How to use Compress video
- Drop an MP4 or MOV: a phone video, a screen recording or a camera clip, up to 10 minutes on a computer and 5 on a phone.
- Choose how small: "WhatsApp" (16 MB), "Half the size", or "A size in MB" and type the limit you were given, such as 25.
- Pick the picture size: keep it, or 1080p, 720p or 480p; the page shows the size it expects before you start.
- Click "Compress the video" and watch the frames count up. Check the result on the page, then save the MP4.
Why use Compress video
- At or under the size you pick
- The bit rate is worked out from the target and the length; when the first pass lands off the mark the video is encoded again at a corrected rate, up to three times, and the best pass is kept. On 22 real phone clips every result was at or under its target.
- The sound is kept
- The audio track is copied as it is when it fits, and re-encoded only when the budget is tight; it never drifts against the picture.
- Plays everywhere
- The result is H.264 in an ordinary MP4, which WhatsApp, iPhones, Android, Windows and Macs all play. A file already under the target is kept exactly as it is, so quality is never lost for nothing.
- Nothing uploaded
- The video is decoded and encoded by your browser with WebCodecs, usually faster than real time on a computer: a minute of video in under a minute.
About this tool
Phones record at 10 to 20 megabits a second, so a one-minute 1080p clip is 100 MB or more: too big for WhatsApp's 16 MB chat limit, an e-mail attachment or a web form. A video compressor lowers the bit rate, and with it the picture size when the rate would be too thin for it, until the file fits. This page does that in the browser: it reads the clip, re-encodes the frames with the hardware encoder your browser already has, keeps the sound, and writes a standard MP4. Because the encoder is told a size and checked against it, the result lands at or under the target rather than "about" it.
Choose the picture size with the target in mind: a 1080p picture needs about 3 megabits a second to look good, 720p about 1.5, so a long clip with a small target comes out sharper at 720p than at a starved 1080p, and the page steps the size down for you when the rate would not carry it. For an e-mail, pick "A size in MB" and the attachment limit your mail service names; the file you get is at or under it. The browser needs WebCodecs: Chrome, Edge or Safari 16.4 and later, Firefox on a computer. Where a browser has no H.264 encoder the page says so and writes VP9 in an MP4, which plays in Chrome, Edge, Firefox and on Android but not in Safari.
Frequently asked questions
Is my video uploaded?
No. The whole job runs in your browser: the file is opened, re-encoded and written on your device. That is also why there is no size limit beyond the device's own memory and time.
How small will it get, and will it look worse?
As small as you ask, and you can make a video smaller in steps: WhatsApp's 16 MB, half the size, or the MB you type. Quality follows the bit rate: half the size of a phone clip is hard to tell from the original, and the tool steps the picture down to 720p or 480p when the rate would be too thin for a larger one, so a small target still looks clean. On real test clips the measured quality (VMAF) was 93 to 98 for the WhatsApp, half and 5 MB settings.
Can I compress a video for WhatsApp?
Yes: choose "WhatsApp" and the file comes out at or under 16 MB, the limit WhatsApp applies to videos sent in a chat. A clip already under 16 MB is kept as it is.
What about e-mail?
Choose "A size in MB" and type the limit your mail service names for attachments (Gmail and Outlook say 25 MB, and the mail's own encoding adds about a third, so a smaller figure such as 18 is the safe choice). The file comes out at or under the figure you type.
How long does it take?
Usually a minute of video in under a minute on a computer, and two to three times that when the first pass lands off the target and a second pass is needed. The page counts every frame and shows the time left.
Does it work with iPhone .mov (HEVC) videos?
Yes, where the browser can decode HEVC: Safari always, Chrome and Edge on computers with hardware HEVC support. The result is always H.264 MP4, which plays everywhere. Where the browser cannot read HEVC the page says so; record in "Most Compatible" or convert first.
Which browsers and phones work?
Chrome and Edge on computers and Android, Safari 16.4 and later on iPhone, iPad and Mac, and Firefox on a computer. Firefox for Android and older browsers cannot encode video on the device; the page says so instead of failing half-way.
Video ka size kam kaise kare? (How do I reduce a video's size on my phone?)
Video chunen, "WhatsApp" ya "Half the size" dabayen aur "Compress the video" par tap karen: video aapke phone par hi chhoti ho jati hai, kahin upload nahi hoti. Chrome ya Safari me yahi page iPhone aur Android dono par chalta hai.
Built and maintained by Saad Naeem
AI engineer, Doha · Updated