Videos
squish re-encodes videos to MP4 with FFmpeg. With the default settings they are usually 60 to 80% smaller and look the same.
Supported: mp4, mov, m4v, mkv, avi, webm, wmv, flv, mts, m2ts, 3gp, mpg, mpeg, ts, mxf, dv.
#The questions
| Question | Choices |
|---|---|
| How much should videos shrink? | Balanced (much smaller, no visible difference) · Strong (smallest, slight loss) · Gentle (near identical, smaller gain) · Target size |
| Video format? | H.264, plays everywhere · H.265, about 40% smaller again, for Apple and recent devices |
| Resolution? | Keep original · 1080p · 720p · 480p (maximum: smaller videos are never enlarged) |
| Sound? | Keep · Remove (silent videos are a bit smaller) |
| Speed? | Normal, best size for the quality · Fast, 2 to 3 times quicker, slightly bigger files |
The H.265 question only appears when your FFmpeg supports it.
#What the presets do
| Balanced | Strong | Gentle | |
|---|---|---|---|
| H.264 quality (CRF) | 24 | 28 | 20 |
| H.265 quality (CRF) | 28 | 32 | 24 |
A lower CRF means better quality and a bigger file. Sound is converted to AAC at 128 kbps. The output is yuv420p with the index at the start of the file, so it starts playing at once on the web.
#Target size
Need every clip under 25 MB for an email, Discord or WhatsApp? Pick Target size, or:
squish -t video -s 25 ~/Clipssquish computes the bitrate from the length of each video and encodes in two passes, so the file lands just under the limit. Target size always uses H.264 for compatibility.
- Videos already under the limit get the Balanced treatment instead.
- If a video is too long to look good at that size, squish lowers the sound to 64 kbps, does its best and tells you so.
#Good to know
- Only the first video and audio tracks are kept. Subtitles and chapters are dropped.
- iPhone HDR videos are converted to standard 8-bit video for maximum compatibility. They can look a little washed out: keep the originals of HDR clips you care about.
- H.265 files are tagged so they play in QuickTime, Photos and on iPhone.
