Trim a video
Cut a section out of a video without re-encoding it.
Drop your file here
Processed securely and deleted within the hour.
Two ways to cut, and the difference is large
By default the cut is made without re-encoding: the video stream is copied straight through. That is near-instant even on a long file and completely lossless, because no pixel is recompressed.
The catch is where the cut lands. Video is stored as occasional complete frames — keyframes — with the frames between them described as differences. A copy-based cut has to start at a keyframe, so asking for 1:23 may actually give you 1:21. Keyframes are typically two to ten seconds apart.
Turning on cut at the exact frame re-encodes instead, which lands precisely where you asked at the cost of time and a small amount of quality. Use it when the timing matters — a clip that must start on a word — and leave it off otherwise.
Entering times
Seconds (90), minutes and seconds (1:30), or hours (00:01:30) all work. Leave the end blank to run to the end of the video.
Trimming before anything else
If your goal is a smaller file, trim first. Removing thirty seconds from a two-minute video removes a quarter of the data at no quality cost whatsoever — far better than compressing the whole thing harder. It is also how you get a long video under the fifteen-minute limit the other tools have.
What is preserved
On a copy-based cut, everything: resolution, bitrate, codec and audio are untouched. The result is the same video, shorter. A precise cut re-encodes to H.264 at high quality, which is visually very close but not bit-identical.
Common questions
Why did my cut start early?
A copy-based cut snaps to the nearest keyframe, which can be a couple of seconds off. Turn on exact cutting to land precisely.
Does trimming reduce quality?
Not by default — the stream is copied, not re-encoded. Exact cutting re-encodes and costs a little.
How do I enter the time?
Seconds, mm:ss or hh:mm:ss all work. Leave the end blank to run to the end.
Can I remove a section from the middle?
Not in one pass. Export the parts either side and join them.
Why trim before compressing?
Removing footage removes data at no quality cost, which beats compressing the whole file harder.
Is my video uploaded?
Yes, this runs on our server, and the file is deleted as soon as the download is sent.