AVI to WMV Converter

How to Convert AVI to WMV Online

1. Upload Your AVI File: Drag and drop or click "Add Files" to select one or more .avi clips. Batch conversion is supported, so you can queue several files in one pass.
2. Pick a Quality Preset or Bitrate Mode: Under "File Compression," start with Quality Preset (Highest, Very High, High, Medium, Low, Lowest — default Very High). For tighter size control switch to Constant Bitrate (default 4 Mbps), Variable Bitrate (target 4 Mbps with 2–8 Mbps range), or Specific file size (default 24 MB, auto-scales bitrate to hit the cap).
3. Choose Codec and Resolution (Optional): Video Codec defaults to WMV 2 (Windows Media Video 8); WMV 1 is available for older Windows targets. Audio rides on WMA v2 by default. Resolution can stay original or jump to a preset (144p–4320p), scale by percentage, or be set with explicit width × height.
4. Trim and Convert: Optionally set a start time and duration in seconds or HH:MM:SS.sss to keep just the segment you need, then click Convert. Files are uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers, and deleted automatically after a few hours — no sign-up, no watermark, never shared.wmv`.

Why Convert AVI to WMV?

AVI was introduced by Microsoft in November 1992 as part of Video for Windows and is a RIFF-based container that wraps just about any codec — DivX, Xvid, MPEG-4 Part 2, Cinepak, even uncompressed YUV. That flexibility is why AVI files pile up at huge sizes and occasionally refuse to play if the receiving machine lacks the right codec. WMV is Microsoft's compressed video format, finalized as Windows Media Video 9 in 2003 and standardized by SMPTE as VC-1 (SMPTE 421M) in April 2006. It packages video into the Advanced Systems Format (ASF) container and is built around streaming and small file sizes.

• Legacy Windows playback — WMV plays out of the box on Windows 7/8/10/11 with the bundled Media Player, while old AVI clips often need a codec pack (K-Lite, ffdshow) the sender forgot to mention.
• Smaller files for archives and email — WMV 9's DCT-based transforms typically deliver a 30–50% size reduction over the same content stored as DivX/Xvid AVI at perceptually equivalent quality. A 700 MB DVD-rip AVI can collapse to ~350 MB WMV.
• Embedded video in older Windows apps — Microsoft tools (Encoder, Movie Maker, older PowerPoint, classic Windows screensavers, kiosk software) accept WMV natively without transcoding.
• DRM-friendly distribution — WMV is one of few formats that supports Microsoft's Windows Media DRM 10, used by libraries and corporate training portals that require playback restrictions.
• Streaming over MMS / HTTP — The ASF container was designed for progressive playback; servers like Windows Media Services stream WMV without the MOOV-atom-front-loading dance MP4 needs.
• Blu-ray / HD DVD authoring — VC-1 (the open standard derived from WMV 9) is one of three mandatory codecs on Blu-ray, so WMV-encoded masters port cleanly to physical media.

For cross-platform playback (macOS, iOS, Android, web browsers), AVI to MP4 is the better destination. If your AVI is already large, run Compress AVI before converting to keep transcode times down.

AVI vs WMV — Format Comparison

Quality Preset and Bitrate Mode Quick Guide

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my WMV file be smaller than the original AVI?

Almost always, yes. WMV 9 / VC-1 is a much more efficient codec than the DivX, Xvid, or MPEG-4 Part 2 streams found in most AVI files. At the default Very High preset expect roughly 30–50% size reduction; at Medium quality 60–70% is typical. If your AVI was already encoded with H.264 inside a .avi wrapper (uncommon but possible), the savings will be smaller because H.264 and VC-1 are roughly comparable.

Why is my AVI not opening in Windows Media Player?

AVI is a container, not a codec. The file holds whatever codec the original encoder chose — DivX, Xvid, Cinepak, MJPEG, etc. If Windows Media Player lacks that codec it shows audio with a black video frame or refuses the file. Converting to WMV bakes the video into a codec Windows Media Player ships with by default, sidestepping codec-pack hassles.

Will WMV files play on Mac, iPhone, or Android?

Not natively. macOS dropped built-in WMV playback when Flip4Mac was retired, iOS and Android have never supported it, and most browsers won't play it either. If your audience uses anything other than Windows, convert to MP4 instead — H.264/AAC inside MP4 is the lowest-common-denominator format in 2026.

Can I insert WMV files into PowerPoint?

It depends on which PowerPoint you're using. On PowerPoint for Windows up through version 2504 WMV is fully supported. On version 2505 and above Microsoft has marked WMV (and AVI) as "limited and deprecated" — files can still be inserted but PowerPoint converts them to MPEG-4 on the fly during insertion and playback. PowerPoint for macOS has never supported WMV. If you regularly share decks with mixed Windows/Mac audiences, convert to MP4 instead.

What's the difference between WMV 1 and WMV 2 in the codec dropdown?

WMV 1 corresponds to Windows Media Video 7 (1999) and is roughly equivalent to a custom MPEG-4 Part 2 implementation. WMV 2 corresponds to Windows Media Video 8 (2001) with improvements to motion compensation and DCT. Note that despite the name, neither dropdown option is the much-newer WMV 9 / VC-1 — pick WMV 2 unless you specifically need to play on a very old Windows 9x / 2000 machine that only ships the WMV 7 decoder.

Should I use Constant Bitrate or Variable Bitrate?

Use Variable Bitrate (VBR) for almost everything offline — it spends bits on complex scenes (motion, fast cuts) and saves them on simple ones (talking heads, static title cards), giving better quality at the same average size. Use Constant Bitrate (CBR) only when streaming over a fixed-bandwidth link where the player buffer can't tolerate spikes — older corporate streaming servers, embedded kiosk hardware, or live broadcasts.

Does this converter run in my browser or upload my files?

Files are uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers using FFmpeg-based pipelines, and deleted automatically after a few hours. There's no permanent storage and no sign-up required. For sensitive footage, run AVI to MP4 or AVI to WMV locally with HandBrake or FFmpeg if you want zero network transit.

My AVI has subtitles or multiple audio tracks — what happens?

WMV / ASF supports multiple audio streams but not text-based soft subtitles (no SRT/ASS lane). Hard-coded "burned-in" subtitles that are part of the video frames carry over fine. Soft subtitles in the AVI's auxiliary streams will be dropped during conversion; if you need them, burn them into the video first or convert to MP4 which supports mov_text subtitle tracks.

Can I convert AVI to WMV without losing quality?

Any lossy-to-lossy transcode adds a small generation loss. The Highest quality preset minimizes it (the encoder spends extra bits to match the source) but it is never bit-exact. If you're archiving a master, keep the AVI original alongside the WMV; if you only need playback, the Very High preset is visually indistinguishable from the source on most consumer displays.