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Video File Formats Explained: MP4, MOV, AVI, MKV, and More

Tap a format to see its traits.

MP4

The most widely used general-purpose video format, offering a good balance of compression and quality, playable on nearly every device and platform.

MOV

Developed by Apple, this is the default format for video shot or edited on iPhone or Mac, with a strength in preserving high image quality.

AVI

An older format developed by Microsoft that uses relatively little compression, giving good quality but resulting in comparatively large file sizes.

MKV

A flexible container format that can freely hold multiple video, audio, and subtitle tracks in a single file, often used for storing high-quality video.

WEBM

An open-source format developed by Google for web streaming, offering excellent quality relative to file size, well suited for video on websites.

FLV

A streaming format once widely used on Flash-based websites; its usage has dropped sharply since Flash support ended.

WMV

A compressed format developed by Microsoft, used to create relatively small video files within the Windows environment.

The File Extension Often Tells You Where a Video Came From

Video shot on a smartphone is commonly saved as MOV on iPhone and MP4 on Android. Converting a format to suit your editing or sharing needs lets you play video wherever you want without compatibility issues.

Choosing the Right Format Matters for Sharing

Not every device or platform supports every format equally well, so before uploading or sending a video, it helps to check which format the destination handles best β€” MP4 is the safest default choice in most cases.

Frequently Asked Questions

A MOV video I shot on an iPhone won't open on another device β€” why?

Some older devices or programs don't support the MOV format. Converting it to MP4 will generally let it play without issues on most devices.

What format is best for uploading to YouTube?

MP4 is the most reliably supported format across nearly every platform and offers a good balance of quality and file size, making it the safest recommendation for uploads.