How to play a .MP4 file online
Three steps, no player to install.
Choose your file
Drop your .MP4 file on the box above, or click Choose file. Big files are fine.
It opens right away
Your .MP4 file plays straight from your device, with its title, artist and cover art shown when they are inside.
Play, loop, capture
Use the waveform to jump around, loop a section, change the speed or save any frame as a PNG image.
What is a .MP4 file?
Everything worth knowing about MPEG-4 Part 14 Video File.
An MP4 file is a video container (MPEG-4 Part 14, standardized 2003) that holds video, audio, subtitles, and chapters in one file. It plays on every phone, computer, browser, and smart TV with no extra software. If an MP4 won't open, the issue is almost always a missing codec. Install the free VLC media player and it will play.
Programs that open .MP4 files
- Windows
- VLC media player, Media Player (Windows 11)
- macOS
- VLC media player, QuickTime Player
- Linux
- VLC media player
- Android
- VLC for Android
- iOS
- Files / Photos (built-in)
- Web
- Any modern browser (HTML5)
| Full name | MPEG-4 Part 14 Video File |
|---|---|
| Developer | Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG / ISO/IEC) |
| First released | 2001 (MP4 v1, ISO/IEC 14496-1); MP4 Part 14 standardized 2003 |
| Category | Audio & Video |
| MIME type | video/mp4 |
| Signature | 66 74 79 70 ("ftyp" - file-type box, preceded by its 4-byte size) |
Related viewers
Other free tools to open and preview your files.
Is my .MP4 file uploaded anywhere?
No. Your .MP4 file is played for you. Waveforms, tags and snapshots are all computed on the fly,.
Why does a file show audio but no picture (or not play at all)?
A container like MP4, MOV or MKV can hold many codecs. If your browser lacks the codec inside (for example H.265 or AC-3 audio), the player tells you and offers the Media Converter, which can turn it into a format that plays everywhere.
Can I play AVI, WMV, FLV or MKV files?
Browsers don't play these old or exotic containers natively. Open them in the Media Converter: it inspects every track and converts the file to MP4, WEBM or MP3.
How do I loop part of a song for practice?
Press A at the start of the part, B at its end, and the section repeats. Combine it with a slower speed (0.5× or 0.75×) to learn tricky passages.
How do I save a still image from a video?
Pause on the frame you want and press the camera button (or S). The frame is saved as a full-resolution PNG image.
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