How to cut an MP4 video

Here is how to cut an MP4 video easily, privately (no uploading!) and for free. Edit Videos is the free online tool our team maintains so you can cut MP4 files and much more. Follow the steps below.

Steps

1. Open Edit Videos and select Choose a video or audio file to pick your MP4, or drop it on the page.

   

2. Your MP4 is the bar in the timeline, the strip under the video. Drag the bar's left end to the first moment you want to keep, and its right end to the last.

   

3. Select the Play button under the video to check where it starts and ends.

   

4. Select Export video, then Save video.

   

What to know

• MP4 in, MP4 out. Edit Videos reads the file and writes the same kind of file, with no conversion step.
• If you move only the end, the picture is copied in the codec the file already had, such as H.264, HEVC or AV1.
• Some MP4 files do not start at time zero. Edit Videos accounts for that, so the cut lands where you set it.
• Edit Videos opens MP4 files with H.264, HEVC, VP9 or AV1 video, when your browser can decode them.

Questions

Is the cut MP4 the same quality as the original?

When only the end moves, yes: the picture is a copy. When the start moves, the picture is encoded once more, at the bitrate the file had.

Can I cut a part out of the middle of an MP4?

Yes. Right-click the clip where the part begins and select Cut at, then do the same where it ends. Select the middle piece and press Delete; the rest is joined into one file.

Why does my MP4 not open?

An MP4 can hold several kinds of video, and your browser may have no decoder for the one in your file. A recent version of Chrome, Edge or Firefox is the first thing to try.