---
title: 'Extract frames from a video, free online'
description: 'Extract frames from any video as PNG, JPEG, or WebP. Every N seconds, at each scene change, or keyframes only. Free, in your browser, no upload.'
url: 'https://videocontextapi.com/tools/extract-frames/'
---

# Frame extractor

> This free tool saves frames from a video as PNG, JPEG, or WebP images. Take a frame every few seconds, a fixed number of frames, one frame at each scene change, or only the keyframes. Download each image, or all of them as one ZIP file.

- **Use it:** https://videocontextapi.com/tools/extract-frames/ (free, runs in the browser, no upload, no sign-up)
- **At scale:** The Video Context API extracts keyframes, shots, and scenes from whole libraries, and returns each one with its timestamp and a description, ready for search and for AI models. Book beta access: https://calendly.com/sam-reactvideoeditor/30min

## How to use it

1. Drop a video, or try the sample video.
2. Choose a mode, an image format, and a size.
3. Click Extract frames. The tool shows a preview of each frame with its timestamp.
4. Download one frame, or download all frames as a ZIP file.

## Four ways to choose frames

| Mode | What it does | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Every N seconds | Takes a frame at a fixed interval | Time-lapse views, long recordings, datasets |
| Number of frames | Takes a fixed number of frames, evenly spaced | Storyboards and quick overviews |
| At each scene change | Finds each cut and takes the first frame of each shot | Edited videos, ads, trailers, highlights |
| Keyframes only | Takes the frames that the video stores as complete pictures | Fast previews of very long files |

Scene change mode uses the same method as our [free scene detection tool](/tools/scene-detection/). To see how often a video has keyframes, use the [keyframe checker](/tools/keyframe-checker/).

## Frames for AI and computer vision

Frames are the input for most image models. Teams use extracted frames to:

- **Label data** for object detection and classification.
- **Show a video to an AI chat app.** For ChatGPT or Claude, a grid of frames with timestamps works better than single images. See [Video to AI](/tools/video-to-ai/).
- **Make thumbnails and storyboards** for a video library.

For a large library, frame extraction is only the first step. The [video understanding API](/video-understanding-api/) turns each shot into structured data, and [shot detection](/glossary/shot-detection/) explains how cuts are found.

## Image formats and sizes

- **PNG** keeps every pixel. Files are large.
- **JPEG** is the most compatible format. A quality of 85 to 92 looks the same as the original for most videos.
- **WebP** gives smaller files than JPEG at the same quality.

The tool never makes a frame larger than the video. If you choose 1920 px for a 1280 px video, you get 1280 px frames.

## FAQ

### How do I extract frames from a video?

Drop the video into this tool, choose how often to take a frame, and click Extract frames. The tool decodes the video in your browser and gives you each frame as an image file. You can download all frames as one ZIP file.

### How do I save one frame from a video as a JPG?

Choose the JPEG format, set the mode to "Number of frames", and enter the count that you want. Then download only the frame that you need from the preview. For one exact moment, a video player screenshot is faster, but this tool gives you the full resolution of the video.

### What is a keyframe?

A keyframe, or I-frame, is a frame that the video stores as a complete picture. The frames between keyframes store only the changes. Keyframes only mode is the fastest mode, because the tool does not need to decode the frames between them.

### Which image format should I use?

Use PNG when you need every detail, for example for text on screen or for training data. Use JPEG for photos and smaller files. WebP gives files that are smaller than JPEG at the same quality, and most modern apps can open it.

### How many frames can I extract?

The tool extracts up to 500 frames in one run. For more frames, use a longer interval, or split the video into parts.

### Is my video uploaded?

No. The tool reads and decodes the video in your browser with WebCodecs. The video and the frames stay on your computer.