File transcoding

Request

Your app sends an API request to Zencoder to start an encoding job, along with the location of a video and any optional encoding settings. Zencoder responds with an encoding job ID, so you can track the progress of the job.

Transcode

Zencoder downloads the video and converts it to as many formats as you need. Every video is done concurrently, with virtually no waiting—whether you do one or one hundred. That's the beauty of the cloud. Zencoder uploads the resulting videos to your server, your CDN, your S3 bucket, or syndication partners like YouTube, Hulu, and more.

Notify

Zencoder sends a (HTTP) notification to your app letting it know the encoding job is done and your video files have been uploaded.

Zencoder's Video Encoding API allows you to seamlessly integrate your application with Zencoder's extremely fast and scalable encoding platform. Our RESTful API is extensively documented with easy-to-use guides and detailed descriptions, as well as thoroughly tested code libraries and code examples for every encoding setting. Backed by an uptime SLA and live support with real encoding engineers, integrating with Zencoder couldn’t be easier.

API Features

What makes a great API? We believe an API should not only be robust in its features, but elegant in its simplicity. Our video encoding API features readable JSON, predictable settings, thorough documentation, and a number of tools to make the integration process even easier.

For a complete list of encoding features, check out the Features page.

Code Libraries
API Builder
Real-Time Progress
Request History
Notification History
No XML Required

Web Video

Zencoder supports all the codecs and formats necessary to reach viewers across the variety of web browsers used by consumers today. From Flash to Apple HLS to Microsoft Smooth Streaming, we've got you covered on Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, Chrome, and Safari. With a host of video profiles, we make sure that your video looks good in any browser window.

HTML 5

Making the transition to HTML5? Zencoder can help you make the transition as painless as possible, with support for H.264, MP4, WebM and Ogg Theora. Need an HTML5 video player? Zencoder is the creator of the most popular free, open source HTML5 video player, VideoJS.

iOS and Mobile Video

Consumer's watch more video than ever on mobile devices. Zencoder has the right codecs and formats to get great looking video to all the smart phones, tablets and media players that viewers love. Curious about encoding video for iPads or iPhones? We've got the industry-leading solution. Read more about how to create great looking video for iOS devices in "7 best-practices . . ."

Transmux Only

Deliver segmented HTTP Live Streaming (HLS) content to iOS without re-encoding the video files. Transmuxing packages existing H.264 files into MPEG TS segments necessary for HLS distribution.

Simple Syndication

Zencoder Simple Syndication gives content providers a one-step solution for encoding and publishing video to top Internet video sites. Utilizing existing workflow and the Zencoder API, content providers can instantly put video in front of a huge potential audience.

SLA 99.9% Uptime Guarantee

Zencoder is committed to providing you a rock-solid infrastructure and we're willing to stand behind it. Zencoder guarantees 99.9% uptime and we monitor our uptime using a third-party service. We'll provide a 10% service credit if we don’t meet our goal, plus 10% for every additional 1% of downtime. But the SLA isn’t what motivates us; providing an incredible service is what motivates us. The SLA is just a reflection of our goal.