Video Codec Viewer
Identify a video container and check which codecs this browser can actually play.
Fill in the form and press “Inspect” to see the result here.
How to use it
- 1Choose a file, or drag it onto the upload area.
- 2Press the button. Your browser decodes the file locally.
- 3Read the results. Nothing was uploaded, so there is nothing to clean up.
About the Video Codec Viewer
Two questions get answered at once: what the file is, read from its signature, and what this browser says it can decode.
That combination is usually enough to explain a video that will not play. HEVC, for instance, is common from iPhones and unsupported in most desktop browsers - which is why the same file plays on a phone and not on a laptop.
The exact codec inside the container is not something a web page can read. ffprobe and MediaInfo, both free, will tell you the profile and level.
Questions people ask
Is my file uploaded?
No. The file is decoded by your own browser and the result is displayed locally. Nothing leaves your device, there is nothing on a server to delete, and this works with no network connection at all.
Why does a large file fail?
Decoding holds the audio in memory uncompressed - roughly 10 MB for every minute of stereo. Long recordings run out of memory in a browser tab, which is why there is a size limit. The queued FFmpeg tools handle bigger files.
Is it free, and do I need an account?
Yes, it is free, and there is no account, no sign-up and no watermark on the result. The project is funded by optional donations.