FLV to OGV Converter

FLV to OGV — And Whether OGV Is Really the Target You Want

.ogv is the extension RFC 5334 assigns to the video/ogg media type: video in the Ogg container from the Xiph.Org Foundation, classically Theora video with Vorbis audio. People land here for one specific reason — a rescued Flash clip has to end up in a royalty-free, open-standard file for a FOSS project, a Linux packaging pipeline, or a wiki. The honest short answer before you start: convert to OGV when a destination names Ogg, and convert to FLV to WebM when it just says "open format", because WebM is the open container that current software actually plays. If you want a file that opens anywhere at all, FLV to MP4 is the right conversion.

Side by Side: OGV, WebM and MP4

When to Pick OGV

• A destination names the format outright — an older FOSS player, a packaging script, or documentation that says "Ogg Theora only".
• You are matching an existing library of .ogv assets and want the new file to sit alongside them without a second format in the mix.
• You need Vorbis, Speex or FLAC audio in an Ogg stream for a toolchain built around Xiph codecs.
• Patent-encumbered codecs are ruled out by policy and the receiving system predates WebM.

When to Pick WebM or MP4 Instead

• You want an open, royalty-free file that plays in current browsers — that is WebM, not OGV. Wikimedia Commons accepts both and still tells contributors to avoid converting to Theora, noting that as of 2023 it is poorly supported by modern browsers' HTML5 players.
• Your audience includes iPhone, iPad or Safari users. Safari has never supported Theora on any release.
• Size matters. Theora needs more bits than VP9 or H.264 for comparable quality, so an OGV made from a low-bitrate Flash clip can end up larger than the file you started with.
• Anyone will need to open it on a phone, a smart TV or a stock media player, in which case FLV to MP4 is the only sensible answer.

How to Convert FLV to OGV

1. Upload Your FLV File: Drag your .flv onto the page or click "+ Add Files". Sorenson Spark, VP6 and H.264-in-FLV files all decode, and several clips can be queued and converted with the same settings.
2. Set Video Codec and Audio Codec: Open Advanced Options. Video Codec offers Theora and VP8 and starts on VP8; switch it to Theora if your destination specifically expects classic Ogg Theora. Audio Codec offers Vorbis, Opus, FLAC and Speex, and starts on Vorbis.
3. Choose Quality Preset, Video resolution, or Trim: Leave File Compression on the "Very High (Recommended)" Quality Preset, or pick Specific file size, Constant Bitrate, Variable Bitrate, Constant Quality or Constraint Quality. Video resolution stays on "Keep original" unless you choose a preset or Width x Height, and Trim → Time Range takes a Start time and Duration.
4. Convert and Download: Click "Convert" and save your .ogv. No sign-up, no watermark.

Default Output for This Conversion

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I convert FLV to OGV at all, or go to WebM?

WebM, for almost every open-format goal. Both are royalty-free, but the codec normally associated with .ogv — Theora — is a 2004-era design that browsers have been switching off, while WebM's VP8, VP9 and AV1 are current and widely supported. Wikimedia Commons accepts Ogg Theora yet explicitly advises against converting to it. Choose OGV when something in your chain names Ogg or Theora by name; otherwise use FLV to WebM.

Which codec does this page actually put inside the .ogv?

We checked this page's own option set rather than assuming: Video Codec lists Theora and VP8 and lands on VP8, and Audio Codec lists Vorbis, Opus, FLAC and Speex and lands on Vorbis. That matters, because "an .ogv file" colloquially means Theora video, and a receiving tool that was written for Theora may not recognise a VP8 stream in an Ogg container. If a spec, a wiki or a player says "Ogg Theora", switch Video Codec to Theora before you convert.

Why will not my OGV play in Safari or on an iPhone?

Because Safari has never implemented Theora, on any version of macOS or iOS, and Apple has not shipped support for it. This is not something a converter setting can fix. Other browsers have been removing it too: per caniuse, Chrome disabled Ogg/Theora from version 120 and Chromium removed it at 123, Edge from 122, Opera from 106, and Firefox disabled it at version 126. If in-browser playback is the requirement, use WebM or MP4 rather than OGV.

Is Theora still maintained, and is it safe to produce files in it?

The bitstream is stable and the code is still alive, but the format is legacy. Xiph froze the Theora I bitstream on 1 June 2004, guaranteeing that files made then still decode today, and libtheora 1.2.0 — the long-promised "Ptalarbvorm" encoder generation — was finally released on 29 March 2025 after more than a decade in testing. What has not happened is any expansion of the format's capabilities; Xiph's forward work moved to Opus for audio, and the industry moved to VP9 and AV1 for video.

Will converting FLV to OGV improve the picture quality?

No. FLV holds Sorenson Spark, On2 VP6 or H.264, all of them already lossy, and the conversion decodes that and compresses it again from scratch. Detail the original discarded does not come back, and a 360p Flash clip stays a 360p clip. Because Theora is less efficient than H.264, an OGV can even look slightly softer at the same file size — keep the Quality Preset high so the encoder is not the bottleneck on top of the source's own limits.

What happens to the MP3 or AAC audio in my FLV?

It is decoded and re-encoded, by default to Vorbis. FLV soundtracks are usually MP3 or AAC, occasionally ADPCM, Nellymoser Asao or Speex on webcam and voice captures, and none of those can be carried into Ogg unchanged, so this is a lossy-to-lossy step. Vorbis is the audio track every Theora-capable player expects. Opus is more efficient per byte and is the better choice if you control both ends, and FLAC is available if you want the audio not to lose anything further.

Can Wikimedia Commons take the file this produces?

Commons accepts .ogv, .webm and MPEG-1/MPEG-2 uploads, and rejects MP4/H.264 as patent-encumbered — so an Ogg file is in scope. Two caveats: Commons advises against converting to Theora because of poor browser support, and its .ogv support is written around Theora, so switch Video Codec to Theora rather than leaving it on VP8 if you go this route. For a Commons upload, WebM is the smoother path.

My OGV came out bigger than the FLV — did something go wrong?

Probably not. Theora is an older, less efficient codec than the H.264 that many later FLV files carry, so matching the original's quality can genuinely cost more bits. If size is the priority, either pick VP8 under Video Codec, or switch File Compression to Constant Bitrate or Specific file size and accept a visible quality trade. A WebM target with VP9 will beat both for size at equal quality.

How are my files handled, and how long are they kept?

Your FLV is uploaded over an encrypted connection, converted on our servers, and the .ogv is returned to you. Uploads and outputs are deleted automatically a few hours after conversion — no sign-up, no watermark, never shared or made public. Note that this page handles ordinary .flv media; a .swf Flash application is a program rather than a plain video stream and is not the same input.