VOB to MPEG Converter

What happens when you convert VOB to MPEG

• If the video inside the VOB is already MPEG-2, the tool first copies the streams straight into the MPEG. That takes seconds and loses nothing.
• If a copy is not possible, it re-encodes to MPEG-2 video with MP2 audio, which is slow in a browser: expect several times the video's length for HD footage, less at lower resolutions.

How to convert VOB to MPEG online

1. Press "Choose VOB files" and select one or more files, or drag them onto the box. You can add files of any size your device can hold in memory.
2. Adjust the settings if you need to: resolution and quality control the size of the result. The defaults suit most people.
3. Press "Convert to MPEG". The first audio or video conversion downloads the converter engine, about 32 MB, which your browser then keeps for next time.
4. Save each MPEG with its download button. Close the tab and every trace of the files is gone from memory.

Why convert VOB to MPEG?

VOB files usually come from the VIDEO_TS folder of a DVD. People convert them to MPEG because MPEG-2 is what DVD authoring tools and many broadcast systems accept.

In short, VOB is good at what it was made for, and MPEG is the more practical choice when the file has to play, upload or edit somewhere else. VOB does not play in browsers; plays in VLC and DVD software, while MPEG does not play in most browsers; plays in VLC and desktop players.

How to convert VOB to MPEG on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android

On Windows

Open this page in Chrome, Edge or Firefox, drag your VOB files in from File Explorer, and press Convert. Each MPEG is saved to your Downloads folder. If you prefer a desktop program, VLC can also convert VOB to MPEG: choose Media, then Convert / Save.

On a Mac

Safari, Chrome and Firefox all work. Drag the VOB files from Finder onto the drop zone and the MPEG files land in Downloads.

On iPhone and iPad

Open the page in Safari and tap Choose VOB files. You can pick from Photos or from the Files app. The converted MPEG appears in Files, in the Downloads folder; to put it in your photo library, open it there, tap Share and choose Save Video.

On Android

Open the page in Chrome, tap Choose VOB files and pick them from Files or your gallery. The MPEG is saved to the Download folder, where any file manager can find it. Keep the screen on while a long video converts, because Android may pause a tab in the background.

Best settings for VOB to MPEG

MPEG is written as MPEG-2 video with MP2 audio. The Resolution setting is the one to reach for: 1080p keeps full HD detail, 720p is plenty for phones and laptops and roughly halves the size, and 480p suits email and old devices. Leave Resolution on Keep original and Quality on Standard, and a VOB whose video is already MPEG-2 is copied into the MPEG rather than re-encoded, which is fast and loses nothing.

The quality levels map to the H.264 CRF scale where the target uses H.264, and to fixed high-quality settings for older codecs such as MPEG-2, MPEG-4 Part 2, WMV and Theora. Re-encoding always costs a little detail, so convert from the best copy of the VOB you have.

VOB vs MPEG: the differences

About VOB and MPEG files

What is a VOB file?

VOB files are the video chunks inside a DVD's VIDEO_TS folder, each capped at 1 GB, so one film is split across several. Commercial DVDs are encrypted and will not convert; home-burned discs will.

What is an MPEG file?

MPEG-2 is the video format of DVDs and broadcast TV. It needs roughly twice the bitrate of H.264 for the same picture, so converting to MP4 usually shrinks the file a lot.

VOB to MPEG not working? Common problems

• The conversion is slow. Audio and container changes take seconds, but re-encoding video runs on your own processor. Lower the resolution to 720p, close other tabs, and keep the device plugged in.
• The tab stops or reloads on a very large file. Browsers limit how much memory one tab can use, around 2 GB and less on phones. Split long recordings or convert them on a computer.
• The VOB will not convert at all. Files bought from iTunes and commercial DVD or Blu-ray discs are copy protected, and no legitimate converter can read them. Home-made files convert normally.

Convert VOB to MPEG with ffmpeg

This converter runs ffmpeg inside your browser. If you would rather use the ffmpeg command line on your own computer, this command produces an equivalent MPEG with the same kind of settings:

ffmpeg -i input.vob -c:v mpeg2video -q:v 3 -c:a mp2 -b:a 192k -f mpeg output.mpeg

Replace input.vob with the name of your file. For a whole folder of VOB files, run the command in a loop, or drop them all on the converter above, which processes them one after another.