HEVC to WTV Converter

Convert HEVC to WTV — Read This First

This re-encodes an HEVC video into a WTV file, Microsoft's Windows Recorded TV Show container. Be honest with yourself before you start, because for almost everyone this is the wrong direction. HEVC (H.265) is a modern, highly efficient codec — finalized in 2013, it packs the same quality into files roughly 40–50% smaller than the older H.264. WTV is the opposite: a discontinued DVR format built only for Windows Media Center, which Microsoft decided not to include in Windows 10 (announced in 2015) and whose program-guide service shut down on January 14, 2020. So this conversion does two unwanted things at once — it moves your clip into a dead format, and it re-encodes a current codec down to WTV's older MPEG-2-class video. The traffic around WTV almost always flows the other way, as people try to escape it, not enter it.

For almost everyone, the right move is one of these instead:

• Just want the HEVC to play everywhere? Convert HEVC to MP4 — H.264 video in a universally playable container that opens on every phone, TV, browser, and current PC. This is what the overwhelming majority of people who land here actually need.
• You arrived from the wrong direction and actually have a WTV recording to open? You want WTV to MP4 — that is the way the traffic almost always flows.

WTV output only makes sense in one narrow case: you are deliberately feeding an un-migrated Windows 7 or 8.1 Media Center HTPC and want the clip to sit in its Recorded TV library beside your tuner captures. If that is genuinely you, the steps and troubleshooting below explain exactly what you can and can't control — including why there is no codec menu and why your efficient HEVC will come out as a larger, older-codec file.

How to Convert HEVC to WTV

1. Upload Your HEVC File: Drag and drop or click "+ Add Files" to select your .hevc or .h265 clips. Batch upload works — every file is re-encoded with the same settings.
2. Pick a Quality Preset: Expand Advanced Options. The Preset under File Compression defaults to "Very High (Recommended)"; leave it for near-source fidelity, or switch to Specific file size, Constant Bitrate, or Variable Bitrate if you need to hit a size target.
3. Set Video Resolution and Trim (Optional): Use Video resolution to keep the original size ("Keep original") or fit a preset, and set a Time Range under Trim if you only need part of the clip.
4. Convert and Download: Click "Convert". No sign-up, no watermark. Files are uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers, and deleted automatically a few hours after conversion.

Walk-through: There Is No Codec Choice, and HEVC Gets Downgraded

Two things about this conversion surprise people, and both come from how WTV works.

There is no Video Codec dropdown. The WTV container only accepts a narrow, Media-Center-compatible set of codecs (MPEG-2-class video, with MP2 or AC-3 audio), so the encoder is fixed server-side. On this site each of the 25 codec selections — H.264, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, VP9 and the rest — carries an allowlist of output formats, and none of those lists include WTV, so when the output is WTV no codec menu appears at all. Exposing one would only let you pick something that fails to play in Media Center. You steer fidelity through the Preset and File Compression settings instead. The same applies to audio: there is no audio-codec dropdown either, because WTV's audio is fixed to the Media-Center set.

Your efficient HEVC comes out as a larger, older-codec file. This is the headline penalty of going the wrong way. Your HEVC stream is decoded and then re-encoded into WTV's fixed MPEG-2-class codec — a less efficient codec than H.265, so matching the look usually means more bitrate and a noticeably bigger file, not a smaller one. It is also a second lossy generation, so it cannot regain detail HEVC already discarded. A few patterns to keep in mind:

• Expect the file to grow. HEVC is built to be small; MPEG-2-class video is not. A clip that was a tidy few hundred MB in HEVC can balloon when re-encoded at a comparable quality. That is the cost of the format, not a setting you can fully tune away.
• Keep the Preset high if fidelity matters. "Very High (Recommended)" is the closest match to the source.
• Don't upscale. Setting Video resolution above the HEVC's native size adds file size, not detail. If your source is 4K, leave "Keep original" or step down to 1080p rather than up.
• Trim before you encode if you only need part of the clip — re-encoding a whole 4K HEVC file just to keep ten seconds wastes time and bitrate.

Common Errors and How to Fix Them

• "The WTV won't play on my Windows 10 or 11 PC" — Expected. Windows Media Center is gone from Windows 10 and 11, so there is no built-in WTV decoder. The file will still open in VLC, Kodi, or MPC-HC if they have MPEG-2 decoders — or, far better, convert your HEVC to MP4 so you never hit this wall.
• "The WTV is bigger than my HEVC original" — Expected, and largely unavoidable. You re-encoded an efficient modern codec into WTV's older MPEG-2-class video, which needs more bitrate for the same look. Lower the resolution to the source size and pick a Specific file size target under File Compression if you must cap it, but accept that MPEG-2-class output is inherently larger than HEVC.
• "The picture looks soft or blocky" — You are re-encoding lossy HEVC into lossy MPEG-2-class video. Raise the Preset to "Very High", and never set a resolution larger than the original. The source quality is the ceiling; nothing can add back what HEVC already threw away.
• "My HEVC won't open / shows a black screen on Windows" — That is a decoder problem on the input side, not a conversion fault. Windows 10 and 11 ship without an HEVC decoder by default (the "HEVC Video Extensions" pack is a paid add-on), which is also a strong reason to move to MP4 with H.264 rather than into WTV.
• "The audio is gone or wrong" — WTV's audio is fixed to MP2 or AC-3 server-side. Whatever audio rode inside your HEVC clip is transcoded to the WTV-compatible track automatically; there is no audio dropdown to adjust.

When This Doesn't Work

If WTV is not truly what you need — and for nearly everyone in 2026 it is not — stop and pick a different target. You are taking a current, efficient codec and forcing it into a dead format on dead software; the only setup where that is the right answer is an un-migrated Windows 7 or 8.1 Media Center HTPC that indexes .wtv in its Recorded TV library. If you only wanted the video to play reliably on a phone, smart TV, browser, or any current PC, HEVC to MP4 is the answer. And if you came here by mistake holding an actual WTV recording you want to open elsewhere, you want WTV to MP4 — that is the way the traffic almost always flows.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why would I ever convert HEVC to WTV?

One narrow reason: you run an un-migrated Windows Media Center HTPC on Windows 7 or 8.1 and want the HEVC clip to sit in the Recorded TV library beside your tuner captures, with the 10-foot Media Center UI. For every other purpose — playing on a phone, a smart TV, a browser, or any current PC — convert HEVC to MP4 instead. WTV exists for the Media Center workflow and essentially nothing else, and it has been a discontinued format since Windows 10.

Isn't converting modern HEVC into WTV going backwards?

Yes — that is exactly why it is the wrong direction for almost everyone. HEVC (H.265) was finalized in 2013 as a high-efficiency codec that stores quality in roughly 40–50% less space than H.264. WTV is older and far less efficient: its MPEG-2-class video needs more bitrate, so you typically end up with a larger file in a format that current Windows can't even play. The only thing that makes the trade worthwhile is a still-running Media Center HTPC that specifically wants .wtv in its library.

Will the WTV play on Windows 10 or Windows 11?

Not natively. Microsoft decided in 2015 that Windows Media Center would not be included with Windows 10, and the program-guide (EPG) service was shut down on January 14, 2020, so there is no built-in WTV playback on Windows 10 or 11. The file will still open in VLC or Kodi if they have MPEG-2 decoders, but if forward compatibility matters at all, convert your HEVC to MP4 instead.

Why is there no Video Codec option for WTV output?

Because the WTV container only accepts a narrow, Media-Center-compatible set of codecs (MPEG-2-class video with MP2 or AC-3 audio), the encoder is fixed server-side. On this site each of the 25 codec selections (H.264, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, VP9 and the rest) carries an allowlist of output formats, and none of those lists include WTV — so when the output is WTV, no codec dropdown is shown at all. Exposing one would only let you pick something that fails to play in Media Center. You steer fidelity through the Quality Preset and File Compression settings instead.

Will I lose quality converting HEVC to WTV?

Some, and it is unavoidable. Your HEVC video is decoded and then re-encoded into WTV's fixed MPEG-2-class codec — a lossy-to-lossy generation that cannot regain detail H.265 already discarded, and MPEG-2-class video is far less efficient, so matching the look costs more bitrate. In our testing, a short 1080p HEVC clip re-encoded to WTV at the Very High preset stayed clean at normal TV viewing distance but came out several times larger than the HEVC source — treat the WTV as a disposable playback copy and keep the original HEVC as your master.

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

Your HEVC file is uploaded over an encrypted (TLS) connection, processed on our servers — never in public view — and the upload and its converted output are deleted automatically a few hours after conversion. There is no sign-up, no watermark, and your files are never shared or made public, so download your WTV before that window passes if you want to keep it.