Compress Video on Mac without losing quality

Shrink MP4, MOV, MKV and more with a quality slider and a live size estimate. Make a clip small enough to email, or batch-compress a whole folder. Offline, no watermark, no upload limit.

Get Picmal for $29

$29 once, updates included. No account, no subscription, works offline. Need 2, 5 or 10 Macs?

How to compress a video on your Mac

1

Drop your video

Drag in one clip or a whole folder of videos.
2

Set quality & codec

Pick a CRF level and codec (H.264/H.265). Watch the size estimate update live.
3

Compress

Click Compress. Everything runs on your Mac.

Real control over the trade-off

CRF quality slider

0–51 scale. CRF 18–20 is visually lossless; push higher for smaller files when you need them.

Modern codecs

H.264 for compatibility, H.265/HEVC for ~50% smaller files, VP9 and AV1 for the web.

Frame-rate reduction

Drop 60 fps to 30 fps to shrink screen recordings and tutorials that don't need cinematic motion.

Size estimate first

See the projected output size before you encode, perfect for hitting an email or upload limit.

Need to convert video formats too? See the video converter

When you actually need this

Modern phones and cameras produce enormous files. A two-minute 4K clip can be over 1 GB. Most of the time you just need it small enough to send or store.

It won't fit in an email

Gmail and most providers cap attachments around 25 MB. Drop the CRF and resolution until the live size estimate fits, then send.

Upload limits and slow uploads

Discord, Slack, and form uploads reject big files or crawl. A smaller H.265 file uploads in a fraction of the time.

Screen recordings

Tutorials and demos don't need 60 fps or full resolution. Halving both can shrink a recording by 80% with no real loss.

Reclaiming disk space

Old vacation clips eating your SSD? Re-encode to H.265 and cut the file size roughly in half.

Related guides and tools

Guide • Jul 14, 2026

Guide: how to compress a video on Mac (5 ways)

Compress video on your Mac to email or upload it: Picmal, HandBrake, iMovie, QuickTime, and FFmpeg. Shrink MP4, MOV, and MKV by 50-80% without visible quality loss.

Guide • Aug 18, 2026

How to compress video with HandBrake

A practical guide to HandBrake's compression settings: what RF really does, which encoder to pick, why your file sometimes gets bigger instead of smaller, and the four controls that change the size.

Guide • Aug 18, 2026

Converting video with VLC, and why it looks bad

VLC can convert video on a Mac, and it is free. Here is the exact menu path, the one setting that stops the output looking worse than the original, and how to tell when it has finished.

Guide • Jul 14, 2026

How to convert MOV to MP4 on Mac, 3 free ways

Convert MOV to MP4 on a Mac for free with iMovie, VLC or ffmpeg, and see why QuickTime can't do it. Often a lossless remux that takes seconds. Tested on macOS 27.

Convert video formats (MOV to MP4, and more)

Change the container or the codec. MOV, MP4, MKV, WebM and AVI, all on your Mac.

Compress audio on Mac

Bitrate, VBR or CBR, mono for a voice. Recordings without the bloat.

Compress images on Mac

Photos and screenshots batched down to something you can actually send.

All compression options

Every format Picmal compresses, a page each, with what it throws away.

Coming from HandBrake? Picmal vs HandBrake compared

Where HandBrake still wins, and where you would rather not fight a preset list.

What people are
saying about Picmal

"Clean and easy to use. Perfect for quickly converting images without unnecessary extras."

Marynes

"Everything works as expected - great app!"

Anthony Nguyen

"Great app! Simple and easy to use."

Beckett R

"It works perfectly now! Thanks and good work. It's really the kind of utility that I find very useful. I know that there are tons of free online tools doing the same thing but it's so much faster that way."

7107Labs

"Wonderfully simple app! I struggled with converting my images from one format to another constantly with online free tools. Picmal makes it effortless. Worth the money to avoid the hassle for sure!"

River Sloane

"You did a great job here! I like how easy Picmal is to use, and the frequent upgrades show that you are very committed to improving this beautiful software."

Gianluca Savini

"It's a Mac-assed Mac App. Focused, customizable, flexible, well designed and super fast. 10+ times a day I need to convert a file for use on a website. Picmal makes that process a joy. My favorite conversion is taking a multipage PDF and converting each page to an individual image with one click (something even Preview can't do)."

Rob H

"I really like these kinds of tools: simple interface, focused functions, one-time purchase, and continuous updates."

limboy

"Been enjoying the app! Thanks for the very handy utility."

@imnogeekAJ

"I f* love this app. Just so you know. Keep building!"

Alessandro Bonini

"Clean and easy to use. Perfect for quickly converting images without unnecessary extras."

Marynes

"Everything works as expected - great app!"

Anthony Nguyen

"Great app! Simple and easy to use."

Beckett R

"It works perfectly now! Thanks and good work. It's really the kind of utility that I find very useful. I know that there are tons of free online tools doing the same thing but it's so much faster that way."

7107Labs

"Wonderfully simple app! I struggled with converting my images from one format to another constantly with online free tools. Picmal makes it effortless. Worth the money to avoid the hassle for sure!"

River Sloane

"You did a great job here! I like how easy Picmal is to use, and the frequent upgrades show that you are very committed to improving this beautiful software."

Gianluca Savini

"It's a Mac-assed Mac App. Focused, customizable, flexible, well designed and super fast. 10+ times a day I need to convert a file for use on a website. Picmal makes that process a joy. My favorite conversion is taking a multipage PDF and converting each page to an individual image with one click (something even Preview can't do)."

Rob H

"I really like these kinds of tools: simple interface, focused functions, one-time purchase, and continuous updates."

limboy

"Been enjoying the app! Thanks for the very handy utility."

@imnogeekAJ

"I f* love this app. Just so you know. Keep building!"

Alessandro Bonini

"I like the interface. I like the batch processing. I like the fact in the I can set default conversions. I like your program a lot."

Charles Willson

"I like the quality of the image processing. It also supports all the important image files. But it still needs some work regarding both the UI and the UX design of it."

Yiannis

"I love how Picmal's made compressing videos a frictionless, easy and straightforward."

George

"It's simple to use and does everything I need it to do. Hell, it does much more than I need and the developer keeps adding features :)"

Adam L

"I love the app! I use it 4-5 days a week for audio and image conversion as I tag and add missing album artwork to my library of 70,000 songs. After that is done, I would like to try it out with my Blu-ray collection on Plex. I truly appreciate the hard work that goes into creating and frequently updating an app such as this. All the best!"

Trevor

"The program is very simple and practical, and its options are clear."

Abadi

"I use Picmal to convert images. It works perfectly. I can just leave the Picmal window open on my desktop. Whenever I want to convert an image, I drag the file onto the window and click “convert”—and seconds later, the converted file is in the appropriate folder with the suffix “converted.” It couldn’t be easier or more hassle-free!"

Marie-Theres

"Thoughtful, polished, and constantly improving. Alberto genuinely listens to feedback, and it shows in Picmal. Easy 5 stars."

Daniel Hewitt

"I feel Picmal is one of the apps that I would categorize as essential. There are many features that distinguish the app from other web converters such as Folder Watching and Clipboard Optimization."

Joel

"Picmal is simple and fast but also integrates complex workloads if needed."

Aj

"I like the interface. I like the batch processing. I like the fact in the I can set default conversions. I like your program a lot."

Charles Willson

"I like the quality of the image processing. It also supports all the important image files. But it still needs some work regarding both the UI and the UX design of it."

Yiannis

"I love how Picmal's made compressing videos a frictionless, easy and straightforward."

George

"It's simple to use and does everything I need it to do. Hell, it does much more than I need and the developer keeps adding features :)"

Adam L

"I love the app! I use it 4-5 days a week for audio and image conversion as I tag and add missing album artwork to my library of 70,000 songs. After that is done, I would like to try it out with my Blu-ray collection on Plex. I truly appreciate the hard work that goes into creating and frequently updating an app such as this. All the best!"

Trevor

"The program is very simple and practical, and its options are clear."

Abadi

"I use Picmal to convert images. It works perfectly. I can just leave the Picmal window open on my desktop. Whenever I want to convert an image, I drag the file onto the window and click “convert”—and seconds later, the converted file is in the appropriate folder with the suffix “converted.” It couldn’t be easier or more hassle-free!"

Marie-Theres

"Thoughtful, polished, and constantly improving. Alberto genuinely listens to feedback, and it shows in Picmal. Easy 5 stars."

Daniel Hewitt

"I feel Picmal is one of the apps that I would categorize as essential. There are many features that distinguish the app from other web converters such as Folder Watching and Clipboard Optimization."

Joel

"Picmal is simple and fast but also integrates complex workloads if needed."

Aj

"Picmal is complete. The quality is good, and it does exactly what I need."

Gianfri

"Easy to use, automation & batch processing. AVIF & Webp support"

Sem

"I convert MP4s to MP3s almost every day. Picmal makes it stupidly simple, and I haven't touched a sketchy online converter since."

Rubens Nook YouTube Creator

"keep up the great work! Very cool tool you've built here."

J Koh

"Working on a presentation and had to convert and resize a lot of images. Picmal did them all in a flash."

Henry Halem

"Simple and powerful is a combination that is hard to get right. Picmal nails it! I find image presets particularly useful. Set it up and then just drag and drop to resize and convert."

Ian

"Me ha sosprendido la compresion que realiza el programa y si apreciar la calidad."

Carlos

"The easy going workflow"

Markus

"I just sent a few samples through to check everything, and I am very pleased with the results. Everything worked correctly and above all it was easy and not unduly complicated."

Andy Cockill

"Picmal is complete. The quality is good, and it does exactly what I need."

Gianfri

"Easy to use, automation & batch processing. AVIF & Webp support"

Sem

"I convert MP4s to MP3s almost every day. Picmal makes it stupidly simple, and I haven't touched a sketchy online converter since."

Rubens Nook YouTube Creator

"keep up the great work! Very cool tool you've built here."

J Koh

"Working on a presentation and had to convert and resize a lot of images. Picmal did them all in a flash."

Henry Halem

"Simple and powerful is a combination that is hard to get right. Picmal nails it! I find image presets particularly useful. Set it up and then just drag and drop to resize and convert."

Ian

"Me ha sosprendido la compresion que realiza el programa y si apreciar la calidad."

Carlos

"The easy going workflow"

Markus

"I just sent a few samples through to check everything, and I am very pleased with the results. Everything worked correctly and above all it was easy and not unduly complicated."

Andy Cockill

Pay once and you're all set

Already own Picmal? Add more Macs

How many Macs?

$29

2 Macs is $10 more

Convert, compress and edit images, video, audio and PDFs
Everything runs on your Mac, nothing gets uploaded
Use it on 1 Mac
Command line tool, Raycast extension and watched folders
Free updates forever, no subscription

Get Picmal for $29

14-day refund, no questions asked. Needs macOS 15 or later.

More than 10 Macs? Email me.

Prices in USD, tax added at checkout, paid securely via Stripe.

How does the license work?

You pay once and keep it. No renewals, no subscriptions. Your license activates on the number of Macs you bought it for, and you can move it to another Mac whenever you want.

I bought Picmal and now I need more Macs. Can I upgrade?

Yes, and you only pay the difference. Going from 1 Mac to 2 is $10, 2 to 5 is $50, 5 to 10 is $60, and every other jump works the same way. Enter your license key here and the same key covers more Macs. The offer never expires, so starting small is never the wrong call.

What happens if I get a new Mac?

Open Picmal on your old Mac, go to Picmal → Register license to deactivate, then activate on the new one. Takes about ten seconds.

Do you offer student or country discounts?

Yes. I want Picmal to be affordable wherever you are. Students and educators get 40% off: verify your school email on the education page and the code lands in your inbox. If the price is steep for your country, checkout already adjusts it for you. If it still doesn't work, email support@picmal.app and tell me where you are, and I'll send a code.

Frequently Asked Questions

Something not covered here? Write to support@picmal.app

How do I compress a video on my Mac?

Open Picmal, drag your video in (or a whole folder), pick a quality level and codec, and click Compress. A live size estimate shows how small it will be before you export, and everything runs on your Mac with no upload.

How much can Picmal shrink a video?

It depends on the source and your settings, but 50–80% is common. Switching to H.265 (HEVC) alone cuts size roughly in half versus H.264 at the same quality, and lowering the CRF, resolution, or frame rate shrinks it further.

Does compressing a video lose quality?

Only as much as you choose. Picmal uses a CRF quality slider. At CRF 18–20 the result is visually lossless. Picmal also shows an estimated output size before you encode, so you can dial in the size/quality trade-off without guessing.

Can I compress a video to send by email?

Yes. Most email providers cap attachments around 25 MB. Lower the CRF, drop the resolution, or reduce the frame rate and watch the live size estimate until your clip fits, then export.

Which video formats can Picmal compress?

MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI, WebM, M4V, MPG, HEVC, FLV, WMV, 3GP, M2TS/MTS, VOB, TS and more. You can keep the same container or switch it while compressing.

Can I batch compress multiple videos?

Yes. Drop multiple videos or a whole folder into Picmal and compress them all with the same settings in one pass.

Is there an upload, watermark, or size limit?

No. Picmal compresses entirely on your Mac. No uploads, no queues, no watermark, and no file-size cap. It's a one-time $29, not a subscription.