Video codecs determine how your video is compressed. Choose wrong and you get huge files, poor quality, or compatibility nightmares.
H.264 (AVC)
The safe choice. Works everywhere — every browser, every phone, every TV. Good compression but not the best. Use when: you need maximum compatibility. This is what our video compressor outputs by default.
H.265 (HEVC)
50% smaller files than H.264 at the same quality. The catch: patent licensing makes it expensive for software makers, so browser support is inconsistent. Use when: you're targeting Apple devices (Safari, iOS, macOS all support it natively).
AV1
The future. Open-source, royalty-free, and 30% smaller than H.265. YouTube, Netflix, and Chrome already support it. The downside: encoding is slow (10x slower than H.264). Use when: you're publishing to YouTube or streaming platforms.
VP9
Google's codec, used primarily on YouTube. Good compression, free, and well-supported in Chrome and Firefox. Being gradually replaced by AV1.
Don't want to think about codecs? Our compressor automatically chooses the best codec for your target use case.