Large video files are incredibly frustrating. You spend all day editing, finally export your masterpiece, and realise that the file is too big to upload to Vimeo. Maybe you can’t share it via WeTransfer. Or perhaps you don’t even have enough space on your hard drive to use it!
Dumping the video settings and re-exporting can be a daunting process. Set your video settings too low and it will look fuzzy or pixelated. Keep them high and your file size may not decrease by much.
Luckily, there are ways to compress large video files without losing quality. If you use the right settings, codecs, and tools you can greatly decrease your video file size without compromising on quality.
Here are some practical methods for compressing videos over 7GB so you can send them wherever you need to — sans guesswork.
Compress Large Videos Using Adobe Premiere Pro
Adobe Premiere Pro can edit large video files. And if you need to compress your file down, Premiere Pro is one of the only programs that won’t severely damage the quality of your video. Play around with your bitrate, resolution, and export settings until you can shrink your video down as small as possible while maintaining crisp pixels and buttery smooth motion.
Plus, if you’re a student you can take advantage of Adobe Premiere Pro’s student offer and get full access to the premium software for less. Helpful if you’re taking up editing classes or want professional software for school projects, content creation, and more.
Your workflow will look a little something like this:
- Select H.264 or H.265 (HEVC) as your high-quality compression option.
- Decrease your bitrate as little as possible to minimise file size without compromising clarity.
- Use Premiere’s media encoder to check your compressed file prior to exporting.
This allows you to compress even gigantic files for use on YouTube or Facebook. Or keep your file small for high-quality Instagram videos and course materials.
Key benefits:
- High-quality compression that preserves detail, motion, and colour integrity.
- Fine control over bitrate, resolution, and export settings within an editing workflow.
- Ideal for creators who need professional results for platforms like YouTube, Vimeo, and social media.
Other Desktop Software Options
Your largest opportunity for improvement when compressing files larger than 7GB will often come from selecting a more advanced codec and managing your bitrate, rather than reducing your video resolution.
Each of these desktop applications implements that process differently depending on your desired level of control:
HandBrake
HandBrake is a great place to start if you’d like to compress a large video file without having to tweak advanced settings. The easiest way to reduce filesize here is to change your codec to something newer like H.265 and let Handbrake do most of the optimisation automatically.
By maintaining your video at its original resolution and using Handbrake’s constant quality mode you can often cut your file in half while keeping your image clean and motion smooth. For most applications, a value in the middle of the quality slider should compress your video considerably without creating visible artifacts.
Key benefits:
- Beginner-friendly interface with smart defaults for high-quality compression.
- Modern codec support (including H.265) to significantly reduce file size.
- Constant quality mode helps balance compression and visual clarity automatically.
Adobe Media Encoder
Adobe Media Encoder works best if you’d like to have more control over your compression settings than simply choosing presets. After switching to a more advanced codec you can gradually decrease your target bitrate and enable variable bitrate encoding so that intricate scenes are allocated more bits than simpler ones.
This allows you to maintain a consistent visual quality throughout your video while still applying significant compression to large files. Encoder presets can also be created which makes this option great for when you need consistent quality between multiple exports or delivery formats.
Key benefits:
- Greater compression control without re-editing timelines.
- Variable bitrate encoding to preserve quality in complex scenes.
- Export presets ensure consistent quality across multiple files or formats.
FFmpeg
FFmpeg requires you to know what you’re doing, but in exchange you get complete control over your compression parameters. Quality is adjusted by exact values instead of presets or sliders, allowing you to finely tune how much your video will be compressed. When used properly, FFmpeg can drastically reduce your file size with minimal loss in quality, making this technique ideal for long videos or batch-compressing files without a graphical interface.
Key benefits:
- Precise control over compression through command-line parameters.
- Excellent for batch processing or very large video libraries.
- Capable of aggressive file size reduction with minimal quality loss when configured correctly.
Online and Cloud-Based Compression Tools
Online and Cloud Compression Services are attractive because they’re free to use and instantly accessible without installing software on your computer. These free tools appear like an affordable tech option for students because creators with limited budgets choose them for their easy compression methods. However, this convenience comes at some cost which becomes more apparent as file sizes grow larger.
Online tools will generally have some cap to upload size/resolution/export quality, making these services almost pointless when uploading videos over 7GB. Compression ratios are typically way too aggressive by default (preferring file size over visual fidelity), and you have little to no control over bitrate, codec, or type of encoding performed. Videos that are longer or intended for professional use will almost always have visible quality degradation.
Online compression is still okay to use if you’re in a pinch or working with smaller files. Software like CapCut (suitable for beginners) is nice to have if you’re trimming up casual videos meant for social media platforms or files that don’t require heavy compression before being uploaded somewhere. Unless you’re crunching deadlines small files won’t have noticeable quality differences and online tools are pretty quick.
You shouldn’t rely on these online tools for your long-term compression needs but they are okay to use if you need a compressed file quickly.
Key benefits:
- Quick, accessible compression without installing software.
- Useful for casual projects or smaller video files.
- Suitable for beginners working on short social media content or simple edits.
Understanding Video Compression
Compression involves stripping data from video files, but intelligently so that the pieces your eye cares about remain. Compression can be lossless or lossy. Lossless means data is never removed from the video, however the amount of compression is typically low (especially with huge files). Lossy compression throws away data your eye is unlikely to miss. This allows you to bring a 7GB file down significantly.
It also explains how compression affects quality. When a video is compressed too much data/details have to be thrown out. If an encoder removes too much data you might end up with blocky animation/movement, blurry details and colour banding. Strive to compress your video as much as possible before the eye can spot artefacts.
Video formats and codecs also factor into file size. Some formats like MP4 are containers, while codecs like H.264 & H.265 compress your video into a usable format. Picking the right codec can have more impact than resolution. For example if you need to convert VOB to MP4 you’re going from a legacy format to a modern codec. You not only gain compatibility, but can also significantly decrease file size.
Best Practices for Maintaining Quality
Assuming you’ve picked decent export settings to start with, preserving quality is largely a matter of knowing when to stop. Aggressively compressing files is a frequent error. If a video plays back fine and looks crisp at its current size, compressing it further usually won’t provide noticeable improvement, and will subtly degrade quality.
Exporting short clips before processing the entire file is one of the easiest ways to avoid damaging quality. Areas of fast motion, gradients, and low-light conditions will suffer from compression first, so they can alert you to potential problems ahead of time.
Try not to export the same file multiple times. Every export will degrade quality from its original source, even if your adjustments are small. Starting with the original source and only compressing once will yield the cleanest results.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
If your compressed video is stuttering or jumping frames, it’s likely a bitrate issue and not a resolution issue. Slightly increasing your bitrate, or allowing your video to use variable bitrate (if available), will give your video more leeway to encode complex scenes without a massive increase in file size.
Audio synchronisation issues typically mean your export settings don’t match your source timeline. If possible, ensure your frame rate and audio settings match your source from beginning to end. This is most prevalent in longer video edits.
Occasionally exports will fail for what seems like no reason. If your file is very large, it may be maxing out your CPU or memory. Ensure you don’t have background applications running and clear your applications cache if possible.
Compress Without Compromising
Reducing the size of large video files without loss of quality requires careful analysis of what factors are unnecessary to viewers, rather than relying upon a single miracle compression application. From properly configuring export settings in video editing software, utilising standalone video encoders to quickly resize video files, or leveraging easy-to-use cloud applications when working with less professional content, there are solutions available to fit your specific needs.
If you frequently work with video projects, it makes sense to compress video during your normal workflow. By contrast, if your primary concerns are storage and delivery, a standalone video compressor may be right for you. In some cases, your needs may be best served by an online alternative, although these are typically not as useful for large video files.
No matter what your requirements may be, as long as you know what you value most in a solution you should have no problem finding a video compressor that can reduce your 7GB+ video down to a more manageable size.
