MKV → AVI

Convert Your MKV to AVI documents conveniently

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How to convert MKV to AVI

Step 1: Provide your MKV files using the button above or by toss and let go.

Step 2: Click the 'Convert' button to start the conversion.

Step 3: Fetch your converted AVI files.


MKV to AVI Conversion FAQ

How do I convert MKV to AVI without re-encoding the video stream?
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There is no stream-copy switch on this page. A few pairs copy a compatible video stream into the AVI container without re-encoding it, MKV to MP4 among them, which is quick and loses no quality. Most pairs re-encode the video. MKV is codec-agnostic: H.264, HEVC, VP9 and AV1 video sit happily beside AAC, FLAC, Opus, DTS or Dolby audio in the same file. AVI files predate modern codecs: expect MPEG-4 Part 2 (DivX/Xvid), Motion JPEG or raw uncompressed frames rather than H.264.
They are dropped. AVI has no soft-subtitle stream to hold them, and the converter neither burns them into the picture nor exports them as a separate file. If you need them, extract the subtitles to an .srt file with a desktop tool such as ffmpeg or MKVToolNix before converting, and load that file alongside the AVI in your player. AVI has no native support for modern codecs, variable frame rate, soft subtitles or files over 4 GB without hacks, and its per-chunk overhead bloats the file.
Because a lot of hardware never learned anything newer and never will. DVD players, in-car head units, camcorder playback modes, industrial displays and plenty of broadcast ingest equipment accept AVI and nothing else. The conversion is a deliberate step down in efficiency, bought in exchange for working on a device that has no other option. AVI is trivially simple, which is exactly why ancient camcorders, capture cards, DVD ripping tools and Windows-era software all still emit it.
Usually not. Most conversions keep one audio track, the one with the most channels (normally the main mix), re-encoded for the AVI container, so commentary and alternate-language tracks are dropped. AVI, WMV, MPEG, FLV, VOB and M4V to MKV keep every track, and so does MP4 to MOV. To keep a different track, remux the MKV with that track first (VLC or ffmpeg can do this), then convert it. AVI is Microsoft’s Audio Video Interleave, introduced in 1992 on top of the RIFF chunk format — one of the oldest containers still in circulation.
On some pairs. MP4 to MOV keeps every text subtitle track. AVI, WMV, MPEG, FLV, VOB and M4V to MKV keep every subtitle track: text subtitles are copied or converted to SRT, and picture-based subtitles such as DVD or Blu-ray ones are copied as they are. MP4, MOV and WebM to MKV keep only the first subtitle track (as ASS), and MP4 to WebM keeps the first one as WebVTT. Other pairs, including MKV to MP4 or MOV and WebM to MP4, drop subtitle tracks, and the converter does not burn them into the picture. Subtitles that are already burned in stay, because they are part of the video frames.
MKV is the only mainstream container that stores arbitrary attached files (TTF fonts for ASS subs, JPG cover art, fan-translated PDF inserts). Going from MKV to AVI drops these attachments when AVI is not MKV — the elementary streams convert, but the attached payload stays in the source. Keep MKV as a backup if you depend on attached fonts.
It depends on the AVI container. MP4, MOV and MKV output use H.264, which plays on practically every phone, browser and TV. WebM output uses VP9. AVI, WMV and MPEG output use the older codecs those formats were designed for.
There is no HDR processing or tone mapping. When the video stream is copied (MKV to MP4 or MOV with the default settings), HDR10 passes through as it is. When the video is re-encoded, the HDR10 mastering metadata is dropped and Dolby Vision or HDR10+ data is not kept, and with a Quality, Resolution or Frame Rate setting some pairs also reduce the video to 8-bit colour, so an HDR MKV can look washed out in the AVI.
It depends on what happens to the video. MKV to MP4 or MOV with the default settings copies the video stream unchanged, so the size stays close to the source. Most other pairs re-encode it: a high-bitrate MKV usually comes out smaller, while an already heavily compressed one can grow. Smaller File under Quality gives the smallest output, and H.265 in the Codec setting (MP4, MOV and MKV) is usually smaller than H.264 at similar quality but plays on fewer devices.
The converter has no resolution cap of its own; the limit is the upload size allowed on your plan, and 4K, 8K and 60 fps files keep their resolution and frame rate unless you change them. MKV to MP4 or MOV with the default settings copies the video stream, which is quick at any resolution. Other pairs re-encode on CPU and the time grows with the pixel count, so a long 4K or 8K file takes much longer than the same length in 1080p.

MKV

MKV (Matroska) can hold unlimited video, audio, and subtitle tracks in a single file, ideal for movies.

AVI

AVI files can contain both audio and video data, widely covered but with larger file sizes.


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