Ijharul Islam
To trim a video, open it in an editor, drag the handles at the start and end of the timeline inward to the part you want to keep, and save it as a new copy. On iPhone that's Photos (Edit, then the sliders), on Android it's Google Photos, on Windows it's Clipchamp or the Photos app, and on Mac it's QuickTime Player (Edit > Trim). All of them are free and already on your device.
This guide gives the exact steps for each, how to cut something out of the middle, and how to trim quickly with FFmpeg without losing quality.
The short answer
To trim a video, open it in your device's built-in editor and drag the start and end handles to the part you want to keep. iPhone: Photos, Edit, drag the sliders, Done, Save Video as New Clip. Android: Google Photos, Edit, drag the trim handles, Save. Mac: QuickTime Player, Edit > Trim. Windows: Clipchamp, drag the clip's edges.
Key takeaways
- Trimming removes the start and/or end; splitting lets you remove a part in the middle.
- Save as a new copy if you might need the original. On iPhone, a trim can be reverted later unless you saved a new clip.
- FFmpeg can trim without re-encoding, which is instant and lossless but cuts on the nearest keyframe.
- For long recordings, cutting several short clips is often more useful than one trimmed file.
Disclosure: we make QuickVeed and show how to do this in it, along with other ways. Details about other products come from their public pages, checked in October 2026 and linked at the end.
How to trim a video on iPhone
- Open the video in the Photos app and tap Edit.
- Drag the sliders at either end of the timeline below the video to the new start and end. Hold a slider to see the timeline in more detail for a precise cut.
- Tap Done.
- Choose Save Video to replace the original with the trimmed version, or Save Video as New Clip to keep the original and add a trimmed copy.
If you chose Save Video and change your mind, open the video, tap Edit, then Revert and Revert to Original. Apple notes that this doesn't work for a video saved as a new clip; the original is a separate file in that case. Slo-mo videos have an extra control in Edit for where the slow part starts and ends.
How to trim a video on Android
Google Photos is on most Android phones and has a built-in trimmer:
- Open the video in Google Photos and tap Edit.
- Touch and hold, then drag the trim handles to the part of the video you want to keep.
- Tap Save. Google Photos saves a copy of the video with your edits.
Some phones (Samsung, for example) also have their own gallery app with a trim tool; the steps are similar. Google's help page notes that some editing features need Android 6.0 or later and at least 1 GB of RAM, and labels can differ between versions.
How to trim a video on Windows and Mac
Windows: Clipchamp or Photos
Clipchamp is Microsoft's free video editor and comes with Windows 11. In the editor, select the clip on the timeline; handles appear at each end. Drag them inward to shorten the clip, then export. If you trimmed too much, drag the handle back out: the footage isn't deleted. The Photos app can also open a video and trim it; the button names vary between Windows versions.
Mac: QuickTime Player
- Open the video in QuickTime Player.
- Choose Edit > Trim.
- Drag the yellow handles in the trimming bar. Everything outside the handles is removed.
- Click Trim, then save the file (File > Save, or Export As to choose a resolution).
Photos for Mac and iMovie can trim as well. Photos keeps the original footage, so a trim can be undone later.
Any computer: a browser tool
Many websites trim videos online, but most upload your file to their servers. QuickVeed's free tools work in your browser without uploading; the video to GIF converter lets you pick a start and end to a tenth of a second, though it makes a GIF rather than an MP4, and the video speed changer can speed up slow sections instead of cutting them.
How to trim a video with FFmpeg (fast and lossless)
FFmpeg is free and the fastest option for long files or many files. There are two ways to trim, and the difference matters:
| Method | Command | Speed and quality | Accuracy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stream copy | ffmpeg -ss 00:00:05 -i in.mp4 -t 30 -c copy out.mp4 | Instant; no quality loss | Starts on the nearest keyframe, so it can be a second or two off |
| Re-encode | ffmpeg -ss 00:00:05 -i in.mp4 -t 30 -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a aac out.mp4 | Slower; tiny loss at CRF 18 | Frame-accurate |
-ss is where the kept part starts and -t is how long it lasts (30 seconds here). To give an end time instead of a length, use -to after the input: ffmpeg -i in.mp4 -ss 00:00:05 -to 00:00:35 -c copy out.mp4.
Use stream copy when the exact first frame doesn't matter, such as cutting dead time off a screen recording. Re-encode when it does, such as a clip that should start on a specific word. To work out times, the free timecode calculator adds and subtracts timecodes, and the video duration calculator totals several clips.
Tips for clean, precise trims
A trim that is a few frames off is easy to notice: a clipped first word, a click at the cut, or a speaker who has already started moving. These habits avoid it:
- Zoom into the timeline before you drag the handles. On a phone, press and hold a handle to expand the timeline; in desktop editors, zoom with the slider or keyboard shortcut.
- Cut in the breath, not on the word. Leave a quarter to half a second before the first word so the start doesn't sound clipped.
- Watch the waveform. In editors that show audio, the gap between sentences is a flat line, which is the easiest place to cut.
- Use a short fade. A 2-5 frame audio fade at each cut removes clicks and pops.
- End after the action. Let a gesture or a smile finish; ending mid-movement feels abrupt.
- Keep the original. Save the trim as a new copy until you're sure you don't need the cut part.
Why FFmpeg stream copy is not frame-accurate
Compressed video stores a full picture only every so often (a keyframe, often every 1 to 2 seconds in phone videos); the frames in between only store changes. When FFmpeg copies the stream without re-encoding, it has to start on a keyframe, so the cut may start a little earlier than you asked, or show a frozen picture for a moment. Re-encoding builds a new keyframe exactly where you want the clip to begin, which is why it's slower but precise.
Phone editors and Clipchamp handle this for you, so you only need to think about keyframes when you use FFmpeg or a tool that offers a “lossless” or “fast” trim option.
Trim vs cut vs split vs crop
These words get mixed up, and searching for the wrong one gives you the wrong tool:
| Term | What it changes | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Trim | The start and end | Remove the first 8 seconds of fumbling with the camera |
| Split / cut | Divides a clip into two at a point | Split at 1:20 and 1:45, then delete the middle part |
| Crop | The edges of the picture, not the length | Turn 16:9 into 9:16 for TikTok |
| Speed up | The length, by playing faster | Turn a 2-minute process into 30 seconds |
To remove something from the middle, split. In Clipchamp, move the playhead to the spot, press the scissors button or S, do the same at the end of the unwanted part, then select it and delete it. On iPhone, the Photos trimmer only handles the ends; use iMovie or another editor for middle cuts. Cropping is a different job: see how to crop a video.
If what you want to remove is pauses and filler words throughout, trimming by hand is slow; see how to remove silence from a video.
Trimming a long video into clips with QuickVeed
If you're trimming a long recording (a podcast, webinar or interview) because you want a few short pieces to post, QuickVeed's Podcast to Clips does the finding and cutting for you:
- Upload the long video (up to 3 hours). The upload continues if you move to another page.
- Optionally type what the clips should be about, such as “pricing tips”.
- The AI transcribes the video and suggests 3 to 10 moments of 15 to 90 seconds, each with a hook title, the reason it was picked and a score from 0 to 100.
- Choose the shape (9:16, 1:1 or original) and caption style, and make the clips. Long pauses are shortened and ums and uhs removed automatically.
The transcript is 1.5 credits a minute, rounded up (45 credits for a 30-minute video, 90 for an hour), and each finished clip is 3 credits with the crop, captions, hook title and clean-up included. It isn't a general-purpose trimmer for a single video; for that, your phone or computer's built-in editor is quicker. More on this in how to turn a long video into YouTube Shorts.
Frequently asked questions
How do I trim a video on my phone?
On iPhone, open it in Photos, tap Edit, drag the sliders at each end of the timeline, tap Done and save. On Android, open it in Google Photos, tap Edit, drag the trim handles and tap Save.
How do I trim a video on Windows 11?
Open it in Clipchamp, which comes with Windows 11, select the clip on the timeline and drag its edges inward, then export. The Photos app also has a trim option.
How do I cut out the middle of a video?
Split the clip at the start and end of the part you want to remove, then delete that part. Clipchamp, iMovie, CapCut and most editors have a split tool.
Does trimming a video reduce quality?
Not with built-in phone editors or FFmpeg stream copy, which keep the original encoding for most of the file. Re-encoding at a low bitrate can reduce quality, so use a high quality setting if you re-encode.
Can I undo a trim on iPhone?
Yes, if you chose Save Video: open it, tap Edit, then Revert and Revert to Original. If you used Save Video as New Clip, the original is still in your library as a separate video.
Try it with your own video
Trim single videos on your device, and let Podcast to Clips cut long recordings into short clips. Upload a long recording, pick the moments you like, and judge the clips for yourself. QuickVeed plans start at $18/month, and new accounts get a 14-day trial with 75 credits, no card needed. Sign up or see pricing.
Sources
Competitor details in this post were checked against these public pages in October 2026. Products and prices change, so confirm with each vendor before you decide.
