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FFmpeg vs ab-av1: catalog facts
FFmpeg	ab-av1
Free Free and open source. The codebase is mainly LGPL 2.1 with some components under the GPL…	Free Free and open source under the MIT licence.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line	Windows, Linux, Command line
Handles practically every container and codec there is Remuxes without re-encoding, so a container change is instant and lossless	Finds the CRF automatically from a VMAF target Fast VMAF sampling instead of full trial encodes
Command line only, with syntax that punishes guessing Argument order matters in ways that are not obvious	Command line only Needs ffmpeg with the relevant encoders and VMAF installed
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: LGPL-2.1	License: MIT
No account needed	No account needed
Works offline	Works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.