How to Install FFmpeg on Windows

This wikiHow teaches you how to install FFmpeg onto your Windows 10 computer. FFmpeg is a command line-only program that allows you to convert videos and audio into different formats, as well as record live audio and video. Open the FFmpeg...

Part 1 of 3:

Downloading FFmpeg

Open the FFmpeg download site. Go to https://ffmpeg.zeranoe.com/builds/ in your computer's web browser.
1. Although there is a dedicated FFmpeg website, the file that you can download from there won't work with Windows 10.
Click Download Build. It's a blue button on the right side of the page. FFmpeg will begin downloading onto your computer.
1. Depending on your browser's settings, you may first have to select a save location or confirm the download.
Open the FFmpeg download folder. Double-click the downloaded FFmpeg ZIP folder to do so.
Extract the FFmpeg folder. You can use your computer's built-in unzip feature to do this:
1. Click the Extract tab at the top of the window.
2. Click Extract all
3. Click Extract at the bottom of the window.
4. Wait for the window to open.
Rename the extracted folder. In the window that opens, you'll see a folder entitled "ffmpeg-20180424-d9706f7-win64-static". You'll need to rename this folder to "FFmpeg" by doing the following:
1. Click the folder once to select it.
2. Click the Home tab at the top of the window.
3. Click Rename in the "Organize" section of the toolbar.
4. Type in FFmpeg and then press ↵ Enter.
Copy the "FFmpeg" folder. Select the "FFmpeg" folder if it isn't already selected, then press Ctrl+C to copy it.
1. If you don't want to save a copy of the "FFmpeg" folder here, you can press Ctrl+X instead.
Click This PC. It's a folder on the left side of the window, though you may need to scroll up to see it. Doing so opens the This PC window.
Open your hard drive's folder. Double-click the hard drive folder (usually the "OS (C:)" folder) below the "Devices and drives" heading in the middle of the window.
1. If you don't see any folders listed below the "Devices and drives" heading, click Devices and drives once to force the folders to display.
Paste in the "FFmpeg" folder. Click a blank space anywhere inside of the folder, then press Ctrl+V. This will paste the copied "FFmpeg" folder into your computer's hard drive folder. After doing this, you can proceed with enabling FFmpeg in Command Prompt.

Part 2 of 3:

Enabling FFmpeg in the Command Line

Click This PC. It's a folder on the left side of the window, though you may need to scroll up to find it. This will take you back to the This PC folder.
1. If you closed File Explorer, click Start
  
  , type in this pc, and click This PC at the top of the Start menu.
Click Computer. This tab is in the upper-left side of the This PC window.
Click Properties. It's a red checkmark on a white box that you'll find in the upper-left side of the window. Doing so opens the Properties window.
Click Advanced system settings. This link is in the upper-left side of the Properties window. A new window will open.
Click Environment Variables…. You'll find this button near the bottom of the window. Doing so opens yet another window.
1. If you don't see this option, first click the Advanced tab at the top of the window.
Double-click the Path value. You'll find this value in the "User variables for [name]" section at the top of the window. This will open the Path variable's window.
1. If you don't see the Path entry, try scrolling up or down with your mouse cursor in the "User variables" section.
2. If you want to enable FFmpeg for all users on this computer, you'll instead double-click Path in the "System variables" section near the bottom of the window.
Click New. It's on the right side of the window. This will create a new text field in the window.
Enter the path to the "FFmpeg" library. Type C:FFmpegbin into the text field, then click OK.^[1]
Click OK on both open windows. At this point, FFmpeg is enabled for Command Prompt, though you're free to test FFmpeg to ensure that it installed correctly.

Part 3 of 3:

Testing FFmpeg

Open Start

. Click the Windows logo in the bottom-left corner of the screen. This will open the Start menu.
Search for Command Prompt. Type in command prompt into Start. This will bring up the Command Prompt app icon at the top of the Start menu.
Open Command Prompt in administrator mode. Right-click

Command Prompt at the top of the menu, then click Run as administrator and click Yes when prompted.
Check your FFmpeg version. Type in ffmpeg -version and press ↵ Enter. This should bring up a list of information about FFmpeg.
1. If you instead see the phrase "'ffmpeg' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file" appear, you may have misspelled the path name.

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