Easily Download and Install FFmpeg on a Windows PC

Get the FFmpeg audio and video conversion tool running on your PC

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: October 16, 2024 Fact Checked

FFmpeg is an open-source media tool you can use to convert any video format into the one you need. The tool is command-line only, so it doesn't have a graphical, clickable interface. If you're used to regular graphical Windows programs, installing FFmpeg may seem complicated at first—but don't worry, it's pretty easy! This wikiHow guide teaches you the simplest way to install FFmpeg on your Windows PC.

Things You Should Know

Install 7-Zip first so you can extract the FFmpeg files.
Download the latest full release build from https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds.
Extract the FFmpeg folder, move it to the root of your main drive, and add it to your system path.

Steps

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1
Install 7-Zip. If you don't have 7-Zip already installed, you'll need it to be able to extract the FFmpeg files. This tool is free, and you can download it from https://www.7-zip.org.
- Once you've downloaded the installer, double-click the downloaded file, then follow the on-screen instructions to install.
Go to https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds. This page hosts the precompiled FFmpeg binary files you'll need for Windows.^{[1]
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Research source}

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You'll see this in the left panel.
The full text of the link is https://www.gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds/ffmpeg-release-full.7z. This link downloads the latest FFmpeg files to your PC in a compressed format.
5
Extract the downloaded file. Here's how:
- Right-click the Windows/Start button and select File Explorer.
- Click the Downloads folder in the left panel (you may have to click This PC first to find it).
- Right-click the file that begins with "ffmpeg" and ends with ".7z."
- (Windows 11 only) Click Show more options.
- Select the 7-Zip menu and click Extract Here. This creates a new folder with the same name as the .7z file.
6
Rename the extracted folder FFmpeg. To do this:
- Right-click the folder.
- If you're using Windows 10, click Rename. If you have Windows 11, click the icon of an "A" followed by a cursor at the bottom of the menu.
- Type FFmpeg and press Enter.
This "cuts" the folder from the Downloads folder so you can paste it into the root of your hard drive.
It's the computer icon in the left panel.
It's usually called "Windows (C:)" or "OS (C:)," but the name and drive letter may vary.
This moves the folder to the root of your hard drive.
Open Command Prompt as an administrator. To do this, just type cmd into the Windows search bar, right-click Command Prompt, select Run as administrator, and then click Yes.
12
Add FFmpeg to your system path. To do this from the command line, type or paste setx /m PATH "C:\ffmpeg\bin;%PATH%" and press Enter.^{[2]
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Research source} When you're finished, close the Command Prompt window.
- You've now installed FFmpeg and set the proper environment variables. To confirm that FFmpeg is working, open a new command prompt window, type ffmpeg -version, and then press Enter.

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Question

I clicked the following buttons, ffmpeg.exe, ffplay.exe and ffprobe.exe, they turned up for a glance then disappeared. What's happened? Thank you.

Nicole Levine, MFA
wikiHow Technology Writer
Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions.

Nicole Levine, MFA

wikiHow Technology Writer

Expert Answer

These applications can only be run from the command line. If you try to double-click them in File Explorer, you'll experience the behavior you've witnessed. Instead, open Command Prompt, then run the "ffmpeg" command to view all possible command line options.

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How can I get WSL (Ubuntu) to recognize this if I've installed it? Works with Powershell. (Using Windows Terminal)

Nicole Levine, MFA
wikiHow Technology Writer
Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions.

Nicole Levine, MFA

wikiHow Technology Writer

Expert Answer

If you're using Ubuntu via WSL, you have a couple of options. If you want to run the FFmpeg binary, you can cd into /mnt/c/FFmpeg/bin (replace "c" if you put the FFmpeg folder on a different drive letter) and run the command ./ffmpeg.exe (add whichever flags you need), or skip the Windows stuff and just install the FFmpeg package in an Ubuntu terminal with "sudo apt install ffmpeg."

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Question

Isn't the folder path case-sensitive? If you rename it to "FFmpeg" but the path has "C:\...\ffmpeg\bin", won't that cause an error?

Nicole Levine, MFA
wikiHow Technology Writer
Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions.

Nicole Levine, MFA

wikiHow Technology Writer

Expert Answer

Windows directory names are not case-sensitive. Don't worry, it'll definitely work!

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FFmpeg is a command line-only program, meaning you can only use it in Command Prompt. This may prove difficult for users who aren't familiar with Command Prompt.

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You must have an administrator account to install FFmpeg.

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