5 Awesome Ways to Convert MOV to MP4 on Mac (Free and Online)

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Peter William
November 18, 2022 Preview 7.0K Preview 0
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MOV is the most compatible format on Apple system because it was created by Apple. However, because of adapting minimal compression technology, MOV videos are often large that take up too much space of computer. In addition, it offers a weak compatibility with other platforms so that it is excluded by most online streaming websites and software.

If you want to save space, upload popular video to websites or share videos to other devices or software, the perfect solution is to convert MOV to MP4 on Mac as MP4 is smaller and is available on almost all devices and platforms. But how to transcode MOV to MP4 more quickly and to a higher quality? Now follow these steps to get an ideal solution.

 

Method 1. The Most Effective Way to Convert MOV to MP4 on Mac

Cisdem Video Converter is an extremely versatile video conversion application, which features to convert video and audio files effectively in any formats on Mac with high quality, including MOV to MP4. It permits you to quickly and effortlessly batch convert MOV to MP4 on Mac without data loss.

Also, it offers rich customization features to edit the added videos such as cutting off any segments of the video, cropping unwanted parts, etc. Cisdem Video Converter is smart, multifunctional and easy to use. Let it be your best helper to deal with your MOV files.

Free Download

1. Install Cisdem Video Converter

Install and run the application, the following interface will pop up.

install and run the application

2. Select Your MOV files

You can see three buttons at the top of the interface. Then you can drag and drop the MOV files that you possessed into the central area of the first icon.choose files for conversion

3. Select Output Format

Once the videos are uploaded, click “Convert all tasks to” button to choose MP4 or 4K MP4 as the output format. Normally, it takes more time to convert if the video quality is higher. Also, you can choose other favorite formats according to your mind.

choose mp4 format

4. Edit the Video (Optional)

Click “edit” icon on the upper right corner of the video thumbnail , which pops up a new window for you to edit the videos via trim, crop, rotate, effects, etc.

edit the added files

5. Start MOV to MP4 Conversion on Mac

Click on the convert button to start the conversion task. The process can take anything from one to several minutes, depending on file size and the number of files you transfer.

Method 2. Convert MOV to MP4 on Mac with iMovie

If you are a Mac user who wants to the free solution, iMovie is worth to try, which is well-known as a video editing software for Mac. If you need, you can apply the features provided by iMovie to edit the video, such as adjusting playback speed, cutting unwanted parts, changing video effects, etc. But, it doesn’t permit you to choose the output format at will and can’t support batch conversion on Mac.

  1. Open iMovie on your computer, create a new project by clicking on “create new > movies” on “projects” section.
  2. Upload MOV files to the program, which offers 3 ways to do so.
    a. Click on “Import Media” icon on the interface to look for the file and upload it.
    b. Directly drag and drop the MOV video to the interface.
    c. Click “File > New movie” on the top menu bar to import the MOV file that you want to convert.
  3. Select the added file, hover your mouse to the top menu bar again, click “File > share > file”.
    share mov file
  4. Then, it pops up a small window that allows you to make sure output format, resolution, quality and compress speed. Click Next when done.
    choose basic information

    tips: You can set all details with your mind except for choosing Best “ProRes” in the “Quality” option. Otherwise, it will export the file to MOV format instead of the default MP4 format.

  5. Another small window comes for you to edit the file name and set a suitable destination.
    set fine name and destination
  6. Click “Save” and it will begin to convert MOV to MP4 with iMovie. After finishing, it will send you a prompt.

Method 3. Convert MOV to MP4 on Mac with Terminal

If you are familiar with command lines, you can use Terminal to convert MOV to MP4 for free effortlessly. Terminal uses a black screen to communicate with the computer and other programs by text commands, asking them to perform the instruction such as managing installations, opening documents, executing programs, etc. To transcode audio and video codecs, you need the help of some open-source software such as ffmpeg.

  1. Download FFmpeg to your computer.
  2. Find Terminal on your Launchpad and open it, enter the command line: ffmpeg -i inputvideo.mov outputvideo.mp4.
    input command line
  3. Tap enter on your keyboard and wait for the new video to be generated.

Method 4. Change MOV to MP4 on Mac with Free Desktop Converter

Using free MOV to MP4 converter is also a great option to change MOV to MP4 on Mac. There are diverse desktop converters created to transcode popular audio and video files easily, such as VLC Media Player. It is a popular and open-source tool that can play media files, rip DVDs and convert between some popular digital formats such as MOV to MP4. But it can only convert files one by one without additional editing features.

  1. Download and install the right version of VLC Media Player on your computer.
  2. Go to the toolbox, tap on “File > Convert / Stream” to launch the conversion window.
  3. Click “Open Media” to upload the MOV file.
    upload mov file
  4. Move to the “Profile” section, make sure MP4 as the output format by clicking the drop-down icon.
  5. Switch to the “Destination” section, click “Save as file” button and then click “Browse” button to set an appropriate output file name and storage position. Click “Save”.
  6. Click the “Save” button on the main interface to start converting MOV to MP4 on Mac with VLC.

Method 5. Online Way to Change MOV to MP4 on Mac

Convertio is an available free online tool that can be used to convert MOV files to MP4 on Mac without installing any software. This program supports the conversion between videos, audios, images, etc. And the whole process would not cost you so much time. However, Convertio requires the Internet to work . And you need pay money for converting a file larger than 100MB.

  1. Upload MOV files from Mac, Windows, Google Drive, Dropbox, URL or by dragging it on the page.
  2. Next, choose MP4 as output format.
  3. Click “convert” button to start to convert MOV to MP4 free online. Once the conversion is completed, you can go to download the MP4 file.

Online Way to Convert MOV to MP4 for Mac and Windows

Can QuickTime Player convert MOV to MP4 on Mac?

No. We have got the conclusion that QuickTime Player doesn’t possess the ability to change MOV to MP4 after testing. Surprisingly, its paid version, QuickTime Player Pro, is able to achieve it. But, the Pro version is not available on the website any more. So if you have bought it before, you are allowed to use it on Mac. For your convenience, we will show you how to convert MOV to MP4 on Mac with QuickTime Player Pro below.

  1. Open the downloaded QuickTime Player Pro on your Mac.
  2. Move your mouse to the top toolbar, tap on “File” and choose “New Player” option to import the MOV files for conversion. Or you can directly right-click the MOV video and choose to open with “QuickTime Player Pro”.
  3. Click “File” again in the top toolbar and then choose “Export”
  4. Choose “Movie to MPEG-4” in the drop-down list.
    choose output format
  5. Click “Save” to get the new video.

In Short

This article has carefully introduced 5 effective ways on how to convert MOV to MP4 on Mac. If you have enough spare time and doesn’t seek for video quality, you can use the free methods. But if you want to convert your MOV files to MP4 with high output video quality on Mac, you’d better choose the professional MOV to MP4 Converter for Mac. It not only converts MOV to MP4 but also converts any video to multiple formats, rips DVD to videos, and downloads online videos from websites like YouTube on Mac at an extremely high speed.

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Peter William
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Peter has always had great enthusiasm for writing, programming and web development. He likes writing about software and technology, his works are featured on some tech blogs or forums like Tom's Hardware, CNET, etc.

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