Video guides & tutorials
Plain-English answers on video formats, converting between them, and getting the result you need — paired with the free tools that do each job in your browser.
How to compress a video for email (under 25MB)
Email attachment limits are smaller than the number they advertise, and video is the one thing that blows past them instantly. Here is the math that lets you aim a clip at an exact size and land under it every time.
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- VideoFormats
MP4 vs WebM vs MOV: which format should you use?
MP4, WebM and MOV are all video files, but they are not the same kind of thing as the codec inside them. Once you separate the box from what is in it, choosing the right format becomes obvious.
5 min read
- VideoGIF
How to make a GIF from a video
A GIF is a wonderful way to share a two-second reaction and a terrible way to share anything longer. Here is how to make one that loops cleanly without ballooning into a file bigger than the video it came from.
5 min read
- VideoAudio
How to extract MP3 audio from any video
Sometimes you only want the sound: the talk from a recorded lecture, the music from a clip, the audio from a meeting. Here is how to lift a clean MP3 out of any video without uploading it.
5 min read
- VideoCompression
How to reduce video file size without losing quality
Most videos are far bigger than they need to be, carrying detail no screen shows and bitrate no eye notices. Here is how to cut a file down while keeping the picture that actually matters.
5 min read
- VideoSocial
Best video format for WhatsApp, Instagram and YouTube
Every social platform quietly re-encodes what you upload, so the smart move is to hand it a clean file in the shape it wants. One format covers almost all of them — the shape is what changes.
4 min read
- VideoMOV
How to convert MOV to MP4 (iPhone videos on Windows)
You sent an iPhone video to someone on Windows and it would not open. The culprit is Apple's MOV container and the HEVC codec inside it. Here is why, and the one-step fix.
4 min read
- VideoTrim
How to trim a video online for free
Trimming a video should be the simplest edit there is: pick a start, pick an end, done. Here is how to do it free in your browser, and how to keep the cut fast and lossless.
4 min read
- VideoGIF
GIF vs MP4: which is better for sharing?
A GIF and a short MP4 can show the same silent loop — but one can be twenty times larger than the other. Knowing when each wins saves bandwidth, upload time and a lot of frustration.
3 min read