There are few worse moments in a presentation than clicking a video and getting a black box, a frozen first frame or "PowerPoint cannot play media". Almost every case comes down to three things: the video's format, whether it's embedded or only linked, and differences between your computer and the one you're presenting on. All three are easy to get right in advance.
#The short answer: MP4 with H.264 and AAC
Microsoft's own guidance is to use .mp4 files with H.264 video and AAC audio. That combination plays in PowerPoint on Windows, on a Mac, in the web version and on phones, and it's the format almost every camera, phone and video app can produce. For audio on its own, Microsoft recommends .m4a files with AAC audio.
If those terms are new: MP4 is the file type, while H.264 and AAC are the formats the picture and sound are compressed in. A file can end in .mp4 and still contain something else, which is why "it's an MP4" isn't always enough. Codecs vs containers explains the difference in a few minutes.
#What changed in 2025
Starting with PowerPoint version 2505 (the May 2025 release), Microsoft describes support for several older formats as limited and deprecated: Windows Media Video (.wmv and .asf), MPEG-2 (.mpg and .mpeg), AVI, and 3GPP phone video, along with WMA and AIFF audio. Some of these files can still be inserted, but PowerPoint converts them to MP4 as it does so.
In practice, that means older presentations with WMV or AVI videos are the ones most likely to break, and new ones shouldn't use those formats at all. Converting the video to MP4 yourself, before inserting it, gives you control over the result instead of leaving it to PowerPoint.
Which video files to use
| File type | Status | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| MP4 / M4V (H.264 + AAC) | Recommended | Use as it is |
| MOV | Supported | Fine, but check iPhone videos (HEVC) |
| WebM | Supported | Fine on Windows |
| WMV / ASF | Deprecated | Convert to MP4 |
| AVI | Deprecated | Convert to MP4 |
| MPEG-2 (.mpg, .mpeg) | Deprecated | Convert to MP4 |
| 3GP (old phone video) | Deprecated | Convert to MP4 |
| MKV, FLV and others | Not supported | Convert to MP4 |
#Why your video won't play, and the fix
The format isn't supported
WMV, AVI, MPG, MKV and FLV files are the usual culprits. Convert them to MP4 with H.264 and AAC. Wave does this in your browser - useful for internal or confidential videos, because the file is never uploaded to anyone's server.
It's an iPhone video
iPhone videos are usually HEVC inside, and PowerPoint on Windows relies on Windows to decode them - which needs the HEVC Video Extensions, on your computer and on the presentation computer. The safest fix is an H.264 copy: on the iPhone, Settings → Camera → Formats → Most Compatible records H.264 from now on, and for existing videos, Wave re-encodes them in your browser when you turn on Make it play everywhere (HandBrake does the same on the desktop). HEVC Video Extensions explained covers the extension route.
The video is linked, not embedded
When you insert a video with Insert → Video → This Device, PowerPoint embeds it in the file by default, so it travels with the presentation. But the Insert button also has a "Link to File" option, which only stores the video's location on your computer. Copy the presentation to a USB stick or email it, and the link breaks. If a video plays on your computer but not anywhere else, re-insert it without linking - or, if you must link to keep the file small, copy the video into the same folder as the presentation and move them together.
It's an online video and there's no internet
Videos inserted from YouTube or another website stream when you press play, so they need a working internet connection on the presentation computer. Venue Wi-Fi often blocks video sites or is too slow. For anything important, embed a downloaded copy you have the rights to use.
It's too big and stutters
4K video can stutter on an older laptop or a conference-room PC, and makes the presentation file enormous. Projectors and most screens are 1080p at best. In PowerPoint for Windows, File → Info → Compress Media shrinks every video in the deck to Full HD (1080p), HD (720p) or Standard (480p). If the same screen shows "Optimize Media Compatibility", run that too - it converts videos PowerPoint thinks may not play on other computers.
#Before you present
- Use MP4 with H.264 video and AAC audio. 1080p is plenty.
- Embed videos rather than linking them.
- Play every video on the actual presentation computer, not just your own.
- Moving between Mac and Windows? Test on the other one - WMV doesn't play on a Mac at all.
- Keep a copy of each video file on the same USB stick, in case you need to play it outside PowerPoint.
#Google Slides and Keynote
Google Slides doesn't take videos straight from your computer: it inserts them from YouTube or from Google Drive. Upload an MP4 to Drive first, then use Insert → Video → Google Drive. Keynote on a Mac plays MP4 and MOV happily, including HEVC; if you export a Keynote deck to PowerPoint for someone on Windows, H.264 videos are the safe choice for the same reason as above.
#The short version
- The best format for PowerPoint is MP4 with H.264 video and AAC audio - Microsoft's own recommendation.
- Since version 2505, WMV, AVI, MPEG-2 and 3GP are deprecated. Convert them to MP4 before inserting.
- iPhone HEVC videos need an extension on Windows; an H.264 copy avoids the problem.
- Embed instead of linking, and test on the presentation computer.