WebM

Open, royalty-free video container optimized for web delivery with VP9 and AV1.

Overview

What is WebM

WebM is an open, royalty-free media container format developed by Google, based on the Matroska (MKV) container. It is designed specifically for web delivery and pairs with royalty-free codecs — VP8, VP9, and AV1 for video; Vorbis and Opus for audio. WebM is natively supported by Chrome, Firefox, and Edge, but not by Safari, which limits its use as a universal delivery format. WebM is the default container for YouTube's VP9 and AV1 encodes, and it is the standard format for WebRTC video in browsers that support VP8/VP9.

Decision Guide

When to Choose WebM

Choose WebM when:

You need a completely royalty-free video stack — WebM + VP9/AV1 + Opus has zero licensing costs.
Your audience is primarily Chrome, Firefox, and Edge users — WebM has native support on these browsers.
You are producing short-form or social content for web embedding — WebM with VP9 produces smaller files than MP4 with H.264.

Consider alternatives when:

You need to reach Safari or iOS users — MP4 with H.264 or AV1 is supported on Apple devices; WebM is not.
You need adaptive bitrate streaming — HLS or MPEG-DASH with fmp4 segments offers ABR. WebM alone is progressive.
You need DRM protection — WebM has no DRM support. Use HLS or DASH with CENC encryption.

Try it

Transcoding Demo

Source video

URL

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Sample Video

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Source Type

URL

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Transcoding demo creates a small clip with a watermark.To test transcoding full files, Start your Free Plan for 500 credits

Select a source video and click “Convert” to see WebM output in action.

Reference

Key Characteristics

Type	Container format
File extension(s)	.webm
Supported video codecs	VP8, VP9, AV1
Supported audio codecs	Vorbis, Opus
DRM support	No
Adaptive bitrate	No (progressive only; DASH can use WebM segments)
Latency	N/A (progressive)
Live streaming support	No (use DASH with WebM segments for live)
Typical use case	Web-first delivery, short-form social content, WebRTC, open-source projects

Compatibility

Browser & Device Support

Platform	WebM	HLS	DASH
Chrome (desktop)	6+	via MSE	via MSE
Firefox (desktop)	4+	via MSE	via MSE
Safari (macOS)	14.1+ (VP8/9)	native	via MSE
Edge	79+	via MSE	via MSE
iOS Safari	15+ (limited)	native
Android Chrome		via MSE	via MSE

Implementation

How Qencode Handles WebM

Qencode produces WebM output with VP8, VP9, or AV1 video codecs and Vorbis or Opus audio. Specify webm as the output format and Qencode handles container packaging, codec configuration, and metadata embedding.

Pair WebM output with Smart Cropping for social-optimized aspect ratios, or use GIF Creation alongside WebM for animated preview content.

Request Example

WebM output with VP9 and Opus

{
  "query": {
    "source": "https://your-storage.com/video.mp4",
    "format": [
      {
        "output": "webm",
        "video_codec": "libvpx-vp9",
        "resolution": 2160,
        "quality": 20,
        "audio_codec": "libopus"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Copy this payload and use it with your API key to generate WebM output from any video source.

View Parameter Reference

comparison

WebM vs. MP4

	WebM	MP4
Royalty status	Completely royalty-free	Depends on codec
Safari support	Not supported	Universal
Primary codecs	VP8, VP9, AV1	H.264, H.265, AV1
Audio codecs	Vorbis, Opus	AAC, MP3, Opus
File size (VP9 vs H.264)	~35% smaller at equivalent quality	Baseline
Best for	Web-first, open-source	Universal playback

For a detailed MP4 breakdown, see MP4

Explore More

Related Features

MP4

The universal container format with broader device support but potential licensing costs

VP9

Google's royalty-free codec and the primary video codec inside WebM

Smart Cropping

Automatically crop WebM output to social-optimized aspect ratios

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