MP4. The AV1 stream is re-encoded to H.264 and the Opus or AAC sound becomes AAC, giving a file that plays almost everywhere.
AV1 is a codec, not a file type
The Alliance for Open Media, founded in 2015 by Google, Mozilla, Cisco, Microsoft, Netflix, Amazon and Intel, finished AV1 in 2018 as a royalty-free successor to VP9 and a rival to H.265. YouTube and Netflix stream it to supported devices, and OBS Studio records it on graphics cards with AV1 encoders such as NVIDIA's RTX 40 series, AMD's RX 7000 series and Intel Arc.
Because AV1 is a video codec, it lives inside a container: MP4, WebM, MKV or a raw .ivf stream. That is why searching for "AV1 to MP4" is really about changing the codec to H.264, the same move the HEVC to MP4 converter makes for iPhone footage.
Devices that play AV1 and those that need MP4
| Organisation | Requirement | Source |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone, iPad and Mac | Hardware decoding starts with the A17 Pro (iPhone 15 Pro) and M3 chips; older Apple devices often cannot play AV1 at all. | — |
| Windows 10 and 11 | Needs the free AV1 Video Extension from the Microsoft Store for the built-in apps. | — |
| NVIDIA graphics | GeForce RTX 30 series or newer decode AV1 in hardware. | — |
| Intel processors | 11th Gen Core and newer integrated graphics decode AV1. | — |
| Android | Android 10 and later include a software AV1 decoder; smooth 4K needs a chip with hardware support. | — |
AV1
AOMedia Video 1
AV1 is a royalty-free video codec released by the Alliance for Open Media, whose members include Google, Netflix, Amazon, Apple and Microsoft, in 2018. It compresses about 30% better than HEVC and is used by YouTube, Netflix and video-calling services. Encoding is slow and older devices lack hardware decoding, so playback may stutter or fail. AV1 is usually stored in MP4, WebM or MKV containers.
- Compression
- Lossy
- Transparency
- –
- Animation
- –
- Introduced
- 2018 · Alliance for Open Media
MP4
MPEG-4 video
MP4 (MPEG-4 Part 14) is a multimedia container standardised by ISO/MPEG and based on Apple's QuickTime format. It usually holds H.264 or HEVC video with AAC audio, and can also carry subtitles, chapters and metadata. It is the most compatible video format in the world, playing on phones, browsers, TVs, game consoles and social platforms. The video inside is almost always lossy, so repeated re-encoding gradually reduces quality.
- Compression
- Lossy
- Transparency
- –
- Animation
- –
- Introduced
- 2001 · Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG)
AV1 goes to MP4 with H.264 because the codec is newer than most hardware in use: a phone, TV or laptop bought before about 2021 often has no AV1 decoder, and H.264 plays on all of them.
What changes when AV1 becomes H.264
AV1 to H.264 in short
- Resolution and frame rate stay the same unless you change them.
- The file grows, because H.264 is less efficient than AV1.
- Opus sound from WebM sources is re-encoded to AAC.
- HDR sources may look flatter, since the preset targets a standard H.264 picture.
- Uploads are limited to 95 MB per file.
- The result decodes in hardware on almost any device.
Quality settings for an AV1 to MP4 conversion
AV1 sources are already compressed hard, and converting adds a second round of loss. The default Quality (CRF) of 23 is a good viewing copy; drop to 20 if the clip is going into an editor. A lower Resolution such as 1080p from a 4K capture cuts the size of the H.264 result far more than any CRF change.
If the goal is to send the clip somewhere with a size cap, tick Limit file size and enter the cap, or read how to compress video for Discord and email for per-service limits.
AV1 to MP4 questions
My file already ends in .mp4. Why does it still not play?
MP4 is only the container, and it can hold AV1 video as well as H.264. A player that sees an MP4 but lacks an AV1 decoder shows a black screen, an error, or sound only. Re-encoding the video stream to H.264 fixes that while keeping the .mp4 name.
How can I tell that a video uses AV1?
In VLC open Tools > Codec Information and look for AOMedia AV1 or av01 under the video stream. On a Mac, Finder's Get Info lists the codecs; on Windows the free MediaInfo app shows the format as AV1.
Why does the AV1 video stutter on my laptop instead of failing?
The computer is decoding AV1 in software because its chip has no AV1 block. Software decoders such as dav1d are efficient, but 4K or 60 fps AV1 can still overload an older processor. An H.264 copy is decoded by the graphics hardware and plays smoothly.
Should I install the AV1 Video Extension instead of converting?
On Windows 10 or 11 that free Microsoft Store extension lets the Films & TV and Photos apps play AV1, so it is worth trying for your own viewing. Convert when the file has to work for someone else, on a TV, or inside an editor.
Will the MP4 be larger than the AV1 file?
Usually yes. AV1 needs noticeably fewer bits than H.264 for the same picture, so expect a bigger file at the default Quality (CRF) of 23. Raise CRF to 26 or lower Resolution if the result has to fit a mail or chat limit.
Can I keep AV1 and only change the container to MP4?
You can pick AV1 under Video codec, which writes AV1 into the MP4, but the video is still re-encoded. That only helps when the source is a WebM or MKV and the target app reads AV1 in MP4; for older hardware stay with H.264.
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