Does cropping a video reduce its file size?

Not by itself. Cropping only removes pixels from the visible area; the encoded bitrate stays the same, so the file size is usually similar to the source. To shrink the file, run the cropped output through a compression tool.

Is the Video Cropper really free to use?

Yes. There is no signup, no watermark, and no payment required. The tool runs locally in your browser, so the source video is not uploaded to a server.

What video formats can I crop?

Any container and codec combination that your browser can decode natively. MP4, WebM, and MOV files encoded with common codecs such as H.264 or VP9 typically work without extra setup.

Can I crop to a non-rectangular shape or rotate the crop area?

No. The crop is always an axis-aligned rectangle defined by X, Y, width, and height in source pixels. For rotation, masking, or freeform shapes, a desktop video editor is the better option.

What format is the output file?

The output is a WebM file with a finite duration. You can play it in any modern browser or convert it to another format if your workflow requires MP4 or MOV.

Do I need to keep the browser tab open while it processes?

Yes. The conversion happens in the page itself, so closing or backgrounding the tab can interrupt processing and force you to start the crop step again.

Crop a Video for Free in Your Browser | Lizely

Cropping a video for free means using a tool that lets you trim away unwanted pixels from the edges of every frame and save the remaining rectangle as a new video file, without paying for software or uploading your footage to a remote server. The simplest way to do this is with the Video Cropper, a browser-based utility that decodes your video locally, applies your chosen pixel rectangle to each frame, and exports a clean WebM clip you can download right away. Because the whole process happens inside your browser tab, your source video stays on your device, which matters when you are working with private recordings, client deliverables, or anything you would rather not hand to a third party.

People crop videos for plenty of practical reasons. You might want to remove a thick black border left over from a screen recording, tighten the framing around a speaker so the subject fills more of the frame, or convert a 16:9 clip into a vertical rectangle for short-form platforms. Whatever the goal, the mechanics are the same: you tell the tool which rectangle inside each frame you want to keep, and the tool discards everything outside that rectangle.

What Cropping Actually Does to a Video

Cropping is a spatial edit, not a temporal one. The duration of your video does not change, and the audio track is left alone. What changes is the visible region inside every frame: instead of seeing the full source dimensions, you see a smaller rectangle whose top-left corner is offset by your X and Y values and whose size matches your width and height.

The output resolution of the cropped video equals the width and height you entered, not the original dimensions. A 1920 by 1080 source cropped to 1080 by 1080 produces a square 1080 by 1080 file. This is one reason cropping is so useful for adapting landscape footage to vertical platforms or to square thumbnails.

How the Video Cropper Works

The Video Cropper follows a clear three-stage workflow that keeps you in control of every parameter:

Choose a browser-decodable video from your device and wait for the tool to read its source dimensions. The browser must be able to decode the file natively, so common containers like MP4, WebM, and MOV typically work.
Enter whole-pixel X, Y, width, and height values that stay inside every source frame. The tool needs four integers: how far from the left edge to start, how far from the top edge to start, how wide the crop should be, and how tall it should be.
Select Crop video and keep the tab open during real-time processing. The browser applies your rectangle to each frame as it decodes the file, then hands you a WebM to download. You should fully review the result before assuming the crop matches your intent.

The "keep the tab open" instruction is important because the conversion happens in the page itself. Closing the tab, switching to a different app that suspends the browser, or losing focus for too long can interrupt processing, and you will need to start the crop step again.

Choosing the Right Pixel Rectangle

Because the crop is defined by four numbers, getting those numbers right matters more than anything else in the workflow. The X and Y values define the top-left corner of the crop region, measured in pixels from the top-left of the source frame. The width and height define how far the crop extends to the right and down. All four numbers must stay inside the source frame, which means X plus width cannot exceed the source width, and Y plus height cannot exceed the source height.

The table below lists common crop scenarios and the relationships between source and crop dimensions. The exact numbers you enter depend on your source file, which is why the tool reads the source dimensions before you start.

Goal	Source size (example)	Crop size	Why this works
Remove a black border	1920 x 1080	1820 x 980 starting at (50, 50)	Trims a 50-pixel band from the top, bottom, left, and right edges
Convert landscape to vertical 9:16	1920 x 1080	607 x 1080 starting at (656, 0)	Keeps the full height and centers a tall slice of the frame
Square crop for thumbnails	1920 x 1080	1080 x 1080 starting at (420, 0)	Uses the shortest source dimension and centers the square horizontally
Letterbox removal	1920 x 1080 with bars	1920 x 800 starting at (0, 140)	Eliminates top and bottom black bars

These relationships hold regardless of your specific source file; the tool itself reports the precise source dimensions, and the Video Cropper rejects any crop rectangle that falls outside the source.

Cropping Versus Trimming and Resizing

Cropping, trimming, and resizing are often confused, but each one changes a different part of a video. Cropping changes which pixels are visible inside each frame, trimming changes how many frames are in the clip, and resizing changes the total pixel count of each frame.

Crop: Keeps the full duration but removes pixels around the edges of every frame.
Trim: Keeps all pixels in the frame but cuts off frames at the start or end of the clip.
Resize: Keeps the full frame and full duration but scales every pixel up or down to a new output resolution.

If your goal is to shorten a long recording, the Video Trimmer is the right tool. If you need to scale a video to a specific output resolution without changing what is shown, the Video Resizer handles that case. Cropping is specifically for when you want to hide part of the original frame.

When to Crop Before Compressing

Cropping and compression solve different problems, but they often work well together. Removing pixels you do not need shrinks the area the encoder has to process, which can make a follow-up compression step more effective. A good workflow is to crop first to remove borders, bars, or distracting edges, then compress the result if you need a smaller file.

For guidance on the compression step, see the guide on compressing video files without losing quality online, which walks through the trade-offs between file size and visual fidelity.

One important caveat: cropping alone does not guarantee a smaller file. If your crop keeps a high-bitrate region and you do not re-encode, the output can be roughly the same size as the source. Running the cropped WebM through the Video Compressor after cropping is the usual way to land on a target size.

Output Format and What to Check Before Saving

The Video Cropper exports a WebM file with a finite duration, meaning the file contains a complete, playable clip rather than a streaming manifest. WebM is widely supported in modern browsers and most video players, but if you need an MP4 for a specific tool or platform, you may need to convert the result separately.

Before you finalize the file, play it back from start to finish and confirm three things: the framing matches your intent across the whole clip, the subject or region you care about stays inside the crop rectangle for every frame, and the audio still sounds correct. Movement near the edges of the source frame is a common surprise, especially with handheld footage, because a subject who stays in frame in the source can drift outside a tight crop.

Limitations to Keep in Mind

Because the tool runs in your browser, it depends on what your browser can decode. Exotic codecs or container variants may fail to load. The crop is also limited to axis-aligned rectangles: you cannot rotate the crop region or use a non-rectangular shape. For those cases, a desktop editor with masking or rotation features would be the better fit.

For more on browser video capabilities and codec support, the Mozilla Developer Network documentation is a reliable reference for what current browsers can decode natively.