Sometimes you want to upload a video, but you can’t because its file size is too large. When that happens, you can use ffmpeg
to shrink the video size with one command.
Steps to shrink a video file
If you’re on a Mac and haven’t already, install Homebrew:
Install
ffmpeg
using Homebrew (or download ffmpeg for your OS):Run
ffmpeg
on your file:
That’s it — I was able to shrink a 10-minute macOS screencast from 1.4 GB
to 148 MB
just by running that command and waiting 6 minutes.
Where to go from here
This approach works best when your final video quality doesn’t need to be very high.
If you’re creating high-resolution content, you’ll want to dive deeper into ffmpeg
’s configuration options or use a tool like Handbrake to help you select the quality you need.
Related links
- How to Reduce Video Size With FFmpeg • John Otieno
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