OneTaskBy Tim King · Updated
HEVC to H264
iPhone H.265 Video to MP4, No Upload
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How the HEVC To H.264 works
This HEVC to H264 converter takes an HEVC (H.265) video, such as an iPhone recording, and saves it as an MP4 with H.264 video. H.264 plays on practically every phone, PC, TV, editor and website. HEVC still trips up Windows PCs without the paid extension, older Android phones and many upload forms. The conversion runs on your device and nothing is uploaded.
HEVC to H264: newer is not always better
HEVC, also called H.265, was standardised in 2013 as the successor to H.264 (2003). It needs roughly half the bitrate for the same picture, which is why phones, drones and cameras record in it. But its patents are split between several licensing pools. Some software makers chose not to pay, so support is patchy. Windows needs an extension to play it, Firefox does not play it at all, and older TVs, editors and web forms reject it. H.264 has none of those problems.
Why iPhone videos are HEVC
Since iOS 11 in 2017, the iPhone camera records HEVC by default under Settings > Camera > Formats > High Efficiency. Choosing "Most Compatible" switches recording back to H.264, but only for new videos. This page converts the ones already recorded. The sound, normally AAC, is copied across unchanged.
What happens to quality and size
Converting means decoding every frame and encoding it again, so there is a small loss. The page encodes at a high quality setting to keep it hard to see. Expect the H.264 file to be about 1.5 to 2 times larger than the HEVC original, since H.264 is the less efficient codec. To bring it down to a target size, run it through the MP4 compressor afterwards.
Browser support for HEVC
Reading HEVC needs a hardware decoder. Safari 17 or later on a Mac, iPhone or iPad always has one. Chrome and Edge use the graphics hardware when it supports HEVC, which most computers made since about 2016 do. The page checks as soon as it opens and says so if this browser cannot decode HEVC. The codec support checker shows the full picture for your device.
FAQ
How do I know if my video is HEVC?
Convert it and look at the Video line in the results: it reads "H.265 (HEVC) → H.264". On a Mac, Finder's Get Info lists the codecs; on Windows, a file that will not play in the Photos app is very often HEVC.
Does this work on Windows without the HEVC extension?
In Chrome or Edge it often does, because the browser talks to the graphics hardware directly rather than through the Windows extension. If the page says HEVC cannot be decoded, the hardware does not support it.
Why can the H.264 file be bigger than the original?
HEVC packs the same picture into fewer bits than H.264, so a conversion at a high quality setting often comes out larger. In one test, a 3-second HEVC clip of 45.6 kB became an 86.6 kB H.264 file. If size matters more than compatibility, use the video compressor on the result to lower the bitrate.
Will HDR video stay HDR?
No. The output is standard dynamic range H.264, so HDR footage from recent iPhones may look a little flatter or brighter. That is the trade-off for a file every device can play.
Is the video uploaded?
No. Everything happens in this browser tab and the file never leaves your device. The page only needs the internet to load itself and the converter library, and the finished file is saved straight from memory to your downloads.
See also: all Audio & Video tools, Units, Images, Documents, Data & Code.
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