The Comprehensive Understanding of MP4 VS MPG: Choose the One You Need

MP4 and MPG are both digital multimedia container formats that is primarily used to store video and audio data of media files. Due to the different characteristics of MP4 and MPG, they would be superior to the other one under specific circumstances. You can make a reference to MP4 vs MPG as the following shows.

1. MP4 and MPG: The Definition of the Two Formats

As mentioned just now, MP4 and MPG are two video container formats functioning as a package that stores multiple media files. Here are the basic definition and origins of them:

MP4, also known as MPEG-4 Part 14, was originally created in 2001 based on the QuickTime File Format MOV. But it was re-released in 2003 as the MPEG-4 Part 14 version that we see today. MP4 is the most common video file format featuring multiple-functionality and high compression. It can not only save videos, but also audio, subtitles and images.

MPG and MPEG actually are the same thing. The MPEG was abbreviated to MPG because some older Windows versions required a three-letter file extension. So the comparison of MP4 and MPG is also MP4 VS MPEG. MPG is developed by the Moving Picture Experts Group, the same team who later brought MP4 to the public. MPG is commonly used for storing videos, audio, as well as metadata information.

2. MP4 and MPG: Respectively Supported Video Codecs

MP4 and MPG can adopt different video compression standards (video coding formats), which is the crucial point that distinguishes them from each other.

MP4 supported video codecs: H.265/HEVC, H.264/AVC, M-JPEG, MJ2, MPEG-1 Video, MPEG-2 Video, MPEG-4 Visual, Microsoft MPEG4 V2, VC-1, Sorenson, H.263, Cinepak, Theora, Dirac, VP8, VP9, AV1, MVC.

MPG supported video codecs: It usually uses either MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 file compression.

3. MP4 VS MPG: Which One is Bigger in Size?

There are many factors that work together to decide how a video looks like but bitrate is the decisive cause to file size and quality. Higher the bitrate, bigger the file size. If you change video bit rate of a video file to lower value without altering other settings, coming with smaller file size, the video quality will also be downscaled.

Meanwhile, when we compare video formats based on file size and quality, the video encoding methods should be seriously considered because they greatly affect video quality and file size in different aspects, especially the bit rate.

Modern video codecs like H.264 and H.265 can implement better compression ratio at the same quality than MPEG-1 does, which means that at the same level of quality, videos in MP4 H.265 has a much smaller size than videos in MPG using MPEG-1or MPEG-2 standard.

4. MPG VS MP4: Is MP4 Better than MPG on Video Quality?

Yes.

Consequently, at the same level of bit rate, MP4 adopting a modern video compression standard can obtain better video quality.

From the size and quality ratio of MP4 VS MPG, due to the fact that MP4 has support for more advanced video codecs while MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 are relatively old types, MP4 indisputably wins the day.

5. MP4 Versus MPG: Which One Has Better Compatibility?

MP4

In practice, MP4 is a ubiquitous video file format and it is commonly used for streaming videos on the Internet. Meanwhile, most media players and portable devices add support for it and even use it as the default playback format option.

By comparison, although MPG can be recognized by major media players, there still are some platforms that don't use the .mpg extension.

6. MP4 or MPG: When to Choose Them?

MP4: It’s a perfect option in most cases, such as playing videos, compressing vide file size, uploading videos to YouTube, etc.

MPG: If you’re going to burn a DVD or VCD, use MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 as they are good practice on Video CD, SVCD, DVD, and other optical discs.