How to change the format of a video with VLC

Did you know that you can change the format of a video with VLC? The most popular video player on the planet is a box of surprises. Among its additional functions is the ability to Convert media files from one format to another, quickly and easilyAnd since VLC is cross-platform, you can take advantage of this functionality on a Windows, macOS, and Linux PC.

In this post we are going to explain how to change the format of a video with VLC step by step. The process is as simple as it is effective, which saves the task of downloading complicated multimedia editing programs. This solution is ideal for all types of users, and very useful for make a video compatible with other devices and platforms.

How to change the format of a video with VLC step by step

Let's say you download a video to your computer and you want to change the format to make it compatible with your mobile, for example. If you have VLC Media Player Once installed on your computer, nothing else is needed. This popular media player not only plays everything, but also allows you to change the format of the videos.

And if you haven't installed it on your computer yet, there's no reason to delay any longer. While it's true that Windows, macOS, and Linux all have native media players, nothing beats VLC. In addition to being compatible with these operating systems, VLC plays all kinds of video formats, has no ads and can download it for free from their website.

Once downloaded and installed, let's see how to change the format of a video with VLC on your computer. The process can be divided into four simple steps: access the conversion option, choose the output format, configure other settings and finally, choose the destination and convert. Next, We detail each step so you can do it without any setbacks.

Step 1: Access the conversion tool

The first thing you need to do to change the video format with VLC is to find the option to convert in the VLC Media Player. To do this, open the program and click on the Medium menu which is in the upper left corner of the player. A section will open with different options, from which you must select Turn into. You get the same result if you use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + R.

In the pop-up window, you need to click on the button Add to select the video you want to convert. If it is a video you downloaded from the Internet, it will be in the Downloads folder. Choose the video from its location and click Open to load it into the list of selected files.

A plus of this tool is that You can choose multiple videos and upload them to the list to convert them all in one go. Once you have added the video(s) to the list, just click the button Convert / Save to move to the next step.

Step 2: Choose the output format

The pop-up window will then open. Convert, from where you can choose the output format you will give to your video. Here there are also other configuration options aimed at expert users and which we will talk about in the next step. But if you prefer to keep it simpler, you can leave everything as is and just select output format, as explained below.

In the section Preferences In the Convert window you will see another section called Profile and a bar with a down arrow. Click on it to open the List of available formats to which you can convert the selected video. There are several options, such as MP3 format (audio only), formats compatible with Android devices and YouTube, and various video formats (MP4, Webm, OGG, etc.).

Additionally, you can edit the selected profile by clicking on the settings button right next to it (it has a key icon). Another pop-up window will open with several tabs, the first of which is called Encapsulation. Here you can choose between 15 different multimedia formats, the most popular ones being MPEG-PS, MKV, AVI, MP3, WAV and others. So far, changing the format of a video with VLC is a piece of cake for most users. But, if you are an expert, you can apply additional settings like the following.

Step 3: Configure output parameters (optional)

When changing the format of a video with VLC you will see several additional configuration options in the settings button. In addition to the Encapsulation tab, you will see three more: Video codec, audio codec and subtitles. Each one provides more options to specify the output parameters of the video before converting it permanently.

For example, you can adjust details like resolution and filters, and set a better balance between quality and file size. It is also possible to reduce video resolution If you want to save more space, by increasing it from 1920x1080 to 1280x720, for example, if you have video editing skills, you will understand very well which options to check and which to leave as is.

In case you are not an expert in the subject, it is best that leave all these values ​​unchanged. This way you can make sure that you change the format of a video with VLC without any problems in the final result. Once all the details have been configured to your liking, it is time to choose the destination of the new file and convert.

Step 4: Choose the destination and convert the video

At the bottom of the Convert window you will see the section Destination, with a tab from where you can choose the local location where the resulting media file will be saved. Select the destination, click the Start button and wait for the progress bar in VLC to finish. Once it finishes, it won't give any warning, but you can find the converted video in the location you selected.

And in this way, you have been able to change the format of a video with VLC. You can use this resource to convert a heavy video to a lighter format that takes up less space. It is also useful if you want to convert a video file into an audio file, or convert it to a format compatible with mobile devices. And in case you are interested, we have already explained How to make VLC the default player in Windows 11.