MOV to MP4 converts Apple QuickTime MOV files, such as iPhone videos, into MP4 so they play on Windows, Android, smart TVs and every website. The conversion runs in your browser, so personal videos stay on your device.
When you need MP4 instead of MOV
| Situation | Why |
|---|---|
| Sharing an iPhone video with an Android user | MP4 plays on every phone |
| Uploading to a site that rejects MOV | MP4 is accepted everywhere |
| Editing on Windows | Most Windows editors prefer MP4 |
| Playing on a TV from USB | TVs play MP4, often not MOV |
iPhone videos and HEVC
iPhones save clips as .MOV. Since iPhone 7, the default camera setting High Efficiency records in HEVC (H.265), which keeps 4K files smaller. That codec is the usual reason a clip will not open on a Windows PC, an Android phone, or in Chrome on an older computer.
This page reads HEVC in Chrome and Edge on most recent computers, and in Safari, then writes a standard H.264 MP4. After that, the same file plays in Windows Media Player, VLC, WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube and almost every other app. Resolution, frame rate and length stay the same; only the wrapping and, for HEVC, the video codec change.
If you film a lot of clips you later send to mixed devices, set the iPhone camera to Most Compatible. New videos will already be H.264 and convert in a few seconds because the picture can be copied instead of re-encoded.
Other MOV files
MOV is also what you get from:
- QuickTime and iMovie on a Mac
- Some DSLRs and mirrorless cameras in “Apple” or “QuickTime” mode
- Screen recordings on macOS (unless you chose MP4)
Those files are often already H.264. In that case they are copied into MP4 without a quality change and the conversion is fast. Professional camera codecs such as ProRes cannot be read by browsers; export those as H.264 from your editing app instead.
Tips
- Play the result before you send it, especially if the clip was filmed in HDR or at a high frame rate.
- To shrink a 4K iPhone clip for email or Discord, convert it here, then use Video Compressor.
- Cut the start and end with Trim Video if you only need part of the take.