✂️Free Online Tool

Trim TS

Cut and trim TS (MPEG Transport Stream) files online. Extract segments from TV recordings and IPTV captures.

Drop your file here, or browseSupports MP4, MOV, AVI, MKV, WebM, MP3, WAV and more

Lightning Fast

Process files in seconds with our optimized servers

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Precise Trimming

Set exact start and end points with frame accuracy

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No Quality Loss

Maintain original quality with smart re-encoding

How to Trim a TS File Online

  1. Upload Your TS File: Drag and drop your .ts recording or click "Add Files" to select an MPEG-2 transport stream from disk. Batch processing is supported, so you can queue several broadcast captures at once.
  2. Set the Time Range: Under "Trim," pick "Time Range" and enter a start time and duration in HH:MM:SS.MS format. Use the input timeline to skip a station ID, an ad break, or the dead air at the end of a DVR recording.
  3. Tune Compression and Resolution (Optional): Under "File Compression," choose Quality Preset (Highest to Lowest), Target file size (%), Specific file size, Constant Bitrate, Variable Bitrate, Constant Quality (CRF, range 0–51 for H.264), or Constraint Quality. Under "Video resolution," keep original or pick a preset (2160p, 1440p, 1080p, 720p, 480p, 360p) — useful for shrinking a 4 GB HD broadcast capture.
  4. Trim and Download: Click "Trim." The output keeps the .ts container so it stays compatible with broadcast workflows, IPTV recorders, and HLS pipelines. No watermark, no sign-up, no email gate.

Why Trim TS Files Instead of Converting Them?

TS (MPEG-2 Transport Stream, formally ISO/IEC 13818-1 / ITU-T H.222.0) is the carrier format for digital TV (ATSC, DVB), IPTV captures, Blu-ray streams, and the segments that make up an HLS playlist. Each TS is a stream of 188-byte packets with a 4-byte header and up to 184 bytes of payload, identified by a 13-bit PID — a structure designed for error resilience over noisy broadcast channels, not for tidy seeking. That's why most NLE editors choke on raw TS, and why a purpose-built trimmer beats a generic "import to timeline, render to MP4" workflow when all you need is to clip a recording.

  • DVR recordings with padding — Over-the-air HDHomeRun, Plex DVR, and TVHeadend captures default to recording 1–2 minutes before and after the scheduled slot to absorb schedule drift; trim the leader and trailer without re-encoding the main feature.
  • HLS segment archives — When you save a stream with yt-dlp or ffmpeg -c copy, the result is often a single concatenated .ts file or a folder of 6-second segments (Apple's recommended EXT-X-TARGETDURATION). Cut a highlight without unmuxing the entire stream.
  • Live IPTV captures — Multicast or HTTP IPTV captures often span hours; trim out the news ticker, the sports halftime, or the period between two programs in a back-to-back recording.
  • Broadcast advertising QC — Stations and ad agencies hand off TS dailies for compliance review. Trim to the spot in question without changing codec, bitrate, or PID layout that downstream tools depend on.
  • Trim before compressing — A 1-hour 1080i ATSC broadcast can be 4–8 GB at the standard 19.39 Mbps US digital TV bitrate. Trimming first, then compressing the result, avoids re-encoding content you'll throw away anyway.
  • Cut a clip for a wider audience — Once you have the segment, convert TS to MP4 for upload to YouTube, Slack, Discord, or any modern player that doesn't speak transport stream natively.

TS, MTS, and M2TS — Container Comparison

Property TS (.ts) MTS / M2TS (.mts, .m2ts)
Packet size 188 bytes 192 bytes (4-byte timestamp prefix + 188-byte TS packet)
Standard ISO/IEC 13818-1 (MPEG-2 Systems) Blu-ray BDAV / AVCHD profile of MPEG-2 TS
Primary use Digital TV (ATSC, DVB), HLS segments, IPTV Blu-ray discs, AVCHD camcorders (Sony, Panasonic, Canon)
Typical video codec MPEG-2, H.264, H.265 H.264 (AVCHD), H.265 (UHD Blu-ray)
Typical audio codec AC-3, MP2, AAC, E-AC-3 AC-3, DTS, LPCM (Blu-ray); AC-3 (AVCHD)
Reverse direction Convert MP4 to TS Convert M2TS to MP4, Convert MTS to MP4

Compression Method Quick Guide

Method What it does When to pick it
Quality Preset One-click Highest / High / Medium / Low / Lowest You don't want to think about codec parameters
Target file size (%) Encode to N% of the input size "Make this 50% smaller, do whatever bitrate you need"
Specific file size Hit an exact MB target with auto-scaled bitrate Fitting under a hard cap (Discord 10 MB free / 500 MB Nitro Basic, email attachment ceilings)
Constant Bitrate (CBR) Fixed Mbps end to end Streaming or broadcast workflows that need predictable rate
Variable Bitrate (VBR) Bitrate floats per scene complexity Smaller file at the same perceived quality vs CBR
Constant Quality (CRF) Fixed quality, file size varies (H.264 0–51, lower = better) Archival; CRF 18–23 is visually transparent for H.264
Constraint Quality CRF with a max bitrate cap Quality-first encode that won't blow past a streaming bitrate ceiling

Frequently Asked Questions

Will trimming a TS file re-encode the video and lose quality?

The xconvert trimmer re-encodes the trimmed range so the cut is frame-accurate at any timestamp you pick — useful when you need to start mid-scene rather than at the next I-frame. If you specifically need a stream-copy (lossless) cut and can accept landing on the nearest GOP boundary, FFmpeg's -c copy -ss -to is the canonical command-line approach. For most "remove the commercial / cut to the highlight" tasks, the visual difference at CRF 18–23 is invisible and you save the headache of GOP alignment.

My HLS download is dozens of .ts segments. Should I concatenate them first?

If they're independently decodable (each starts with an I-frame, which Apple's HLS spec encourages), you can ffmpeg -f concat them into a single .ts first, then trim — that's the cleanest workflow. If you only need a clip from one segment, upload that segment directly. Default Apple-recommended segment length is around 6 seconds, so a "highlight" often lives entirely inside one or two segments.

Why is my TS file so much larger than an MP4 of the same show?

TS carries overhead designed for broadcast: PSI/PMT/PAT tables, repeated PIDs, alignment padding, and continuity counters in every 188-byte packet — the format trades efficiency for error resilience. Worse, US ATSC over-the-air is MPEG-2 video at up to 19.39 Mbps, while a comparable streaming MP4 uses H.264 or H.265 at 4–8 Mbps. Trim first, then convert to MP4 with H.264 or H.265, and you'll typically see 50–75% size reduction at the same perceived quality.

Can I remove commercials from a 1-hour DVR recording?

Yes — make the trim in two passes if you have a single ad break in the middle: trim 0:00–commercial-start as clip A, trim commercial-end–end-of-show as clip B. For multiple breaks, repeat per segment. Some users prefer to trim once to the longer good portion and accept a single ad if it's at the very start or end. Native ad-detection isn't part of this tool — you mark the boundaries yourself on the timeline.

Will the audio stay in sync after trimming?

Yes for the most part. The trimmer respects the input's audio timestamps (PCR/PTS) and re-encodes the trimmed range so audio and video align at the cut. The classic AVCHD/TS sync problem appears in stream-copy cutters that land on a video I-frame but mid-AAC-frame for audio — re-encoding the trimmed window sidesteps that. If you see drift, it almost always traces back to a corrupt source TS (dropped packets, broken PCR) rather than the trim itself.

What's the difference between trimming TS and trimming MP4?

The output container is the only practical difference. MP4 (.mov/.mp4/ISOBMFF) uses a moov box index for seeking, which makes random access cheap once parsed; TS uses inline PSI/PMT tables and is designed for streaming where you may join a feed mid-broadcast. If your downstream consumer is a TV, IPTV recorder, or HLS pipeline, keep .ts. If it's a phone, browser, or NLE, trim to MP4 instead and skip the conversion step.

Can I trim and change resolution at the same time?

Yes. Pick a Time Range under Trim, then under Video resolution choose a preset (2160p, 1440p, 1080p, 720p, 480p, 360p) or enter exact width/height in pixels. Useful for downscaling a 4K broadcast capture (rare, but UHD ATSC 3.0 exists) or normalizing a 1080i feed to 720p before uploading. The aspect ratio is preserved by default; you can disable Auto-Scale if you want non-uniform stretching.

Is there a file size limit, and does the file leave my browser?

xconvert processes files in a session bound to your browser tab — no permanent storage on the server, no account required, no email harvesting. Practical upload size depends on your connection and tab memory; multi-GB DVR recordings work but expect longer upload times. If a single recording is over 4–5 GB and you only need a short clip, consider using FFmpeg locally for the first cut, then uploading the smaller intermediate.

What codec is inside my TS file, and does it matter?

Open the file in VLC and check Tools → Codec Information, or run ffprobe input.ts from the command line. Common combinations: ATSC over-the-air = MPEG-2 video + AC-3 audio; DVB = MPEG-2 or H.264 + MP2 or AC-3; HLS = H.264 or H.265 + AAC; AVCHD camcorders (which use M2TS, not TS) = H.264 + AC-3. The trimmer handles all of these; you only need to know the codec if you're picking a specific output bitrate or planning a follow-up conversion.

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