How to Install FFmpeg: Complete Tutorial for All Platforms (2026)

Installing FFmpeg correctly is crucial for video processing workflows. This complete tutorial covers installation on every major platform, common issues, and modern alternatives that eliminate installation complexity entirely.

Pre-Installation Checklist

Before installing FFmpeg, verify:

Requirement	Check	Notes
Operating System	Windows 7+, macOS 10.12+, Linux	64-bit recommended
Disk Space	500MB-2GB free	Depends on build
Administrator Access	Required	For system-wide installation
Internet Connection	Required	For download
Package Manager	Optional	Simplifies installation

Install FFmpeg on Windows

Quick Installation (Chocolatey)

Step 1: Install Chocolatey

Open PowerShell as Administrator:

powershell
Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force
[System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072
iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

Step 2: Install FFmpeg

powershell
choco install ffmpeg -y

Step 3: Verify

cmd
ffmpeg -version

Done! FFmpeg is installed and configured.

Manual Installation (More Control)

Step 1: Download

1. Visit gyan.dev/ffmpeg/builds
2. Download "ffmpeg-release-essentials.zip"

Step 2: Extract

Extract to C:\ffmpeg

Step 3: Configure PATH

1. Press Win + X → System
2. Advanced system settings
3. Environment Variables
4. Edit "Path" under System variables
5. Add new entry: C:\ffmpeg\bin
6. Click OK on all dialogs

Step 4: Verify

Open new Command Prompt:

cmd
ffmpeg -version

Install FFmpeg on macOS

Using Homebrew (Recommended)

Step 1: Install Homebrew

bash
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

Step 2: Install FFmpeg

bash
brew install ffmpeg

Step 3: Verify

bash
ffmpeg -version

Install with all features:

bash
brew install ffmpeg --with-fdk-aac --with-freetype --with-libass --with-libvorbis --with-libvpx --with-opus --with-x265

Using MacPorts

Step 1: Install MacPorts

Download from macports.org

Step 2: Install FFmpeg

bash
sudo port install ffmpeg

Manual Installation

Step 1: Download

Visit evermeet.cx/ffmpeg

Step 2: Install

bash
# Extract and move to /usr/local/bin
sudo mv ffmpeg /usr/local/bin/
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/ffmpeg

Install FFmpeg on Linux

Ubuntu/Debian

From Official Repository:

bash
sudo apt update
sudo apt install ffmpeg -y

Latest Version (PPA):

bash
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:savoury1/ffmpeg4
sudo apt update
sudo apt install ffmpeg -y

Verify:

bash
ffmpeg -version

Fedora/RHEL/CentOS

Fedora:

bash
sudo dnf install ffmpeg -y

RHEL/CentOS (Enable EPEL first):

bash
sudo yum install epel-release -y
sudo yum install ffmpeg -y

Arch Linux

bash
sudo pacman -S ffmpeg

Compile from Source (All Distributions)

For latest features and custom builds:

Step 1: Install Dependencies

Ubuntu/Debian:

bash
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y build-essential yasm cmake git \
  libx264-dev libx265-dev libvpx-dev libfdk-aac-dev \
  libmp3lame-dev libopus-dev

Step 2: Download Source

bash
git clone https://git.ffmpeg.org/ffmpeg.git
cd ffmpeg

Step 3: Configure

bash
./configure --enable-gpl --enable-libx264 --enable-libx265 \
  --enable-libvpx --enable-libfdk-aac --enable-libmp3lame \
  --enable-libopus --enable-nonfree

Step 4: Compile and Install

bash
make -j$(nproc)
sudo make install

Compilation time: 15-30 minutes

Install FFmpeg in Docker

Perfect for containerized applications:

Dockerfile:

dockerfile
FROM ubuntu:22.04

RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y ffmpeg

WORKDIR /app

CMD ["ffmpeg", "-version"]

Or use official image:

bash
docker pull jrottenberg/ffmpeg
docker run jrottenberg/ffmpeg -version

Process video with Docker:

bash
docker run -v $(pwd):/tmp jrottenberg/ffmpeg \
  -i /tmp/input.mp4 /tmp/output.mp4

Verify Installation

Check Version

bash
ffmpeg -version

Expected output:

ffmpeg version 6.1.1 Copyright (c) 2000-2024 the FFmpeg developers
built with gcc...
configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-libx264...

Check Available Codecs

bash
ffmpeg -codecs | grep h264

Check Available Formats

bash
ffmpeg -formats | grep mp4

Test Basic Conversion

bash
# Create test file
ffmpeg -f lavfi -i testsrc=duration=10:size=1280x720:rate=30 test.mp4

# Convert it
ffmpeg -i test.mp4 -c:v libx264 output.mp4

If this works, FFmpeg is properly installed!

Common Installation Issues

Issue 1: Command Not Found

Problem: ffmpeg: command not found

Solutions:

Windows:

• Restart Command Prompt after PATH configuration
• Verify PATH: echo %PATH%
• Use full path: C:\ffmpeg\bin\ffmpeg

macOS/Linux:

• Check installation: which ffmpeg
• Reload shell: source ~/.bashrc
• Check PATH: echo $PATH

Issue 2: Permission Denied

Problem: Cannot execute FFmpeg

Solution:

bash
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/ffmpeg

Issue 3: Missing Libraries

Problem: error while loading shared libraries

Solution:

Linux:

bash
sudo ldconfig

macOS:

bash
brew reinstall ffmpeg

Issue 4: Old Version Installed

Problem: ffmpeg -version shows old version

Solution:

Remove old version:

bash
# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt remove ffmpeg
sudo apt autoremove

# macOS
brew uninstall ffmpeg

# Then reinstall latest version

Issue 5: Codec Not Found

Problem: Unknown encoder 'libx264'

Solution:

Install FFmpeg with required codecs:

bash
# Ubuntu
sudo apt install ffmpeg libx264-dev

# macOS
brew reinstall ffmpeg --with-x264

# Or compile from source with required libraries

Post-Installation Configuration

Set Default Quality

Create alias for common commands:

Linux/macOS (~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc):

bash
alias ffmpeg-hq='ffmpeg -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -preset slow'
alias ffmpeg-web='ffmpeg -c:v libx264 -crf 23 -preset medium'

Windows (PowerShell profile):

powershell
function ffmpeg-hq { ffmpeg -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -preset slow $args }

Enable Hardware Acceleration

Check available hardware encoders:

bash
ffmpeg -encoders | grep nvenc  # NVIDIA
ffmpeg -encoders | grep qsv    # Intel
ffmpeg -encoders | grep amf    # AMD

Update FFmpeg

Windows (Chocolatey)

powershell
choco upgrade ffmpeg -y

macOS (Homebrew)

bash
brew update
brew upgrade ffmpeg

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)

bash
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade ffmpeg -y

From Source

bash
cd ffmpeg
git pull
./configure [your options]
make -j$(nproc)
sudo make install

Uninstall FFmpeg

Windows (Chocolatey)

powershell
choco uninstall ffmpeg -y

Windows (Manual)

1. Delete C:\ffmpeg folder
2. Remove C:\ffmpeg\bin from PATH

macOS (Homebrew)

bash
brew uninstall ffmpeg

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)

bash
sudo apt remove ffmpeg
sudo apt autoremove

Skip Installation: Use FFmpeg API

Modern alternative that eliminates installation complexity:

Installation Comparison

Aspect	Local Install	FFmpeg API
Time to Setup	30-120 min	5 min
Complexity	High	Low
Platform Issues	Common	None
Updates	Manual	Automatic
Disk Space	500MB-2GB	0MB
Troubleshooting	Required	None

Quick Start with API

Instead of installing:

javascript
// No installation, no configuration, just code
const response = await fetch('https://eranol.com/api/v1/ffmpeg/merge', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'x-api-key': YOUR_API_KEY,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    width: 1280,
    height: 720,
    images: [
      { url: 'https://example.com/image1.jpg', duration: 3 },
      { url: 'https://example.com/image2.jpg', duration: 3 }
    ],
    audio_url: 'https://example.com/audio.mp3',
    audio_mode: 'video_length',
    transition: 'fade'
  })
});

const job = await response.json();
console.log('Video processing:', job[0].status_url);

Benefits:

• ✅ No installation required
• ✅ Works on all platforms
• ✅ Always latest version
• ✅ Unlimited processing power
• ✅ Zero maintenance

Conclusion

Installing FFmpeg varies by platform but follows similar patterns:

Quick Summary:

• Windows: Use Chocolatey or manual install + PATH
• macOS: Use Homebrew
• Linux: Use package manager
• Docker: Use official images

Or skip installation entirely with FFmpeg API for instant video processing.

Ready to process videos without installation? Try Eranol's FFmpeg API with $1 free credit.

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Related Articles:

• FFmpeg Download Guide
• FFmpeg for Windows
• FFmpeg Complete Guide