Free online 3GP to 264 converter

Some older phones and cameras save video as 3GP, while video tools and hardware encoders may require a raw H.264 stream with the .264 extension. Converting is also useful when extracting video from a 3GP archive, but the raw 264 format normally cannot retain the original audio track.

What the 3GP format is

3GP is a multimedia container based on the 3GPP standard, designed for early mobile phones and cellular video messaging. Files commonly contain H.263, MPEG-4 Part 2, or H.264 video together with AMR-NB, AMR-WB, AAC, or other mobile-oriented audio.

You may encounter 3GP recordings from older Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, Samsung, and other phones, as well as files exported by legacy camera software. The .3gp extension identifies the container, not one fixed video codec.

What the 264 format is

A .264 file usually contains a raw H.264/AVC elementary video stream. It has no general-purpose container structure for audio, subtitles, metadata, or multiple tracks, so it is used mainly by video encoders, surveillance systems, broadcast tools, and hardware that expects H.264 Annex B data directly.

H.264 provides substantially better compression than the H.263 and MPEG-4 Part 2 codecs often found in older 3GP files. The trade-off is that a raw stream is less convenient for normal playback and editing than an MP4 or MKV container.

How to convert 3GP to 264

Using 101convert.com

You can convert the file for free on 101convert.com without installing software. Select the video conversion tool, add the .3gp file, choose .264 as the output format, start the conversion, and download the resulting raw H.264 file.

Using FFmpeg

FFmpeg is suitable when you need a local conversion or control over the encoder settings:

1. Install FFmpeg and place the source file in an accessible folder.
2. Run this command to re-encode the video:

ffmpeg -i input.3gp -an -c:v libx264 -preset medium -crf 23 -f h264 output.264

The -an option removes audio because raw .264 output is video-only. Lower CRF values increase quality and file size; values around 18–23 are typical for general-purpose H.264 encoding. Use -preset slow for better compression at the cost of encoding time.

If the 3GP already contains H.264 video and you only need to extract it without re-encoding, try:

ffmpeg -i input.3gp -an -c:v copy -bsf:v h264_mp4toannexb -f h264 output.264

This copy operation is faster and preserves the encoded video, but it works only when the source video is already H.264. FFmpeg will report the codec during input analysis.

Quality and compatibility limitations

Re-encoding cannot restore detail already lost through the original 3GP compression. Inspect the source with ffprobe input.3gp before converting; a low-resolution 3GP recording will remain low resolution unless it is enlarged, which does not add real detail.

The output contains no audio, so retain the original 3GP if its sound matters. Some players and editors do not open raw .264 files reliably because the stream lacks timestamps and container metadata; use MP4 instead when the receiving application accepts a container. If the target device specifically requires Annex B H.264, the -f h264 output and, when needed, h264_mp4toannexb filter provide the expected stream format.