How to Convert MOV to MP4 on Mac
Why Convert MOV to MP4?
MOV works perfectly on your Mac, but if you need to share video with Windows users, upload to a website that prefers MP4, or use a non-Apple video editor, MP4 is the safer bet. Both formats can contain the same H.264 or H.265 video — the difference is the container, not the visual quality.
Method 1: iMovie (Free, Pre-installed)
Open iMovie, create a new project, import your MOV file. Go to File → Share → File. Choose resolution and quality, then save. iMovie exports as MP4 by default. This works but is overkill for a simple format conversion — iMovie re-encodes the video, which takes time and can slightly affect quality.
Method 2: QuickTime Player
Open the MOV file in QuickTime Player. Go to File → Export As → choose your resolution (1080p, 720p, etc.). QuickTime exports as MP4 (technically M4V, but they're the same thing). This is faster than iMovie for a simple conversion. Note: QuickTime may re-encode, which takes a few minutes for longer videos.
Method 3: Online Converter
Upload your MOV to CocoConvert, select MP4 as the output, and download. This is the fastest method for one-off conversions and handles any MOV file regardless of the codec used. The conversion happens on the server, so it doesn't tax your Mac's CPU.
Method 4: FFmpeg (For Power Users)
Install FFmpeg via Homebrew (brew install ffmpeg). Then run: ffmpeg -i input.mov -c copy output.mp4. The '-c copy' flag copies the video and audio streams without re-encoding — this is nearly instant and produces zero quality loss. If the MOV uses a codec that MP4 doesn't support, drop the '-c copy' flag and FFmpeg will re-encode automatically.