Reduce video file size instantly in your browser - no upload needed
Reduce the file size of MP4, MOV, WebM and other videos directly in your browser. Your files stay on your device - nothing is uploaded. Pick a target size for email, WhatsApp or Slack and VidShift handles the rest. Works offline, no signup required.
or click to select a file
🔒 Your files never leave your device - 100% private & secure
Drag your file onto the upload area above or click Select Video. VidShift accepts MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, OGV and other common formats.
Pick a preset - Email (25 MB), WhatsApp (16 MB) or Slack (100 MB) - or enter a custom target. You can also lower the resolution for an even smaller file.
Hit Compress Video and wait a moment. When it finishes, download your smaller MP4 - ready to send or upload.
Large video files create real problems. Most email providers cap attachments at 25 MB, and platforms like WhatsApp, Discord and Slack enforce their own limits. Uploading oversized clips to social media can be slow or fail entirely. On top of that, uncompressed footage eats through device storage and cloud backup quotas. Compressing a video file lets you share it quickly, meet platform requirements and free up space - without losing the content that matters.
Every time you compress a video, the encoder lowers the bitrate - the amount of data used per second of footage. A lower bitrate means a smaller file, but it also means the encoder has less room to preserve detail. The trade-off is not all-or-nothing, though. Short clips keep much more quality at a given target size because the available data budget is spread over fewer seconds. Downscaling resolution - for example, from 4K to 1080p - is often a better strategy than aggressively lowering bitrate, because the picture still looks sharp on most screens while the file shrinks dramatically. The best approach is to pick the largest target size that meets your needs and experiment with resolution options to find the right balance.
VidShift's video compressor accepts all common video formats. MP4 (H.264 and H.265) is the most widely supported and produces the smallest files at a given quality level - ideal for sharing by email, WhatsApp, or Slack. MOV files from iPhones and cameras are fully supported; VidShift converts them to MP4 during compression. MKV files, commonly used for high-definition content and TV recordings, are supported and compressed to MP4 output. WebM, used by browsers and screen recorders, is also accepted. OGV and other less common formats are handled where your browser's codec support allows.
All output files are delivered as MP4, which plays on every device and is accepted by every major platform. If you need a different output format, use VidShift's video converter after compressing.
VidShift compresses video by re-encoding at a lower bitrate while keeping the resolution you choose. To minimise visible quality loss, select the largest target size that meets your needs. Downscaling resolution - for example, from 4K to 1080p - often gives a bigger size reduction than lowering bitrate alone, and the result still looks sharp on most screens. Because processing runs locally in your browser, you can experiment with different settings without waiting for uploads.
There is no hard limit. The practical limit depends on your device's available memory. Most modern computers handle files up to several gigabytes. For very large files, try lowering the resolution to reduce memory usage during compression.
Select the Email preset (25 MB target) after loading your video. VidShift will automatically calculate the right bitrate to fit your video within the 25 MB limit. For shorter videos, the quality will be higher. For longer videos, you may want to also lower the resolution for best results.
Select the WhatsApp preset (16 MB target). WhatsApp has a 16 MB file size limit for video messages. VidShift will calculate the optimal bitrate to fit within that limit. For longer videos, trimming to just the part you need with the video trimmer is another effective way to reduce file size before compressing.
Some quality reduction is expected whenever you compress a video - that is how compression works. VidShift calculates the best bitrate for your chosen target size and video duration, so shorter clips keep more detail. To get the best balance of size and quality, pick the largest preset that fits your needs and consider lowering the resolution one step rather than accepting a very low bitrate. All processing happens on your device, so you can try multiple settings quickly.
It depends on your device and the video's length and resolution. Short clips typically compress in seconds; longer or higher-resolution videos may take a few minutes. A progress bar and estimated time remaining are shown throughout. Because VidShift runs entirely in your browser using WebAssembly, performance scales with your hardware - modern laptops and desktops handle most files quickly, and hardware acceleration is used when available.
Yes. Your video never leaves your device. VidShift has no backend servers that receive or store your files. All compression runs locally in your browser using WebAssembly, ensuring complete privacy. The tool even works offline after your first visit.
VidShift supports all common video formats: MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, OGV, M4V, and MPEG-TS. The compressed output is always saved as MP4 for maximum compatibility across devices and platforms.
Yes. VidShift works in any modern mobile browser - Chrome, Safari, Edge or Firefox. Open this page in your mobile browser, select your video and choose a target size. The compression runs on your phone's processor and your video file isn’t uploaded or processed on our servers. For large or high-resolution files, a recent phone will give the best experience.
Completely free, with no hidden limits. There is no file size cap, no watermark, no daily quota and no account required. VidShift processes your videos directly in your browser, so your files are never uploaded and we don't pay for server-side media processing or storage. This keeps our costs low and lets us offer the tool for free. You can compress as many videos as you like.
Yes. VidShift is a completely free video compressor that never adds watermarks, logos or branding to your output. There are no daily limits, no signup and no hidden paywalls. Because the tool runs entirely in your browser, there are no server costs - so we can offer it for free without the compromises other services make.
Open VidShift in any modern browser - Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox. Drop your video onto the page, choose a target size and click Compress Video. The entire process runs locally in your browser using WebAssembly, so there is nothing to download or install. Your video is never uploaded to a server, and the tool even works offline after your first visit.
The most effective approach combines two strategies. First, choose the largest target size that fits your needs - this preserves the most detail. Second, consider lowering the resolution by one step (for example, 4K to 1080p or 1080p to 720p). Downscaling removes pixels the viewer rarely notices on smaller screens, while giving the encoder far more headroom for the remaining detail. If your video is longer than necessary, trimming it before compressing is another easy way to cut file size without touching quality.
Drop your 4K video onto the page and select a target size or resolution. The most effective way to compress 4K footage is to downscale the resolution - for example, to 1080p - rather than aggressively lowering the bitrate at full 4K. A 1080p output looks sharp on virtually every screen and is dramatically smaller than the 4K source. Use the resolution dropdown to select 1080p or 720p, then set a target size to control the bitrate further.
VidShift compresses video by re-encoding at a lower bitrate or resolution - this is what actually reduces the file size. True compression without re-encoding (remuxing) does not reduce file size; it only changes the container format. If you want to reduce file size, re-encoding is necessary. VidShift's processing runs entirely in your browser, so you can re-encode without uploading your file anywhere.
Discord limits file uploads to 8 MB on free accounts and 50 MB with Nitro. After loading your video, enter a custom target size of 7.5 MB (to leave a small margin below the 8 MB limit). VidShift will calculate the right bitrate automatically. If the result looks too compressed, try lowering the resolution to 720p or 480p first - this often gives a better-looking result at a small file size than keeping the original resolution with a very low bitrate.
Trim your video first with our Video Trimmer
Extract audio only with our MP4 to MP3 Converter
Remove audio before compressing with our Mute Video tool
Grab a still image with our Frame Extractor