Supported Video and Audio Formats for HTML5 Media Elements
Jul 15, 2025 am 02:30 AMHTML5 multimedia format compatibility can be solved by selecting the appropriate format. 1. Video recommendations MP4 (H.264) and WebM. MP4 is highly versatile, WebM is open source and mainstream support, and Ogg is less used. 2. Audio recommendations are MP3 and OGG. MP3 is widely supported, WAV lossless suitable for small files, OGG performs well in Firefox and Chrome. 3. Use multiple
HTML5's <video></video>
and <audio></audio>
tags make it easy to embed web pages into multimedia, but not all formats can play normally in all browsers. Understanding the supported formats can help you avoid compatibility issues.

Common supported video formats
Currently, the HTML5 video formats supported by mainstream browsers mainly include MP4, WebM and Ogg:

- MP4 (H.264 encoding) : This is the most common format and is supported by almost all browsers, especially Chrome, Safari and Edge.
- WebM : Google's open source formats are supported by Chrome, Firefox and Edge, and Safari has also been supported since version 14.
- Ogg (Theora) : Old versions of Firefox and Opera are supported, and are less used now.
If you plan to embed videos, it is recommended to provide at least two formats, MP4 and WebM, which can cover most users.
Commonly supported audio formats
The audio formats supported by HTML5 are not completely unified, common ones include:

- MP3 : Widely supported, especially in Chrome and Safari.
- WAV : Lossless sound quality, suitable for small files, supported on almost all platforms.
- OGG : It is better to support it on Firefox and Chrome, and Safari also supports it.
- AAC/FLAC/ALAC/Opus : The support of these formats varies by browser and system, be careful when using it.
If you want to make sure that the audio can play on various devices, it is best to prepare two versions of MP3 and OGG.
How to use multiple formats correctly
To deal with browser compatibility issues, HTML5 allows you to add multiple <source></source>
to the same <video></video>
or <audio></audio>
tag. For example:
<video controls> <source src="movie.mp4" type="video/mp4"> <source src="movie.webm" type="video/webm"> Your browser does not support video playback. </video>
The browser will try to load the first format it supports in order. Therefore, the most general format (such as MP4) can be placed in front, and other formats can be used as alternatives.
Notes and FAQs
Some details are easily overlooked:
- The encoding method is important : Even if the file extension is
.mp4
, it may not be played if an uncommon encoding is used internally (such as H.265). - Mobile devices prioritize MP4 : Many mobile browsers have limited support for WebM, especially older iOS devices.
- Test different browsers : You cannot rely solely on document instructions. It is best to test it in the target browser before actually deploying.
- Consider using a third-party player : such as Video.js or JW Player, which encapsulate compatibility processing logic that can reduce workload.
Basically that's it. The format selection does not seem complicated, but if you are not careful, you will encounter the problem of not being able to play.
The above is the detailed content of Supported Video and Audio Formats for HTML5 Media Elements. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!

Hot AI Tools

Undress AI Tool
Undress images for free

Undresser.AI Undress
AI-powered app for creating realistic nude photos

AI Clothes Remover
Online AI tool for removing clothes from photos.

Clothoff.io
AI clothes remover

Video Face Swap
Swap faces in any video effortlessly with our completely free AI face swap tool!

Hot Article

Hot Tools

Notepad++7.3.1
Easy-to-use and free code editor

SublimeText3 Chinese version
Chinese version, very easy to use

Zend Studio 13.0.1
Powerful PHP integrated development environment

Dreamweaver CS6
Visual web development tools

SublimeText3 Mac version
God-level code editing software (SublimeText3)

The reason why ARIA and HTML5 semantic tags are needed is that although HTML5 semantic elements have accessibility meanings, ARIA can supplement semantics and enhance auxiliary technology recognition capabilities. For example, when legacy browsers lack support, components without native tags (such as modal boxes), and state updates need to be dynamically updated, ARIA provides finer granular control. HTML5 elements such as nav, main, aside correspond to ARIArole by default, and do not need to be added manually unless the default behavior needs to be overridden. The situations where ARIA should be added include: 1. Supplement the missing status information, such as using aria-expanded to represent the button expansion/collapse status; 2. Add semantic roles to non-semantic tags, such as using div role to implement tabs and match them

HTML5, CSS and JavaScript should be efficiently combined with semantic tags, reasonable loading order and decoupling design. 1. Use HTML5 semantic tags, such as improving structural clarity and maintainability, which is conducive to SEO and barrier-free access; 2. CSS should be placed in, use external files and split by module to avoid inline styles and delayed loading problems; 3. JavaScript is recommended to be introduced in front, and use defer or async to load asynchronously to avoid blocking rendering; 4. Reduce strong dependence between the three, drive behavior through data-* attributes and class name control status, and improve collaboration efficiency through unified naming specifications. These methods can effectively optimize page performance and collaborate with teams.

Common reasons why HTML5 videos don't play in Chrome include format compatibility, autoplay policy, path or MIME type errors, and browser extension interference. 1. Videos should be given priority to using MP4 (H.264) format, or provide multiple tags to adapt to different browsers; 2. Automatic playback requires adding muted attributes or triggering .play() with JavaScript after user interaction; 3. Check whether the file path is correct and ensure that the server is configured with the correct MIME type. Local testing is recommended to use a development server; 4. Ad blocking plug-in or privacy mode may prevent loading, so you can try to disable the plug-in, replace the traceless window or update the browser version to solve the problem.

Embed web videos using HTML5 tags, supports multi-format compatibility, custom controls and responsive design. 1. Basic usage: add tags and set src and controls attributes to realize playback functions; 2. Support multi-formats: introduce different formats such as MP4, WebM, Ogg, etc. through tags to improve browser compatibility; 3. Custom appearance and behavior: hide default controls and implement style adjustment and interactive logic through CSS and JavaScript; 4. Pay attention to details: Set muted and autoplay to achieve automatic playback, use preload to control loading strategies, combine width and max-width to achieve responsive layout, and use add subtitles to enhance accessibility.

Using HTML5 semantic tags can improve web structure clarity, accessibility and SEO effects. 1. Semantic tags such as,,,, and make it easier for the machine to understand the page content; 2. Each tag has a clear purpose: used in the top area, wrap navigation links, include core content, display independent articles, group relevant content, place sidebars, and display bottom information; 3. Avoid abuse when using it, ensure that only one per page, avoid excessive nesting, reasonable use and in blocks. Mastering these key points can make the web page structure more standardized and practical.

It is a block-level element, suitable for layout; it is an inline element, suitable for wrapping text content. 1. Exclusively occupy a line, width, height and margins can be set, which are often used in structural layout; 2. No line breaks, the size is determined by the content, and is suitable for local text styles or dynamic operations; 3. When choosing, it should be judged based on whether the content needs independent space; 4. It cannot be nested and is not suitable for layout; 5. Priority is given to the use of semantic labels to improve structural clarity and accessibility.

To obtain user location information, you must first obtain authorization. When using HTML5's GeolocationAPI, the first step is to request user permission. If the user refuses or fails to respond, an error should be handled and a prompt should be given; after successful authorization, the Position object includes coords (latitude, longitude, etc.) and timestamp; you can use watchPosition to monitor location changes, but you need to pay attention to performance issues and clear the listener in time. 1. Authorization requires the user to explicitly allow it to trigger the getCurrentPosition method request; 2. Process error.code when rejected or errored and prompt the user; 3. After success, position.coords provides location data; 4.watc

Yes, you can save its contents as an image using the HTML5Canvas built-in toDataURL() method. First, call canvas.toDataURL ('image/png') to convert the canvas content to a base64 string in PNG format; if JPEG or WebP format is required, the corresponding type and quality parameters such as canvas.toDataURL ('image/jpeg', 0.8) can be passed in. Then you can achieve download by creating a dynamic link and triggering a click event: 1. Create an element a; 2. Set the download attribute and href as image data; 3. Call the click() method. Note that this operation should be triggered by user interaction.
