Convert QuickTime (MOV) to Matroska (MKV)
Free online converter for QuickTime (MOV) files. Flexible container for high-quality video. Nothing to install, no watermark, and every file is deleted automatically.
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Upload a QuickTime (MOV) file to convert it to Matroska (MKV). Up to 3 files at once, 100 MB each.
Free · up to 3 files · 100 MB each · files deleted automatically after 1 hour.
About MOV and MKV
QuickTime (MOV) .mov
Apple's QuickTime container. Technically close to MP4 — the two share ancestry — but tuned for editing and Apple's tools.
Good for
- The native output of Apple cameras and Final Cut
- Handles high-quality intermediate codecs like ProRes
- Supports transparency with the right codec
Trade-offs
- Larger than MP4, especially with editing codecs
- Inconsistent support outside Apple platforms
- ProRes files are enormous
video/quicktime
Matroska (MKV) .mkv
Matroska: an open container that will hold almost any combination of video, audio, subtitle and chapter tracks in one file.
Good for
- Unlimited tracks — multiple languages, subtitles, chapters
- Codec-agnostic, so it holds nearly anything
- Open, well documented, and resilient to damage
Trade-offs
- Browsers will not play it natively
- Many TVs and phones refuse it — the usual reason to convert
- Being a container, contents vary wildly file to file
video/x-matroska
MOV and MKV side by side
| MOV | MKV | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | Container — often H.264 or ProRes | Container — any codec |
| Transparency | Yes — with ProRes 4444 | Depends on codec |
| Typically used for | Apple cameras, video editing | Archival video, multi-language releases |
What changes when you convert MOV to MKV
MOV and MKV are unrelated containers
MOV is built on QuickTime, the format ISO's MP4 was derived from. MKV is Matroska, an open container that accepts almost any codec. A container is a box, not a compression method: what decides how a video looks and how large it is, is the codec stored inside, and these two boxes accept different ones.
This is a re-encode, not a repackage
Some tools can move a stream into a different container untouched when the codecs happen to line up. We do not — every job here is decoded and encoded again, so the conversion takes time in proportion to the length of the file and costs a small amount of quality even where a repackage would have been possible. In exchange the output is predictable: it plays everywhere, rather than inheriting whatever the source happened to contain.
What your MKV will contain
The output is H.264 video with AAC audio — Matroska imposes no codec restrictions, so the choice here is for compatibility rather than because the container demands it. What Matroska adds is room — multiple audio tracks, subtitles and chapters all have a proper place in it, which is why it is the format of choice for archiving a film.