MP4 to WMV
MP4 to WMV for Windows Movie Maker, old PowerPoint and players that only read Windows Media. Free, no sign-up, no watermark, nothing uploaded.
- Free & unlimited
- No sign-up
- Files never uploaded
- No watermark
- Up to 2 GB per file
How to convert MP4 to WMV
Three steps in a desktop browser. There is no copy mode here: every WMV is a fresh encode.
- 1
Choose the MP4
Drop an .mp4, .m4v or .mov file on the page. Its size, length and resolution appear before you start.
- 2
Set quality and resolution
Pick High, Medium or Small file, and keep the original resolution or scale down to 1080p, 720p or 480p. Sizes above your source are greyed out.
- 3
Save the .wmv
The file keeps its name with a .wmv ending. The result screen puts the MP4 size next to the WMV size, so you can see the growth at once.
What this MP4 to WMV converter writes
A WMV file is only useful if the old player on the other end can decode it.
A codec old players know
Video is Windows Media Video 8 (wmv2) and audio is Windows Media Audio 2 at 192 kbps. That pair opens on older Windows machines with no codec pack installed.
Straight talk about size
WMV8 is an older, far less efficient codec than the H.264 or HEVC usually inside an MP4, so it needs much more data for the same picture. The result screen shows the real before and after.
Three quality steps
High, Medium and Small file map to encoder quantizer 2, 4 and 7. Lower numbers keep more detail and make bigger files.
Converted in your tab
The MP4 is read and encoded by your own browser. A long recording never sits behind an upload bar.
Interlaced video cleaned up
If the source is interlaced, it is deinterlaced on the way, so motion doesn't show comb lines on a PC monitor.
MP4 to WMV converter options side by side
Three ways to get a WMV, plus the option of not converting at all.
| This converter | Upload-based sites | VLC Convert / Save | Keep the MP4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where the video goes | Stays on your device | Uploaded; retention depends on the service | Stays on your device | Nowhere |
| Install | None | None | Desktop app | None |
| Output codec | WMV8 + WMA 192 kbps | Varies, often settable | Set by the chosen WMV + WMA (ASF) profile | The codec it already has |
| Settings | 3 quality steps, 1080p/720p/480p | Codec, bitrate, frame rate | Full profile editor | None needed |
| Files at once | One | Often several | Several | n/a |
| Right for | Old players, private files | People fine with uploading | Users who already run VLC | Players that support the MP4's codec |
Who still needs to convert MP4 to WMV
Modern systems play most MP4 files. These are the places that still expect Windows Media.
Windows Movie Maker projects
Older versions of Windows Movie Maker import WMV natively but may reject an H.264 MP4. Convert first, then edit.
PowerPoint 2007 to 2010
These versions embed WMV reliably, while MP4 may need extra codecs. A WMV keeps the slide deck playing on the presentation PC.
Older smart TVs
Some TVs from the WMV era list it among their USB formats but skip certain MP4 files. Try 720p for a smaller file on the stick.
Car stereos with a screen
Head units that play video from USB often list WMV as a supported format. Small file plus 480p fits their screens and storage.
School and office PCs
Locked-down machines where you can't install a player or codec pack still have Windows Media support built in.
A relative's old laptop
An XP-era machine with only Windows Media Player opens WMV with a double-click, no downloads needed.
Why the WMV is bigger than your MP4
Your MP4 most likely holds H.264 or HEVC, codecs that squeeze far more picture into each megabyte than Windows Media Video 8 can. Going to WMV trades that efficiency for compatibility with old players.
In our own test, a 6-second 720p H.264 clip of 142 KB came out at 1.6 MB as WMV on Medium, roughly eleven times larger. Your ratio will depend on the footage, but expect growth, not savings.
To keep the file manageable, choose Small file and scale to 720p or 480p, which is plenty for an old TV or a slide. Every WMV here is encoded from scratch, so a long video takes a while; a lower resolution means less work. Keep the original MP4 too: it is the better master copy.
Common slip-ups when making a WMV
Mistake: Choosing High for a long video meant for a USB stick.
Do this instead: High uses quantizer 2 and makes the largest files. Medium or Small file at 720p usually looks fine on older screens.
Mistake: Converting for a PC that runs Windows 10 or 11.
Do this instead: Their built-in players open most H.264 MP4 files, though HEVC may need an extension. If the MP4 already plays there, send it and skip the bigger file.
Mistake: Expecting subtitles to come along.
Do this instead: The WMV output has no subtitle track, so soft subtitles in the MP4 are left out. Keep the MP4 for viewing with subtitles.
Mistake: Feeding in an AV1 MP4.
Do this instead: This converter can copy AV1 but has no AV1 decoder, so it can't re-encode it to WMV. Use a desktop FFmpeg build with AV1 decoding.
Mistake: Deleting the MP4 after converting.
Do this instead: The WMV is a re-encoded copy with some loss. Keep the MP4 so you can make a new version later.
Privacy, price and limits
No upload, ever
Your file is converted on your own device and is never uploaded to our servers. The only download is the converter program itself.
Free for any number of files
There is no account, no watermark and no cap on conversions. Files are handled one at a time rather than in a batch.
Around 2 GB per file
Browser memory sets the ceiling. In our tests a 1.6 GB file worked and a 2.1 GB file ran out of memory.
FFmpeg under the hood
The engine is FFmpeg 5.1.4 compiled to WebAssembly, unmodified, about 32 MB from jsDelivr on the first visit and cached after that.