iMovie for Windows > Video Editor > iMovie Formats > Edit MP4 Files on Mac and Windows

Need to Open and Edit MP4 Files?

Download The Best Video Editor to Play and Edit MP4 Files without effort.

Compatible with all popular any video and audio format. Mac and PC supported.
Includes all basic and professional video editing tools for free.
Save as MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, GIF, M4V, 3GP, FLV, MPG, WebM, MKV, etc.
No prior knowledge required. No credit card required.

What's a MP4 File?

MP4 is a very popular video format. Initially MP4 refers to an upgraded version of MP3 audio, namely the MPEG-2 AAC standard. Then MP4 format was also used to store video data, corresponding to the MPEG-4 standard. MP4 is now a well-known ISO media file format, the standard number is ISO/IEC 14496, namely the MPEG-4 standard.

MP4 video file format is based on QuickTime (MOV) container format. Thus referring to QuickTime format definition is helpful to understand MP4 file format. MP4 file format is a very open container, which can be used to encode almost all media data. The media description in MP4 file is separated from media data, and the organization of media data is also free. It doesn't have to be arranged in chronological order. Even media data can directly refer to other files. MP4 also supports streaming media. MP4 is currently widely used to save H.264 video and AAC audio. It is a very important format of high-definition video.

open and edit MP4 files

MP4 file format is widely used on Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, iOS and other operating systems. Usually the system's default player can play MP4 files, such as Windows Media Player for Windows or QuickTime Player for Mac and Windows. But if the MP4 container has an unrecognizable encoding format, you need to install other players or corresponding decoders. Other applications that can open and edit MP4 include: KMPlayer, PotPlayer, VLC, iMovie, Final Cut Pro, Movavi Video Editor, Wondershare Filmora, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere, etc.

How to Open MP4 Files with Movavi Video Editor

Open MP4 files in Windows

In the main screen, go to the Media tab on the left sidebar and click the Add Media Files button.
Go through the top menu bar File > Add Media Files, or simply press Ctrl+O.
Resize Mov Video Editor's window and then drop MP4 files to the timeline.

Open MP4 files on Mac

Go to the Media tab on the left sidebar and click the Add Media Files button.
Go through File > Add Media Files in the top menu bar, or press Command+O.
Drag and drop MP4 files from Finder to the timeline.

Open MP4 Video on All Modern Computers

Windows 10	Windows 8	Windows 7	Windows Vista	Windows XP
macOS Big Sur	macOS Catalina	macOS Mojave	macOS High Sierra	Mac OS X 10.10 or higher

FAQs on MP4 Playback in Windows, Mac and Mobile Devices

Question:Windows Media Player only plays audio for .MP4 files. Why?

Answer: It's usually a codec issue. Try another MP4 player like VLC. If you can play your MP4 videos in the VLC Player but not in the Windows Media Player, then you should install the corresponding codec or an all-in-one codec pack like K-Lite Codec Pack. Alternatively, convert incompatible MP4 to MP4(h.264) for better compatibility using a good video converter.

Question:Why can't iMovie import MP4 video files?

Answer: MP4 is a file container format which is supported by iMovie. However, the video can be encoded in a variety of codecs like Divx, Xvid, h264 and so on. You can only import MP4 to iMovie when the inside codec is compatible with iMovie, for example, MP4 with H264 codec. That's why for the same MP4 file format, some can be edited with iMovie, while some cannot be edited with iMovie. For playing MP4 on mobile phones, there are another reason why MP4 couldn't be played on mobile phones. If the resolutions are larger than the highest resolutions supported by your phone, it will not play properly. Solution: You can use a video converter to convert it with H.264 and AAC codecs applied. The recommended resolution is 640*480 or less.

Question:Why MP4 video can't play on a web page included with the video tag?

Answer: Make sure your web browser is compatible with the MP4 file container and codec.

File Format	IE	Firefox	Opera	Chrome	Safari
Ogg	-	3.5+	10.5+	5.0+	-
MPEG 4	9.0+	-	-	5.0+	3.0+
WebM	-	4.0+	10.6+	6.0+	-

File Format	Video Codecs	Audio Codecs
Ogg	Theora	Vorbis
MPEG 4	H.264	AAC
WebM	VP8	Vorbis

Movavi Video Editor Opens MP4 Files and Many More Video File Formats

Not only can MP4 Video Editor opens MP4 files but also all popular video formats. Movavi Video Editor is an all-in-one video editing application for Mac and Windows.

MP4 Video Editor Introduction