Video tool
Reduce video file size
Shrink MP4, MOV, and WebM clips for chat apps, email, and portals that bounce oversized uploads. Cap resolution or aim for a MB limit—then download a lighter MP4. Runs in your browser.
Drop your video here
Click or drop a video, tweak options, then press Reduce
How options work
- Max edge always caps resolution (applied on every encode).
- With Aim for a max file size on, the Target (MB) wins: short clips may get up to 3 lighter tries; clips ≥10 min get one bitrate pass (avoids triple wait). Quality only seeds how soft that try starts.
- With that aim off, Quality alone drives a single encode (no MB chase).
- Trim is optional: keeps only the start of long clips before encoding.
Quick presets
Fills target MB, max edge, and starting quality together (Email = ~25 MB by default).
Aim for a max file size
On — Target MB is the goal; quality is only the first-try seed.
Max edge 1080px
Always applied. Shrinks the longest side before encode—biggest lever after trim for long clips.
Prefers your device’s GPU / hardware encoder (WebCodecs)—usually much faster, no 31 MB download. If that path can’t handle a file, we fall back to a WASM engine. Output is MP4 (H.264). Long or 4K jobs may still warn or refuse to protect this tab.
How it works
- 01
Drop an MP4, MOV, or WebM
Phone clips and short camera files work best. We’ll read length and size before loading the engine.
- 02
Choose size aim or quality
Presets turn on an MB target (Email ≈25 MB). Target MB outranks the quality slider; quality only starts the first try. Or turn aim off and use quality alone. Max edge always caps pixels.
- 03
Wait for progress, then download
The bar shows encode progress. Cancel anytime. Download the MP4 when it’s smaller.
When a video is “too large”
Phones record for big screens. Upload boxes still speak in megabytes— WhatsApp-style caps, school portals, and email gateways reject clips that look fine in Photos. You need a smaller export, not another desktop installer.
This tool re-encodes in your tab. Cap the longest side, chase a printed MB limit (Target wins over the quality slider), or turn the size aim off and dial quality alone. Progress stays visible so long encodes don’t feel stuck.
What works well
Short phone clips
Under a few minutes at 720p or 1080p is the sweet spot. Use Chat or Email presets when you know the ceiling.
Heavy 4K or very long files
Browsers can run out of memory. We’ll refuse unsafe jobs early and suggest trimming, a lower max edge, or a desktop machine—better than a frozen tab.
Practical tips
- Target MB and Quality aren’t equal: with size aim on, MB is the goal and quality only seeds the first try; turn aim off to let quality alone decide.
- Prefer the original camera MP4 over a screen recording of the video.
- If you’re still over target after Reduce, lower max edge or enable trim.
- Keep the tab in the foreground on phones—background tabs may pause work.
- Open the download once before submitting to a portal.
Related tools
Common questions
What’s the difference between Target MB and Quality?
They are not equal goals. With “Aim for a max file size” on (Email preset defaults to ~25 MB), Target MB wins—we may run up to three lighter encodes to get under it. Quality only seeds how soft the first try is. Turn the aim off and Quality alone drives a single encode. Max edge always caps resolution either way.
Does my video leave this device?
Compression runs in your browser tab. We don’t upload your clip to our servers for reducing. The first run downloads a compression engine (~31 MB) from a public CDN into this tab only.
Which formats work?
MP4, MOV, and WebM from phones and cameras are the focus. Output is MP4 (H.264 + AAC) so most upload portals accept it. Exotic codecs may fail to open—try exporting MP4 from your camera app first.
Why was my file refused?
Browsers have limited memory and encode much slower than desktop apps. Very large or long high-resolution clips can freeze the tab, so we refuse them early with a clear reason. Shorten the clip, lower max edge, enable trim, or use a desktop computer.
Will the result always be smaller?
We only hand you a new file when it’s smaller than the original. If settings can’t beat the source, we keep the original and label it—same honest rule as our PDF and image tools.
Why is encoding slow—and can it use the GPU?
We prefer WebCodecs hardware encoding on supported browsers (often much faster, no large engine download). If that path can’t decode or encode your file, we fall back to a slower WASM engine. Very long clips still take time—lower max edge or trim to finish sooner.