Convert MOV to MP4
To convert MOV to MP4, add your .mov file below: ffmpeg running in your browser re-encodes it to H.264 video with AAC audio, the MP4 format that plays on almost every device. The video is never uploaded.
About converting MOV to MP4
MOV (.mov) files can be converted to MP4 entirely in your browser — no software to install, no file upload, and no account required. The conversion runs on a WebAssembly build of ffmpeg directly on your device.
Why MOV files need converting
MOV is Apple's QuickTime format: iPhones and Mac screen recordings save to it. Recent iPhones record MOV with HEVC (H.265) video, which some Windows PCs, Android phones, browsers and upload forms can't play. Converting to H.264 MP4 fixes that.
- Sharing iPhone video with Windows or Android users
- Uploading to a site that only accepts MP4
- Editing in software that struggles with HEVC
Quality settings used
Video is encoded as H.264 at CRF 23 with the "veryfast" preset, and audio as AAC — the exact command is shown further down this page. CRF 23 is ffmpeg's default quality level: very close to the source for most footage, but it is a lossy re-encode.
If your MOV already contains H.264 video and AAC audio, desktop ffmpeg can switch the container without re-encoding (no quality loss): ffmpeg -i input.mov -c copy output.mp4.
Device notes
- iPhone: Settings → Camera → Formats → Most Compatible records H.264 instead of HEVC from then on.
- iPhone HDR video: H.264 output here is standard dynamic range, so HDR clips can look flatter or washed out. Turn off Settings → Camera → Record Video → HDR Video before filming if that matters.
Technical comparison
| MOV | MP4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | video | video |
| Compression type | Lossy (codec-dependent, typically H.264; can wrap low-compression ProRes) | Lossy (H.264/H.265 video, AAC audio) |
| Typical file size | Moderate to large — similar to MP4, larger when wrapping low-compression codecs like ProRes | Moderate — a few MB per minute of 1080p video, varying with CRF/bitrate |
| Transparency support | No | No |
How to convert MOV to MP4 privately
Every step below runs on a WebAssembly build of ffmpeg inside this browser tab. Your .mov file is never uploaded to a server — there's no network request carrying it anywhere.
Add your MOV file
Drag and drop, or click to select, a file (.mov). It's read straight from disk into browser memory — no upload step exists.
Convert locally
FreePrivateConvert converts it to MP4 using a WebAssembly build of ffmpeg, entirely within this browser tab.
Download the result
Save your converted .mp4 file. It only ever existed in this tab's memory — closing the tab without downloading discards it completely.
Troubleshooting
- It takes a long time
- Video encoding runs on one CPU core inside the browser, so long or 4K clips can take several minutes. Keep the tab in the foreground; shorter clips finish much faster.
- The tab crashes on a big file
- The whole video is held in memory during conversion. Close other tabs, or trim the clip first; files up to 500MB are accepted but very large ones need a lot of RAM.
Convert MOV to MP4 with ffmpeg (command line)
Prefer the terminal? This is the exact ffmpeg command this page runs for you:
ffmpeg -i input.mov -c:v libx264 -preset veryfast -crf 23 -c:a aac output.mp4- -i input.mov
- Your MOV file.
- -c:v libx264
- Encode the video as H.264, the format virtually every phone, browser and TV plays.
- -preset veryfast
- Encoding speed vs. file size trade-off: veryfast encodes quickly with a slightly larger file.
- -crf 23
- Constant quality level (lower = better quality and bigger file; 18-28 is the usual range, 23 is the default).
- -c:a aac
- Encode the audio as AAC.
- output.mp4
- The MP4 file to create. ffmpeg picks the container from this extension.
Don't have ffmpeg installed? You don't need it: use the converter at the top of this page. It runs the same conversion on your own device, and your file is never uploaded.
FAQ
- Is my file uploaded anywhere?
- No. Your file is read and processed inside this browser tab and never leaves your device. You can confirm it in your browser's developer tools: the Network tab shows no upload.
- Does converting MOV to MP4 reduce quality?
- The video is re-encoded as H.264 at CRF 23 (ffmpeg's default quality level, "veryfast" preset) with AAC audio. That looks very close to the source for most footage, but it is a lossy re-encode, so fine detail and grain can soften slightly.
- Is there a file size limit?
- Yes: 500MB per file. There's no account and no limit on how many files you convert.
- What's the difference between MOV and MP4?
- MOV (QuickTime Movie) and MP4 (MPEG-4 Part 14) store data differently. MOV: lossy (codec-dependent, typically H.264; can wrap low-compression ProRes). MP4: lossy (H.264/H.265 video, AAC audio). MP4 is the default video container for the web and virtually every device — pairs H.264/H.265 video with AAC audio in a single file.
- Why convert MOV to MP4?
- Common uses for MP4: Uploading to YouTube and social platforms; Sharing screen recordings; Web <video> embeds. Near-universal hardware decoding support across phones, browsers, TVs, and game consoles, so playback rarely falls back to slower software decoding.
- What MIME type does a .mp4 file use?
- video/mp4, the standard type for MPEG-4 Part 14.
- What is the ffmpeg command to convert MOV to MP4?
- Run: ffmpeg -i input.mov -c:v libx264 -preset veryfast -crf 23 -c:a aac output.mp4. This is the exact command FreePrivateConvert runs for this conversion, so you can use this page instead of installing ffmpeg: it runs the same conversion inside your browser.
Learn more: What is a MOV file
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