HandBrake is a free, open-source video transcoder for Windows, macOS and Linux. It turns existing recordings, video files and unprotected DVD or Blu-ray sources into new files for playback on computers, phones and media devices. Each conversion re-encodes the picture, with controls for its compression, dimensions and accompanying audio and subtitles.
Output formats, presets and source titles
HandBrake separates the output container from the video encoder. MP4, MKV and WebM package the video and its accompanying tracks, while encoders such as H.264, H.265 and AV1 determine how the picture is compressed. The selected combination affects which players can open the result and which audio or subtitle tracks it can contain.
Device presets group these decisions with settings such as resolution, quality and audio selection. A preset provides a starting point for a particular playback target; its settings remain adjustable. HandBrake also saves custom presets, so a chosen conversion setup can be applied to later recordings without rebuilding it each time.
Sources can contain several titles, such as separate episodes on a disc. After choosing a title, you can convert all of it or specify a range using chapters or start and end times. HandBrake creates a separate encoded file from that selection. It does not join clips, and it cannot open content protected by DRM or remove disc copy protection.
How HandBrake balances quality, size and speed
Constant quality encoding starts with a chosen picture-quality level. HandBrake varies the bitrate as the video changes, allocating data according to the complexity of the material. This leaves the final file size uncertain: grain, motion and detailed scenes can require more data than simpler images. Raising the quality setting generally produces a larger file.
Average bitrate encoding instead works toward a specified average amount of video data per second. That gives more control over output size while allowing picture quality to vary. Multi-pass encoding can analyze the material before distributing that bitrate. A quality value cannot be carried unchanged between encoders with the expectation of identical results.
HandBrake offers software encoding and optional hardware encoding on supported systems. Encoder and speed settings affect processing time as well as the relationship between picture quality and file size. A faster choice can therefore change the result even when the output format stays the same.
Picture processing
The picture controls can limit output resolution and crop unwanted edges. Automatic cropping attempts to identify black bars, while custom crop values let you correct the selection. A preview shows the effect on the image before the full conversion.
Filters address particular source defects. Deinterlacing reduces comb-like edges in interlaced footage, and detelecine handles artifacts associated with converting film to television frame rates. Deblocking targets visible compression blocks. Denoising reduces noise or grain, although stronger settings can also remove fine detail.
Audio tracks
HandBrake can encode audio into formats including AAC, AC3, FLAC and Opus, or pass supported source tracks through without changing their audio data. Passthrough preserves an existing track, but the chosen container and playback device still need to support its format.
For converted audio, mixdown controls determine how the source channels are represented in the output. A surround recording can become a stereo track, or retain a supported surround channel layout. Available choices depend on the original audio, so selecting a larger channel layout does not supply channels missing from the source.
Subtitle tracks
Subtitles can come from embedded tracks or a separate SRT file. HandBrake can burn a subtitle track into the picture, making it permanently visible, or retain supported subtitles as selectable tracks. Soft subtitles can be enabled or disabled during playback when the player supports them.
Blu-ray PGS subtitles can remain separate tracks in MKV, while an MP4 conversion requires them to be burned into the image. Imported SRT subtitles also have a timing offset control for shifting their appearance relative to the video.
Previews and the encode queue
HandBrake’s preview function encodes a short portion using the selected settings. Its starting position and duration can be changed, allowing a sample of motion, filtering or compression to be examined before processing the entire title.
The queue holds multiple conversion jobs, including titles from a disc or videos opened from a folder. Each job carries its selected conversion settings and output destination. You can prepare further sources before starting the queue, and reopen pending jobs to change their settings. Automatic output naming helps give separate titles their own filenames; folder scanning covers videos in the selected folder rather than its subfolders.
