FFmpeg Crop Video – How to Crop Videos with FFmpeg on Windows

Author: Vita
Publish date
Updated on Sep 28, 2023
How to Crop a Video Frame
  • Download Download the best free video cropper for Windows to crop video with FFmpeg alternative:
  • Step 1. Import videos into the software;
  • Step 2. Select an output profile;
  • Step 3. Crop or resize the video;
  • Step 4. Export the final files.
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How to Crop Video with FFmpeg
An Alternative to FFmpeg Crop Videos
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FFmpeg is an open and cross-platform solution for video & audio conversion, recording, and streaming. It’s also able to crop and trim videos using command lines. If you have installed FFmpeg on your Windows, you can directly jump into the guide on FFmpeg video crop. If you have never used the application, download it from https://ffmpeg.org/download.html and install it on your PC.

Tips. FFmpeg may not work on your device due to unknown reasons. Given this, we recommend you use the alternative – WonderFox Free HD Video Converter Factory. Free download it to crop videos as shown in #Part 2: https://www.videoconverterfactory.com/download/hd-video-converter.exehttps://www.videoconverterfactory.com/download/hd-video-converter.exe

Part 1. How to Crop Video with FFmpeg on Windows?

FFmpeg has many filters to manipulate video files, and here, we will use the “crop” filter to make FFmpeg crop videos. What you need is this command:
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=w:h:x:y" output.mp4

Note. w:h is the width and height of the output video. x:y is the coordinate where the video will be cropped. If the position x:y is not specified, FFmpeg will crop the input video from the center.

For example, we crop a 16:9 video in 1280x720 pixels into a 4:3 video. As a consequence, we can set the output dimension to 640x480 pixels. Let’s see how FFmpeg crop MP4 from 1280*720 to 640*480:

Open the Command Prompt window and input this command:
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=640:480" output.mp4

FFmpeg Crop Video
FFmpeg Crop Video

Related Articles: Convert MP4 to 1080P | Convert Video to 480P

Commands to FFmpeg video crop in some other cases:

Crop the top left corner (0, 0) of the video:
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=640:480:0:0" output-xy.mp4

Crop the bottom left corner from the position (0, 720):
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=640:480:0:720" output-xy2.mp4

Crop the video from the right:
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=640:480:1280:0" output-xy.mp4

Free HD Video Converter Factory
Best Free Video Cropper for PC

Free HD Video Converter Factory is the easiest way to crop, trim, and split videos on Windows. With a few clicks, you can finish the editing task efficiently. Both the interface and process are simple. Free download the software to start your work!

Free download Download for Free
Free download Download for Free

Part 2. An Alternative to FFmpeg Crop Videos

WonderFox Free HD Video Converter Factory is a good alternative for the FFmpeg video crop task. Compared with FFmpeg, it's easier to install and operate without complicated configurations or command lines. Though free, this software can help you achieve many goals, including cropping videos, trimming, rotating, merging, compression, etc. It also enables you to convert and download videos/audio online for free & without watermarks.

Free downloadFree download the software on your PC to crop video with FFmpeg alternative within four simple steps!

Step 1. Add Video Files

Launch Free HD Video Converter Factory on your desktop. Click Converter and drag your video into the program. Or you can click the Add Files button to import the video file.

Load Video Source
Load Video Source

Step 2. Select Output Profile

Click the format image on the right side. Head to the Video tab and select your desired output format. This program also offers optimized presets for various websites and devices, such as YouTube, Facebook, Samsung TV, iPhone, iPad, etc.

Choose Output Format
Choose Output Format

Step 3. Crop the Video

Hit on the fourth icon below the imported video. In the new window, you can drag the cursor to crop the video frame with a free or fixed aspect ratio. Fine Tuning can help you crop videos more accurately. Click OK to save the change.

Also Read: How to Trim Video | How to Rotate Video | Add Subtitles to MP4

Crop Video in FFmpeg Alternative
Crop Video in FFmpeg Alternative

Step 4. Export Final Files

Click the bottom inverted triangle button to set an output path. Finally, press Run to initiate the converting process. Once done, a new window will prompt you to check the export file.

Alternative to FFmpeg Crop Video
Alternative to FFmpeg Crop Video

WonderFox offers both free and advanced versions to edit, convert, and download videos. HD Video Converter Factory Pro provides more features, such as screen recorder, GIF maker, subtitles extractor, etc. Meanwhile, the Pro version supports batch mode and GPU acceleration, which can save you a lot of time and energy in the process. Get it now!

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  • Compress video or audio files without quality loss
  • Batch convert MOV, MKV, AVI, TS, WebM, etc. to MP4
  • Offer optimized presets for smooth playback & streaming
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Tips. FFmpeg cut video without re-encoding (using copy and input seeking):

ffmpeg -ss 00:00:03 -i inputVideo.mp4 -to 00:00:08 -c:v copy -c:a copy trim_ipseek_copy.mp4

This command means you instruct FFmpeg to cut 5 seconds from the 3rd second to the 8th second on the video named “inputVideo.mp4”.

At Last

This article explains how to crop video with FFmpeg using the filter command lines. If it’s hard for you to operate in FFmpeg, you can try the handy alternative video cropper. Free HD Video Converter Factory can help you complete simple editing tasks while keeping the video quality. Get the freeware now or upgrade to the Pro version for more features!

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