FFmpeg

• Example with an explanation of switches
• Basic Examples
• Video Encoding Examples
• Audio Encoding Examples
• Resizing and Scaling Examples
• Padding Examples
• Rotation and Flipping Examples
• Time Manipulation Examples
• Frame Rate Manipulation Examples
• Audio Manipulation Examples
• Image and Video Examples
• Stitch multiple videos together
• Encode .gif to .mp4 (ScreenToGif)
• Subtitle Examples
• Watermark Examples
• Complex Filtergraph Examples
• Streaming Examples (Basic)
• Miscellaneous Examples

Example with an explanation of switches

ffmpeg -y -i Input_File.mkv -strict experimental -loglevel error -stats -map 0:v? -map 0:a? -dn -map_chapters -1 -movflags +faststart -c:v copy -c:a copy -strict -2 Output_File.mp4

Remux 2160p .mkv to .mp4

Basic Examples

ffmpeg -i input.avi output.mp4

Convert input.avi to output.mp4 (using default codecs).

ffmpeg -i input.mov -c:v libx264 -c:a aac output.mp4

Convert input.mov to H.264 video and AAC audio in an MP4 container.

ffmpeg -i input.wmv -c:v libx265 -c:a aac output.mp4

Convert input.wmv to HEVC (H.265) video and AAC audio in an MP4 container.

ffmpeg -i input.flv -vn -acodec libmp3lame output.mp3

Extract audio from input.flv to an MP3 file.

ffmpeg -i input.wav -acodec aac output.aac

Convert a WAV audio file to an AAC audio file.

Video Encoding Examples

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 -b:v 2000k output.mp4

Encode video with H.264 at a bitrate of 2000 kbps.

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx265 -b:v 3000k -preset medium output.mp4

Encode video with HEVC at a bitrate of 3000 kbps using the medium preset.

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 -crf 23 output.mp4

Use Constant Rate Factor (CRF) encoding for H.264 (lower CRF values mean higher quality, typically 18-28).

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 -pass 1 -an -f null NUL && ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 -pass 2 -c:a aac -b:a 128k output.mp4

Two-pass encoding for better quality (Windows). Replaces /dev/null with NUL. First pass analyzes the video, second pass encodes it.

Audio Encoding Examples

ffmpeg -i input.mp3 -acodec aac -b:a 192k output.aac

Convert audio to AAC at a bitrate of 192 kbps.

ffmpeg -i input.wav -acodec libmp3lame -b:a 128k output.mp3

Convert audio to MP3 at a bitrate of 128 kbps.

ffmpeg -i input.flac -acodec copy output.flac

Copy the audio stream without re-encoding (lossless).

Resizing and Scaling Examples

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf scale=640:480 output_640x480.mp4

Scale the video to 640x480 resolution.

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf scale=1280:-1 output_1280w.mp4

Scale the video to 1280 pixels wide, automatically calculating the height to maintain aspect ratio.

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf scale=-1:720 output_720h.mp4

Scale the video to 720 pixels high, automatically calculating the width to maintain aspect ratio.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "scale=iw*0.5:ih*0.5" "output_halfsize.mp4"

Reduce the video to half its original size.

Cropping Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "crop=640:480:100:50" "output_cropped.mp4"

Crop the video to 640x480, starting at coordinates (100, 50).

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=in_w/2:in_h/2:(in_w-out_w)/2:(in_h-out_h)/2" output_center_cropped.mp4

Crop the center half of the video.

Padding Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "pad=1280:720:0:0:black" "output_padded.mp4"

Pad the video to 1280x720 with black bars.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "pad=1280:720:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2:white" "output_centered_padded.mp4"

Center the video within a 1280x720 frame with white padding.

Rotation and Flipping Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "transpose=1" "output_rotated.mp4"

Rotate the video 90 degrees clockwise. transpose=2 is 90 degrees counterclockwise, transpose=3 is 180 degrees.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "hflip" "output_hflipped.mp4"

Flip the video horizontally.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "vflip" "output_vflipped.mp4"

Flip the video vertically.

Time Manipulation Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -ss 00:01:00 -to 00:02:00 -c copy "output_cut.mp4"

Cut a clip from 1 minute to 2 minutes (fast, using stream copy).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -ss 60 -t 30 -c copy "output_cut.mp4"

Cut a clip starting at 60 seconds with a duration of 30 seconds (fast, using stream copy).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -ss 00:00:30 "output_start_30s.mp4"

Start playback at 30 seconds (doesn't cut the video, just sets the starting point).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -itsoffset 5 -i "input.mp4" -map 1:a -map 0:v -c copy "output_delayed_audio.mp4"

Delay the audio by 5 seconds (adjust the offset value as needed).

Frame Rate Manipulation Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -r 24 "output_24fps.mp4"

Change the frame rate to 24 fps.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -filter:v "minterpolate=mi_mode=mci,framerate=60" "output_60fps.mp4"

Increase the frame rate to 60 fps using motion interpolation (can introduce artifacts).

Audio Manipulation Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -af "volume=0.5" "output_quieter.mp4"

Reduce the volume to 50%.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -af "volume=10dB" "output_louder.mp4"

Increase the volume by 10 dB.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -ac 2 "output_stereo.mp4"

Convert audio to stereo.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -ac 1 "output_mono.mp4"

Convert audio to mono.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -af "aresample=44100" "output_44100hz.mp4"

Change the sample rate to 44100 Hz.

Image and Video Examples

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -s 1280x720 -c:a copy output.mp4

Change resolution of video

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vn -ab 320k output.mp3

Removing video stream from a media file

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -r 1 -f image2 image-%2d.png

Extracting images from video
-r - Set the frame rate. I.e. the number of frames to be extracted into images per second. The default value is 25.
-f - Indicates the output format i.e, image format in our case. image-%2d.png - Indicates how we want to name the extracted images. In this case, the names should start like image-01.png, image-02.png, image-03.png and so on. If you use %3d, then the name of images will start like image-001.png, image-002.png and so on.

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -filter:v "crop=w:h:x:y" output.mp4

Crop video
-filter:v - Indicates the video filter.
crop - Indicates crop filter.
w - Width of the rectangle that we want to crop from the source video.
h - Height of the rectangle.
x - x coordinate of the rectangle that we want to crop from the source video.
y - y coordinate of the rectangle.

Let us say you want to a video with a width of 640 pixels and a height of 480 pixels, from the position (200,150), the command would be:

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -filter:v "crop=640:480:200:150" output.mp4`

ffmpeg -i input_file.mp4 -ss 00:01:30 -to 00:01:55 -c copy output.mp4

Clip sections of a video
-i input_file.mp4 - Specifies the input video file
-ss 00:01:30 - Sets the start time (1 minute and 30 seconds into the video)
-to 00:01:55 - Sets the end time of the video
-c copy - Copies the streams without re-encoding (faster)
output.mp4 - Name of the output file

For a more accurate cut encoding can be used but will be slower.

ffmpeg -ss 00:01:30 -i input_file.mp4 -t 00:00:30 -c:v libx264 -c:a aac output.mp4

Stitch multiple videos together

First create a list of files. cmd:

(for %i in (*.mp4) do @echo file '%i') > files.txt

Powershell:

foreach ($i in Get-ChildItem .\*.mp4) {echo "file '$i'" >> files.txt}

Bash:

for f in *.mp4; do echo "file '$f'" >> videos.txt; done

or

printf "file '%s'\n" * > files.txt

Once your text file is ready it should contain all the names of files you want to concatenate in this format:

file 'file2.mp4'
file 'file3.mp4'
file 'file1.mp4'

Now you can enter the following command to concatenate the files:

ffmpeg -f concat -safe 0 -i files.txt -c copy output.mp4

With transcoding:

ffmpeg -f concat -safe 0 -i input.txt -c:v libx264 -c:a aac output.mp4

-f concat - Specifies the concat format
-safe 0 - Allows ffmpeg to read files in the current directory
-i input.txt - Input file containing the list of videos
-c copy - Copies the codecs without re-encoding (faster)
-c:v libx264 - uses the x264 (H.264) video encoder
-c:a aac - uses the AAC audio encoder
output.mp4 - Name of the output file

Method 2: Using the concat filter

ffmpeg -i input_file.mp4 -i input2.mp4 -i input3.mp4 -filter_complex "[0:v][0:a][1:v][1:a][2:v][2:a]concat=n=3:v=1:a=1[outv][outa]" -map "[outv]" -map "[outa]" output.mp4

-i input1.mp4 -i input2.mp4 -i input3.mp4 - Input video files
-filter_complex - Applies complex filtering
concat=n=3:v=1:a=1 - Concatenates 3 inputs with 1 video and 1 audio stream each
[outv][outa] - Labels for the output video and audio streams
-map "[outv]" -map "[outa]" - Map the labeled streams to the output

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -aspect 16:9 output.mp4

Set aspect ratio. The commonly used aspect ratios are:

16:9
4:3
16:10
5:4
2:21:1
2:35:1
2:39:1

ffmpeg -i "input.jpg" -c:v libx264 -loop 0 -t 10 "output.mp4"

Create a 10-second video from a still image (loop the image).

ffmpeg -loop 1 -i "input.png" -c:v libx264 -t 5 -pix_fmt yuv420p "output.mp4"

Create a 5-second video from a still image (loop the image), specifying pixel format.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "thumbnail" -frames:v 1 "output.jpg"

Create a thumbnail image from a video.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "select=eq(n\,100)" -vframes 1 "output.png"

Extract a specific frame (frame 100) as an image.

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vn -ar 44100 -ac 2 -ab 320k -f mp3 output.mp3

Extract and convert audio from media file

-vn - Indicates that we have disabled video recording in the output file.
-ar - Set the audio frequency of the output file. The common values used are 22050, 44100, 48000 Hz.
-ac - Set the number of audio channels.
-ab - Indicates the audio bitrate.
-f - Output file format. In our case, it's mp3 format.

Encode .gif to .mp4 (ScreenToGif)

ffmpeg -i example.gif -movflags faststart -pix_fmt yuv420p -vf "crop=trunc(iw/2)*2:trunc(ih/2)*2" video.mp4

-movflags faststart - This flag optimizes the video file for web playback by moving the moov atom (metadata for the video) to the beginning of the file. This allows the video to start playing before it is fully downloaded.

-pix_fmt yuv420p - Sets the pixel format to yuv420p, which is widely supported by most video players and is optimal for web playback.

-vf - This applies a video filter (-vf) to crop the input video.

"crop=trunc(iw/2)*2:trunc(ih/2)*2 - Ensures the width (iw) and height (ih) of the cropped video are both even numbers, which is often a requirement for video encoding.

trunc(iw/2)*2 - This calculates half of the input width, truncates the decimal, and multiplies it by 2 to get an even number.

trunc(ih/2)*2 - Similarly, this does the same for the input height.

Subtitle Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "subtitles=subtitles.srt" "output_with_subs.mp4"

Add subtitles from a .srt file to the video (burn-in subtitles).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -i "subtitles.srt" -c copy -map 0 -map 1 "output_with_subs.mkv"

Add subtitles as a separate stream in an MKV container (subtitles can be turned on/off).

Watermark Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -i "watermark.png" -filter_complex "overlay=10:10" "output_watermarked.mp4"

Add a watermark image to the video at position (10, 10).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -i "watermark.png" -filter_complex "overlay=(main_w-overlay_w-10):(main_h-overlay_h-10)" "output_bottom_right_watermarked.mp4"

Add a watermark to the bottom right corner.

Complex Filtergraph Examples

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "split[main][tmp];[tmp]scale=640:480,deshake[shake];[main][shake]overlay=x=W-w-10:y=10" "output_deshaked_watermarked.mp4"

Deshake the video and add a watermark (requires the deshake filter, which may need to be enabled during compilation).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vf "chromakey=0x3CB371:0.1:0.1" "output_chromakeyed.mp4"

Apply chromakey (green screen) effect. Adjust the color and similarity/blend values as needed.

Streaming Examples (Basic)

Note: Streaming examples require a streaming server setup (e.g., using nginx with the RTMP module).

ffmpeg -re -i "input.mp4" -c copy -f flv "rtmp://your_streaming_server/live/stream_key"

Stream a video to an RTMP server (replace with your server address and stream key).

Miscellaneous Examples

ffmpeg -i "concat:input1.ts|input2.ts|input3.ts" -c copy "output.ts"

Concatenate multiple Transport Stream (TS) files (alternative to the text file method). May not always work reliably.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -map 0:v -map 0:a -c copy "output.mkv"

Remux to MKV container (copy all video and audio streams).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -an "output_no_audio.mp4"

Remove audio from a video file.

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -vn "output_audio_only.mp4"

Remove video from a video file (leaving only audio).

ffmpeg -i "input.mp4" -f image2 "output\_%03d.png"

Extract each frame as a separate image (output001.png, output002.png, etc.).

ffmpeg -framerate 24 -i "image%03d.png" -c:v libx264 "output.mp4"

Create a video from a sequence of images (image001.png, image002.png, etc.) at 24 fps.