Video Compressor (MP4, MKV, MOV and more)

What does Video Compressor do?

Video Compressor is a powerful tool designed to re-encode and compress video files into the MP4 format using modern codecs. It allows you to choose between maximum compatibility with H.264 or superior efficiency with H.265 (HEVC).

• Smart Compression: Re-encode videos to significantly reduce file size while maintaining visual quality.
• H.265 (HEVC) Support: Leverage modern compression for 25-50% better efficiency than H.264.
• Apple Compatibility: H.265 outputs include the necessary metadata (hvc1 tag) to ensure they play on iPhones, iPads, and Macs.
• Batch Processing: Compress multiple files in a single run from public URLs or Apify storage.
• Quality Presets: Choose from Low, Medium, High, or Very High presets to balance speed and file size.
• Resolution Scaling: Downscale videos to 720p, 1080p, or 4K to further optimize for your target platform.
• Direct Cloud Output: Compressed files are stored in the Apify Key-Value Store with direct download URLs.

Why use Video Compressor?

Feature	H.264 (AVC)	H.265 (HEVC)
Compatibility	Universal (Web, Mobile, TV)	Modern Devices (Apple, Android, PC)
Efficiency	Standard	High (Smaller files at same quality)
Use Case	General Web / Social Media	Storage Savings / 4K Content

How to use Video Compressor?

1. Create a free Apify account.
2. Open Video Compressor.
3. Add the video URLs you want to compress.
4. Select your desired Codec (H.264 or H.265), Quality, and Resolution.
5. Click the "Start" button and wait for the compression to complete.
6. Download your optimized videos from the Key-Value Store.

Input

Configure the compressor with these parameters:

• files: Array of video URLs to compress (required).
• codec: Target codec - h264 for compatibility or h265 for efficiency (default: h264).
• quality: Quality preset - low, medium, high, veryhigh (default: medium).
• resolution: Output resolution - original, 360p, 480p, 720p, 1080p, 1440p, 4k (default: original).

Input JSON

{
    "files": [
        "https://example.com/huge-video.mov"
    ],
    "codec": "h265",
    "quality": "high",
    "resolution": "1080p"
}

Output

Compressed videos are saved to the Key-Value Store. Detailed metadata for each file (size change, duration, etc.) is pushed to the Dataset.

Example dataset record:

{
    "inputFileUrl": "https://example.com/video.mov",
    "inputFileName": "video.mov",
    "codec": "h265",
    "outputFileKey": "compressed-1706789012345.mp4",
    "outputFileUrl": "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/abc123/records/compressed-1706789012345.mp4",
    "inputSizeBytes": 524288000,
    "outputSizeBytes": 157286400,
    "durationSeconds": 300,
    "processingTimeMs": 15000,
    "processedAt": "2026-02-02T12:00:00.000Z",
    "error": null
}

FAQ

How much does it cost?

Video Compressor uses a Pay-Per-Event (PPE) model. You are charged $0.000278 per second of video duration (~$1.00 per hour). Example: Compressing a 10-minute video costs approximately $0.16.

Is it compatible with Apple devices?

Yes! For H.265 (HEVC), the Actor automatically applies the hvc1 compatibility tag required for native playback on iOS and macOS.

Your feedback

We're always working on improving the performance of our Actors. If you have any technical feedback for Video Compressor or found a bug, please create an issue in the Issues tab.