Convert WMV to MPEG — Free Online Tool
Convert WMV files to MPEG format by transcoding Microsoft's proprietary ASF-wrapped video to the universally compatible MPEG-2 standard with MP2 audio. Ideal for moving Windows Media content into a broadcast-ready or legacy-device-friendly container without needing specialized Microsoft codecs.
to
FFmpeg Command
Copy this command to run the same conversion locally with FFmpeg on your desktop. Download FFmpeg
Drop your WMV file here
or click to browse
Free — no uploads, no signups. Your files never leave your browser.
Settings
Note: Browser-based encoding uses approximate quality targets. For precise CRF compression, copy the FFmpeg command above and run it on your desktop.
Estimated output:
Conversion Complete!
DownloadHow It Works
WMV files store video using Microsoft's MPEG-4 variant codecs (msmpeg4 or msmpeg4v2) inside an Advanced Systems Format (ASF) container with WMA audio. Because MPEG containers are entirely incompatible with both the ASF wrapper and Microsoft's proprietary video codecs, this conversion requires a full re-encode of both streams — the video is decoded from msmpeg4 and re-encoded as MPEG-2 video, while the WMA audio is decoded and re-encoded as MP2. The output .mpeg file uses a standard MPEG program stream, making it readable by virtually any legacy media device, broadcast system, or DVD authoring tool without requiring Windows Media components.
What Each Flag Does
| Flag | What it does |
|---|---|
ffmpeg
|
Invokes the FFmpeg binary. In the browser tool, this runs via FFmpeg.wasm compiled to WebAssembly, so no installation is needed and no files leave your device. |
-i input.wmv
|
Specifies the input WMV file. FFmpeg detects the ASF container and identifies the encapsulated video codec (msmpeg4 or msmpeg4v2) and audio codec (typically wmav2) automatically from the file headers. |
-c:v mpeg2video
|
Re-encodes the video stream using the MPEG-2 video codec, replacing Microsoft's proprietary msmpeg4 codec. MPEG-2 is required by the MPEG container and is universally supported by legacy players, broadcast systems, and DVD authoring tools. |
-c:a mp2
|
Re-encodes the audio from WMA (wmav2) to MPEG-1 Audio Layer II (MP2), the standard audio codec for MPEG program streams, DVD video, and broadcast content. MP2 is required for broad compatibility with devices that read MPEG files. |
-q:v 2
|
Sets the MPEG-2 video quality using a variable quality scale where 1 is the highest quality and 31 is the lowest. A value of 2 produces near-maximum quality output and is the appropriate default when converting from a lossy WMV source to avoid compounding quality loss. |
-b:a 192k
|
Sets the MP2 audio bitrate to 192 kilobits per second, which is the standard bitrate for DVD audio and broadcast MP2 streams. This provides good fidelity for stereo audio and is well above the WMA source's typical default bitrate. |
output.mpeg
|
Specifies the output filename with the .mpeg extension. FFmpeg uses this extension to select the MPEG program stream muxer, which packages the re-encoded MPEG-2 video and MP2 audio into a standards-compliant .mpeg file. |
Common Use Cases
- Importing old WMV training videos or corporate recordings into DVD authoring software that only accepts MPEG-2 program streams
- Making WMV clips captured from Windows Media Player compatible with broadcast playout systems that require MPEG-2 with MP2 audio
- Playing back WMV files on legacy set-top boxes, DVD players with USB playback, or older smart TVs that support MPEG but not Windows Media codecs
- Archiving WMV content in a non-proprietary, standards-based format that does not depend on Microsoft codec availability
- Preparing WMV screen recordings or webinar exports for inclusion in video editing timelines on software that natively handles MPEG-2 without requiring additional codec packs
- Converting WMV files distributed via older enterprise systems into MPEG for compatibility with non-Windows environments like Linux or macOS video workflows
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes — both formats are lossy, and since the WMV video (msmpeg4 codec) and audio (WMA) cannot be copied directly into an MPEG container, both streams must be fully decoded and re-encoded. This generation loss is unavoidable. However, using the default settings of -q:v 2 (near-maximum MPEG-2 quality) and -b:a 192k MP2 audio minimizes the visible degradation for most source material.
WMV's msmpeg4 codec is relatively efficient at compressing video, and WMA audio is also quite compact. MPEG-2 video at high quality settings and MP2 audio at 192k are older, less efficient codecs that require higher bitrates to achieve comparable visual quality. The resulting MPEG file can easily be 2–4x the size of the source WMV, especially for longer or higher-resolution content.
No — MPEG program streams as produced by this conversion support only a single audio track, whereas WMV (via the ASF container) can carry multiple audio streams. If your source WMV has multiple audio tracks, only the default track will be included in the MPEG output. If you need a specific alternate track, you can modify the FFmpeg command with the -map flag to select it explicitly.
No. WMV files protected with Microsoft's Digital Rights Management (DRM) cannot be decoded by FFmpeg, and the conversion will fail or produce an unplayable output. DRM removal requires authorization from the content provider. This tool can only convert DRM-free WMV files.
The -q:v flag controls MPEG-2 video quality on a scale of 1 (best) to 31 (worst). The default value of 2 produces near-maximum quality at the cost of a larger file. To reduce file size, increase the value — for example, -q:v 5 or -q:v 8 will noticeably shrink the output while still being acceptable for web or archival use. Unlike WMV's bitrate-based -b:v parameter, MPEG-2's -q:v is a variable quality scale rather than a fixed bitrate target.
Yes. On Linux or macOS you can run: for f in *.wmv; do ffmpeg -i "$f" -c:v mpeg2video -c:a mp2 -q:v 2 -b:a 192k "${f%.wmv}.mpeg"; done. On Windows Command Prompt: for %f in (*.wmv) do ffmpeg -i "%f" -c:v mpeg2video -c:a mp2 -q:v 2 -b:a 192k "%~nf.mpeg". The browser-based tool processes one file at a time, so the FFmpeg command is especially useful for bulk conversions of large libraries.
Technical Notes
The WMV-to-MPEG conversion is one of the more demanding re-encode paths because there is zero stream compatibility between the two formats — ASF's msmpeg4/msmpeg4v2 video and WMA audio have no direct mapping to any MPEG container codec, so FFmpeg must fully decode and re-encode everything. The MPEG output uses the MPEG-2 program stream mux (not transport stream), which is the standard for DVD-compatible files and most legacy players. MP2 audio at 192k is the broadcast and DVD standard and is natively supported by virtually every MPEG-aware device. One important limitation: WMV's ASF container can carry DRM metadata, chapter markers, and multiple audio streams, none of which survive the conversion — MPEG program streams do not support DRM, chapters, or multiple audio tracks in this context. Subtitles embedded or referenced in WMV files are also dropped. The -f asf flag used internally by WMV encoding is not needed on the output side. If the source WMV was encoded at a low bitrate (e.g., 500k), the MPEG-2 re-encode at -q:v 2 will faithfully reproduce the compression artifacts already present in the source — it cannot recover detail lost in the original encoding.