Video frame grabber
Drop a video, find the moment, and save that frame as a full-resolution PNG or JPG. Or make a contact sheet of a frame every few seconds to pick from.
- Free, no sign-up
- Your video stays on your device
- PNG or JPG at full resolution
Drop a video
MP4 (H.264) and WebM work in every browser, HEVC where your browser supports it. The video stays on your device.
Save this frame
Contact sheet
A grid of frames across the whole video, to pick a thumbnail or check the cut. Up to 60 frames.
How to extract a frame from a video, at full quality
Getting the exact frame
For MP4 and MOV files the grabber reads the frame rate from the file, so the arrow buttons move exactly one frame and every time you type snaps to the frame showing at that moment, with its number. It seeks to the middle of a frame rather than its edge, so the picture on screen is the one that gets saved. For WebM and other formats the arrows move about a thirtieth of a second.
From a frame to a thumbnail
A sharp, expressive frame is where most thumbnails start. Save it as a PNG so nothing is lost before you design on it, then check the finished thumbnail with the YouTube thumbnail checker, which has YouTube's current size and file limits. A contact sheet every 5 or 10 seconds is the quickest way to find candidates in a long video.
Which videos work
Your browser does the decoding. H.264 MP4 and WebM work everywhere; HEVC, the iPhone default, works in Safari and in Chrome and Edge on most current computers; ProRes and other editing codecs mostly don't. If a file won't open, export a quick H.264 MP4. To see what a file is before you try, the video bitrate checker reads its codec, resolution and frame rate.
Embed this grabber
Teachers, bloggers and course creators can put this video frame grabber on their own page for free. Paste the code below into your page's HTML. It loads from markstudios.com, so it stays current when we update the numbers.
Questions, answered.
Anything else? Message Mark and you'll get a written reply within one business day.
How do I extract a frame from a video?
Drop the video on the frame grabber, move to the moment you want with the slider, the arrows or a typed time, and save it as a PNG or JPG. The frame is saved at the video’s own size, so a 4K video gives a 3840 × 2160 image.
Is the frame full resolution?
Yes. The frame is drawn at the video’s own pixel size, shown above the buttons, not at the size of the preview. It is the decoded frame, so it carries the video’s compression: a still from a well-exported video looks sharp, a still from a heavily compressed one looks like the video does.
PNG or JPG?
PNG keeps the frame exactly as decoded and makes bigger files. JPG makes smaller files, with a quality slider; 90% is hard to tell apart from the PNG and a fraction of the size. For a thumbnail you will design on, use PNG.
Can it read iPhone videos?
iPhones record HEVC by default. Safari decodes HEVC, and Chrome and Edge do on most current computers; if a video won’t load, export it as an H.264 MP4 or set the iPhone camera to Most Compatible. MP4 with H.264 and WebM work in every modern browser.
How do I get the exact frame I want?
For MP4 and MOV files the grabber reads the frame rate, so the arrows step one frame at a time and the time snaps to a frame, with the frame number shown. For other formats the arrows step about a thirtieth of a second.
Is my video uploaded?
No. The video is read by your browser on your device; nothing is sent anywhere, and the saved frames go straight to your downloads.
Rather have the thumbnail made?
Thumbnails designed for your channel and sized to YouTube’s specs, from your frames or your photos, and you work directly with Mark.
- Founder-led US company
- NDAs by default
- Stripe & PayPal payments
- Top Rated on Fiverr