How to encode av1 masters for youtube upload
- Step 1Drop your source video — Drop your source
- Step 2Set AV1 CQ quality and cpu-used speed — JAD picks AV1 hardware if available, falls back to H.265 otherwise
- Step 3Download the AV1 file — Stream the encoded result to disk
Frequently asked questions
How does AV1 compare to H.265 in quality and file size?+
AV1 provides 30–50% better compression than H.265 (HEVC) at equivalent visual quality, and about 50% better than H.264. In practice, an AV1 encode at CQ 30 will produce a file roughly half the size of an H.265 CRF 23 encode at comparable quality. Encoding speed is significantly slower than H.265 (often 10–50x slower than libx265 at equivalent quality settings), but for archive storage or web delivery where quality-per-bit matters, AV1 is the best current choice.
What is the cpu-used setting in AV1 encoding?+
libaom-av1's cpu-used parameter (0–8) controls the speed/quality trade-off. cpu-used 0 is the highest quality but extremely slow. cpu-used 4 is a practical balance of quality and speed. cpu-used 8 is fastest but lower quality. For browser-based encoding where speed matters, cpu-used 4–6 is recommended. For archive quality where time is not a concern, cpu-used 0–2 gives maximum compression efficiency.
Is AV1 supported on all browsers and devices?+
AV1 is supported natively in Chrome 70+, Firefox 67+, Edge 18+, and Safari 17+ (macOS 13+, iOS 17+). Android supports AV1 playback on most devices running Android 10+. Smart TV support varies. AV1 is not supported on older iOS devices (pre-iPhone 15 for hardware decode) and some older Smart TVs. For current-browser web delivery, AV1 is a safe choice. For broad legacy device compatibility, H.264 remains the standard.
Privacy first
All video processing runs locally in your browser using WebAssembly and FFmpeg. No file is ever uploaded — only metadata counters are saved for signed-in dashboard stats.