Ffmpeg installation on windows

Last Updated :
06 Jan, 2025

FFmpeg is an open-source, versatile software that is widely used among Windows 10 and 11 users for creating and handling multimedia files right from editing to converting. So, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a beginner or a professional, if you’re looking for a reliable and lightweight tool, then FFmpeg is for you.

In this guide, we’re going to explain how you can download and install FFmpeg on Windows 10 and 11.

Prerequisites

  • A working Internet connection
  • Windows PC
  • Administrative Rights

Steps to Download FFmpeg on Windows

You can download the FFmpeg for Windows by following these 2 simple steps. Let’s find out:

1. Visit the official Website and Select the Compatible OS

Open your web browser and visit the official website of FFmpeg for Windows.

ffmpeg01

2. Choose your Compatible Version

Scroll over the Windows Logo, you’ll see 2 options.

  • Windows builds from gyan.dev
  • Windows builds by BtbN

You can click on the second option, it will redirect you to its GitHub page. Navigate and download the ZIP file.

gitpageffmpeg

Release Builds

Steps to Install FFmpeg on Windows

Once you download the ZIP file, Now, it’s time to start extracting the file and Install it in your Windows computer. Let’s begin:

1. Navigate to the ZIP path

Locate the downloaded file so that you can unzip its folder.

ZIP folder

2. Unzip the Downloaded FFmpeg File

Right-click on the ZIP file and click on “Extract All” and choose a new path to unzip the extracted files.

pathunzip

Unzip the FFmpeg file

Configure FFmpeg Installer – 2 Steps

This is a crucial step to run this tool, once you allow FFmpeg to your system path, it can be easily used from the Command line. Let’s check out these two steps to configure the FFmpeg tool in your Windows 10 or 11.

1. Press Win + S and type “Environment Variables”, you’ll see an option by this name “Edit the system environment variables” Hit the Enter button.

env

2. Click on path > edit and then click New and enter the path to the extracted folder of FFmpeg. Click on save and exit.

editenv1

Edit Environment

Verify the FFmpeg Installation

Once you finish the installation, you can verify the same via the command prompt. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Open Command Prompt

Go to Start and type “Command Prompt” and select “Run as administrator”

cmd-as-admin

Open command prompt as admin

2. Run FFmpeg Installer Verification

Restart your computer and verify the installation by running:

ffmpeg -version

verifying ffmpeg installation on windows

By following these methods, you can easily download, install, and verify the installer on your Windows computer. FFmpeg not only empowers you to handle media files (including video) but also provides solutions to perform audio editing and file compression. The above-mentioned steps have been segregated in such a way that if you’re a beginner or a professional, it should create any issue to get FFmpeg in your Windows 10 and 11.

FFmpeg is a command-line audio and video converter available for Linux, macOS, and Windows. This open-source tool helps users manipulate multimedia content and offers free access to several audio and video libraries.

Even though FFmpeg doesn’t have a clickable GUI, the installation process is straightforward.  

In this guide, you will learn how to install FFmpeg on Windows in four simple steps.

Installing FFmpeg on Windows

Prerequisites

  • A system running Windows (This tutorial uses Windows 10).
  • A file archiver (This guide uses 7-Zip).
  • Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell access.
  • Administrator privileges.

How To Install FFmpeg on Windows

Installing FFmpeg on Windows requires adding the utility to the Windows PATH. Additionally, users can manually navigate to the folder containing the executable and run the program. However, the process is time-consuming and impractical.

A straightforward way to work with FFmpeg is to add it to PATH by editing Windows environment variables. Therefore, Windows knows where to look for the executable. Users can run FFmpeg directly from the command line without typing in the full path to the app’s folder.

Step 1: Download FFmpeg for Windows

Visit the FFmpeg download page. The More downloading options section has FFmpeg packages and executable files for Linux, Windows, and Mac. To get the Windows version:

1. Hover over the Windows logo and click the Windows builds from gyan.dev link. A new page opens.

Choose build from gyan

2. In the git master builds section, look for the latest version of the FFmpeg build. Click the ffmpeg-git-full-7z link to download the full build since that version has the most up-to-date libraries.

Downloading the full build

3. Choose the download location and save the file if the download does not start automatically.

Note: This guide uses the Windows build from gyan.dev. Other builds are available for download, like the one by BtbN. No official documentation confirms any significant differences between different builds.

Step 2: Extract the Downloaded Files

Once downloaded, extract the contents:

1. Locate the downloaded file. The default location is the Downloads folder.

2. Right-click the file and hover over 7-Zip (or another file archiver of choice).

3. From the archiver submenu, choose Extract here. Wait for a few seconds for the extracting process to complete.

Choose extract here

5. Rename the extracted folder to ffmpeg.

Renaming a folder

6. Move the folder to the root of the C drive or the folder of your choice.

Move the ffmpeg folder to the C drive

Step 3: Add FFmpeg to PATH

Set Windows environment variables to add FFmpeg to the PATH. Follow these steps:

1. Type system variables into the search bar and click the Edit the system environment variables option.

2. Click the Environment Variables… button under the Advanced tab.

Environment Variables... button

3. Under the User variables section, select Path and click the Edit button.

Choose path

4. Choose New from the side menu.

Add new variable

5. Add C:\ffmpeg\bin to the empty field and confirm changes with OK.

Adding ffmpeg variable

The change in the Path variable line confirms the FFmpeg is added to PATH.

Added ffmpeg variable

Note: If you stored FFmpeg in a folder other than the C drive, use that path accordingly.

 Step 4: Verify FFmpeg PATH

To verify the FFmpeg is correctly added to the Windows PATH, open the Command Prompt or PowerShell and run:

ffmpeg

The output confirms the installation:

ffmpeg version command prompt output

Conclusion

This article provided an easy step-by-step guide on installing FFmpeg on Windows.

For more tutorials refer to our article and learn how to install FFmpeg on MacOS.

Next, learn how to change or reset the administrator password on the Windows server.

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Get the FFmpeg audio and video conversion tool running on your PC

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FFmpeg is an open-source media tool you can use to convert any video format into the one you need. The tool is command-line only, so it doesn’t have a graphical, clickable interface. If you’re used to regular graphical Windows programs, installing FFmpeg may seem complicated at first—but don’t worry, it’s pretty easy! This wikiHow guide teaches you the simplest way to install FFmpeg on your Windows PC.

Things You Should Know

  • Install 7-Zip first so you can extract the FFmpeg files.
  • Download the latest full release build from https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds.
  • Extract the FFmpeg folder, move it to the root of your main drive, and add it to your system path.
  1. Step 1 Install 7-Zip.

    If you don’t have 7-Zip already installed, you’ll need it to be able to extract the FFmpeg files. This tool is free, and you can download it from https://www.7-zip.org.

    • Once you’ve downloaded the installer, double-click the downloaded file, then follow the on-screen instructions to install.
  2. Step 2 Go to https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds....

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  3. Step 3 Click the release builds link.

    You’ll see this in the left panel.

  4. Step 4 Click the link to download ffmpeg-release-full.7z.

  5. Step 5 Extract the downloaded file.

    Here’s how:

    • Right-click the Windows/Start button and select File Explorer.
    • Click the Downloads folder in the left panel (you may have to click This PC first to find it).
    • Right-click the file that begins with «ffmpeg» and ends with «.7z.»
    • (Windows 11 only) Click Show more options.
    • Select the 7-Zip menu and click Extract Here. This creates a new folder with the same name as the .7z file.
  6. Step 6 Rename the extracted folder FFmpeg.

    To do this:

    • Right-click the folder.
    • If you’re using Windows 10, click Rename. If you have Windows 11, click the icon of an «A» followed by a cursor at the bottom of the menu.
    • Type FFmpeg and press Enter.
  7. Step 7 Click the FFmpeg folder once and press Control+X.

    This «cuts» the folder from the Downloads folder so you can paste it into the root of your hard drive.

  8. Step 8 Click This PC in File Explorer.

    It’s the computer icon in the left panel.

  9. Step 9 Click your hard drive.

    It’s usually called «Windows (C:)» or «OS (C:),» but the name and drive letter may vary.

  10. Step 10 Right-click a blank area of the right panel and select Paste.

    This moves the folder to the root of your hard drive.

  11. Step 11 Open Command Prompt...

    Open Command Prompt as an administrator. To do this, just type cmd into the Windows search bar, right-click Command Prompt, select Run as administrator, and then click Yes.

  12. Step 12 Add FFmpeg to...

    Add FFmpeg to your system path. To do this from the command line, type or paste setx /m PATH "C:\ffmpeg\bin;%PATH%" and press Enter.[2]
    When you’re finished, close the Command Prompt window.

    • You’ve now installed FFmpeg and set the proper environment variables. To confirm that FFmpeg is working, open a new command prompt window, type ffmpeg -version, and then press Enter.
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Add New Question

  • Question

    Isn’t the folder path case-sensitive? If you rename it to «FFmpeg» but the path has «C:\…\ffmpeg\bin», won’t that cause an error?

    Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions.

    wikiHow Technology Writer

    Expert Answer

    Windows directory names are not case-sensitive. Don’t worry, it’ll definitely work!

  • Question

    How can I get WSL (Ubuntu) to recognize this if I’ve installed it? Works with Powershell. (Using Windows Terminal)

    Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions.

    wikiHow Technology Writer

    Expert Answer

    If you’re using Ubuntu via WSL, you have a couple of options. If you want to run the FFmpeg binary, you can cd into /mnt/c/FFmpeg/bin (replace «c» if you put the FFmpeg folder on a different drive letter) and run the command ./ffmpeg.exe (add whichever flags you need), or skip the Windows stuff and just install the FFmpeg package in an Ubuntu terminal with «sudo apt install ffmpeg.»

  • Question

    I clicked the following buttons, ffmpeg.exe, ffplay.exe and ffprobe.exe, they turned up for a glance then disappeared. What’s happened? Thank you.

    Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions.

    wikiHow Technology Writer

    Expert Answer

    These applications can only be run from the command line. If you try to double-click them in File Explorer, you’ll experience the behavior you’ve witnessed. Instead, open Command Prompt, then run the «ffmpeg» command to view all possible command line options.

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  • FFmpeg is a command line-only program, meaning you can only use it in Command Prompt. This may prove difficult for users who aren’t familiar with Command Prompt.

  • You must have an administrator account to install FFmpeg.

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About This Article

Article SummaryX

1. Download FFmpeg from https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds/ffmpeg-git-full.7z.
2. Extract the file.
3. Rename the extracted folder to «FFmpeg.»
4. Move the «FFmpeg» folder to the root of your hard drive.
5. Right-click the Start menu and select Command prompt (Admin).
6. Run this command: setx /m PATH «C:\FFmpeg\bin;%PATH%»

Did this summary help you?

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 2,014,927 times.

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Are you ready to unlock the powerful world of FFmpeg? Whether you’re a budding multimedia creator, a tech enthusiast, or simply looking to explore the magic of multimedia manipulation, FFmpeg is your go-to tool. In this blog, I’ll walk you through the step-by-step process of installing FFmpeg on both Windows and Mac, making sure you’re equipped to dive into audio and video wizardry!

Installing FFmpeg on Windows

Step 1: Downloading FFmpeg

  1. Go to the official FFmpeg website at https://www.ffmpeg.org/download.html.

  2. Scroll down to the “Windows” section and click on the link that says “Windows Builds by shiro” (or any other suitable option).

  3. You’ll be redirected to a download page with several versions available. Choose the one that suits your needs. If you’re not sure, the “Latest Git” version is usually a safe bet.

  4. Download the ZIP file corresponding to your system architecture (32-bit or 64-bit). If you’re unsure, go with the 64-bit version for better performance.

  1. Once the download is complete, navigate to the location where you saved the ZIP file.

  2. Right-click on the ZIP file and select “Extract All…” to unzip the contents.

  3. Choose a destination folder for the extracted files and click “Extract.”

Step 3: Adding FFmpeg to PATH

  1. Now that FFmpeg is extracted, you need to add it to your system’s PATH so that you can use it from the command line.

  2. Search for “Environment Variables” in the Windows search bar and click “Edit the system environment variables.”

  3. In the “System Properties” window, click the “Environment Variables…” button at the bottom.

  4. In the “System Variables” section, find and select “Path,” then click “Edit.”

  5. Click “New” and add the path to the “bin” folder of the extracted FFmpeg files (e.g., C:\path\to\ffmpeg\bin). Click “OK” to save the changes.

  6. Click “OK” to close all the windows.

Step 4: Verifying the Installation

  1. Open the command prompt (you can search for “cmd” in the Windows search bar).

  2. Type ffmpeg -version and press Enter. You should see information about your FFmpeg installation, confirming that it’s successfully installed.

Installing FFmpeg on Mac

Step 1: Using Homebrew (Recommended)

  1. Open the Terminal app. You can find it in the “Utilities” folder within the “Applications” folder.

  2. If you don’t have Homebrew installed, you can install it by running the following command:

    1
    
    /bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"
    

  3. Once Homebrew is installed, you can easily install FFmpeg by running the following command:

Step 2: Verifying the Installation

  1. After the installation is complete, you can verify it by running:

    You should see information about your FFmpeg installation, indicating that it’s ready to use.

Ready to explore!

Congratulations! You’ve successfully installed FFmpeg on both your Windows and Mac machines. Now you’re armed with a versatile multimedia tool that can handle a wide range of audio and video tasks. Whether you’re editing videos, converting audio formats, or exploring the world of multimedia, FFmpeg has got your back.

In the next blog post, we will start exploring the world of multimedia manipulation. But don’t only wait for me! Go ahead yourself, find other references, and start experimenting!

Note (or actually my wise advice): Make sure to respect copyright laws and terms of use when working with multimedia files.

FFmpeg Installation Guide

A comprehensive guide and automation scripts for installing FFmpeg across multiple operating systems. This repository provides easy-to-follow instructions and automated installation scripts to simplify the FFmpeg setup process.

Table of Contents

  • Features
  • Windows Installation
    • Automated Installation
    • Manual Installation
  • macOS Installation
  • Linux Installation
  • Verification
  • Troubleshooting
  • Contributing
  • License

Features

  • Automated installation scripts for Windows
  • Cross-platform installation guides
  • Video tutorials for Windows and macOS
  • Multiple installation methods for each operating system
  • System path configuration included

Windows Installation

Automated Installation

Method 1: Using 7-Zip (Recommended)

Prerequisites:

  • 7-Zip, WinRAR, or any 7-Zip fork installed

Steps:

  1. Download install_ffmpeg_7z.bat
  2. Run the script as administrator (UAC prompt will appear)
  3. Wait for the installation to complete

Method 2: Using ZIP (No Dependencies)

Prerequisites:

  • None (uses built-in Windows tools)

Steps:

  1. Download install_ffmpeg_zip.bat
  2. Run the script as administrator (UAC prompt will appear)
  3. Wait for the installation to complete

Manual Installation

  1. Download FFmpeg from one of these sources:

    • FFmpeg Official Website
    • Codex FFmpeg Releases
  2. Choose the appropriate package:

    • ffmpeg-release-essentials.zip for basic functionality
    • ffmpeg-release-full.zip for complete feature set
  3. System Setup:

    1. Extract the ZIP file to a permanent location (e.g., C:\ffmpeg)
    2. Add FFmpeg to System Path:
      • Open System Properties (Right-click This PC → Properties)
      • Click Advanced system settings
      • Click Environment Variables
      • Under System variables, select Path and click Edit
      • Add new entry: C:\ffmpeg\bin (adjust path if needed)
      • Click OK on all windows

📺 Video Tutorial: FFmpeg Windows Installation Guide

macOS Installation

Using Homebrew (Recommended)

# Install Homebrew (if not installed)
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# Install FFmpeg
brew install ffmpeg

Using MacPorts

  1. Install MacPorts
  2. Run the installation command:

📺 Video Tutorial: FFmpeg macOS Installation Guide

Linux Installation

Package Managers

Ubuntu/Debian:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install ffmpeg

Fedora:

Arch Linux:

Universal Installation

Using Snap:

Verification

After installation, verify FFmpeg is correctly installed:

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

  1. Windows Path Not Updated:

    • Log out and log back in
    • Or restart your computer
  2. Permission Denied:

    • Ensure you’re running scripts as administrator
    • Check file permissions
  3. Installation Failed:

    • Try the alternative installation method
    • Check your internet connection
    • Verify system requirements

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

  1. Fork the repository
  2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
  3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
  4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
  5. Open a Pull Request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License — see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

  • FFmpeg development team and community
  • Contributors to this installation guide
  • Package maintainers across different platforms

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