Free Video Trimmer — Cut & Split Video Files
Trim videos to a time range or split into segments — a free alternative to Adobe Premiere Pro. No sign-up, no re-encoding, no watermarks.
Trim a video to a specific range — drag the in/out handles on a thumbnail timeline and export. Works on MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, and AVI inputs, all in your browser via ffmpeg.wasm. A free alternative to Adobe Premiere's bin-and-trim workflow for quick one-off cuts without a timeline-editor learning curve.
Built and maintained by James Nicolaus
Instant Stream Copy
No re-encoding means near-instant trimming with zero quality loss. Cut a 2-hour movie in seconds, not minutes.
Trim or Split
Trim mode extracts a single clip. Split mode cuts at multiple time markers, producing separate files for each segment.
Video Preview
Preview your video and scrub to the exact timestamp before cutting. Verify start and end points visually.
100% Private
All processing happens in your browser using WebAssembly. Your files never leave your device.
Free Video Trimmer — Cut & Split Video Files Online
The Free Video Trimmer lets you cut video files to a specific time range or split them into multiple segments at custom time markers — all directly in your browser. No sign-up, no uploads, no watermarks, no file size limits. Powered by ffmpeg.wasm with stream copy mode for near-instant cuts and zero quality loss.
Once trimmed, shrink the clip further with the free video compressor for upload-friendly file sizes, or swap container with the free video converter to convert MP4 to WebM, MOV, or GIF.
Features
- Instant stream copy — Uses ffmpeg's
-c copymode. No re-encoding means near-instant processing and zero quality loss, even for large video files. - Trim mode — Extract a single clip by entering a start and end time. Perfect for pulling highlights from gameplay, cutting intros from recordings, or grabbing a scene from a movie.
- Split mode — Add multiple time markers and split the video into separate segments. Great for breaking a long recording into chapters or extracting multiple clips at once.
- Video preview — Watch and scrub through your video before cutting. Verify your timestamps visually to get precise results.
- Flexible time input — Enter time as seconds (90), MM:SS (1:30), or HH:MM:SS (1:02:30). Decimal seconds supported for precision.
- 100% client-side — Uses ffmpeg.wasm (WebAssembly). Your files never leave your device. No server uploads, no privacy concerns.
How to Trim a Video
- 1. Add a file — Drag and drop a video file into the upload area, or click to browse. MP4, WebM, MOV, AVI, and MKV are supported.
- 2. Preview — Use the built-in player to scrub to the exact timestamps you want to cut.
- 3. Choose mode — Click Trim to extract a single clip, or Split to cut at multiple markers.
- 4. Enter times — For Trim mode, set the start and end time. For Split mode, add one or more time markers where you want to cut.
- 5. Process & Download — Click the action button. Stream copy mode makes this fast regardless of file length. Download your clip(s) when done.
Video Trimmer vs. Video Editor
| Feature | Video Trimmer | Adobe Premiere Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | $22.99/mo |
| Purpose | Quick cuts by timestamp | Full video editing suite |
| Speed | Near-instant (stream copy, no re-encoding) | Depends on export settings and hardware |
| Split support | Yes — multiple markers, separate files | Yes — timeline-based |
| Quality | Lossless (exact copy) | Re-encoded on export |
| Privacy | 100% browser-based, no uploads | Desktop app, Creative Cloud sync |
| Install required | No | Yes (large download) |
Tips, Mistakes & Takeaways
Tips
- →Use the time-display readout for frame-accurate trim positions — the thumbnail timeline is approximate.
- →Trim to the same container as the source (MP4 in, MP4 out) to skip a full re-encode — much faster.
- →Plan your cuts before starting — single-range trim per export means multi-cut workflows need multi-export.
- →Preview the trim before exporting — the in-browser player respects the selected range.
Common Mistakes
- !Trimming a 4K source to a 480p output for no reason — the trim itself doesn't change resolution; that's a separate downscale step.
- !Closing the tab before downloading — the trimmed output exists only until you click export.
- !Trusting thumbnail timestamps as exact — at coarse zoom, two visible frames may be seconds apart.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Time-range trim for any common video format, with optional re-encode or stream copy.
- ✓Local-only via ffmpeg.wasm — your footage never reaches a server.
- ✓Single-range trim per export — for multi-cut workflows, run multiple passes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is trimming so fast?
The trimmer uses ffmpeg's stream copy mode (-c copy), which copies the video and audio data without decoding or re-encoding. The only work is reading the container, copying the relevant packets, and writing a new container. This makes it orders of magnitude faster than re-encoding.
Are the cuts frame-exact?
Stream copy mode cuts at the nearest keyframe (I-frame). For most videos encoded with keyframes every 1–2 seconds, the cut point will be within a second of your requested time. If you need frame-exact cuts, you would need to re-encode the video, which our Video Converter can help with.
Can I trim very large video files?
Yes, but keep in mind that the entire file must be loaded into browser memory via WebAssembly. Files up to ~2 GB work well on most modern machines with 8+ GB RAM. For very large files, the loading step may take a moment, but the actual cutting is still fast.
Does trimming add a watermark?
No. The output is an exact copy of the original video data — nothing is added, removed, or modified. There are no watermarks, logos, or branding of any kind.