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darken.video

Free · runs in your browser

Darken video online

Turn down a clip that came out too bright. Auto fix brings back contrast and pulls highlights in, and every control is there if you want it. No upload, no signup, no watermark.

Drop a video to darkenChoose a video to darken

Or choose one from your computer to begin.Pick the over-bright clip from your photos or files.

Works with MP4MOVWebMMKVand more

Stays on your device.

Why darken a video here

Footage stays with you

The picture is reworked by your own browser, frame by frame. Nothing is sent to a server, so private clips stay private.

Fixes the light, not just the level

Auto fix pulls highlights back first, then sets exposure, contrast and blacks, so the clip gets darker without turning murky.

Free, with no watermark

No account, no trial and no logo burned into your video. Export as often as you like.

How it works

How to make a video darker

  1. Open the bright clip

    Drop the video onto the page or click to choose it. MP4, MOV, WebM and MKV from phones, cameras and screen recorders all open.

    The darken.video home page: the heading "Darken video online" on the left and, on the right, an upload card with a pale beach illustration labelled "Too bright", the heading "Drop a video to darken" and a Select video button. (enlarge image)

    Drag the clip onto the card, or click Select video (Ctrl+O).

    1. Select video

  2. Press Auto fix, or pick a look

    Auto fix reads the clip and sets a correction for you. Overexposed, Bright sunlight, Blown-out sky and Dim it down are ready-made looks, and Strength sets how far each one goes.

    A washed-out street scene after Auto fix in the darken.video editor: the picture has deeper shadows and richer colour. On the right, Auto fix is selected under "What needs fixing?", with Overexposed, Bright sunlight, Blown-out sky and Dim it down below it and Strength at 100%. (enlarge image)

    Auto fix reads the clip and sets a correction. Strength scales it up or down.

    1. Auto fix
    2. Strength

  3. Compare, then export

    Choose Split under Compare to see before and after side by side. When it looks right, select Export video, then Download video.

    The same street clip in Split view: the left half, labelled Before, is pale and hazy; the right half, labelled After, has deep shadows and clear colour, with a round handle on the divider. Compare is set to Split and the Export video button sits at the bottom of the panel. (enlarge image)

    Choose Split under Compare and drag the divider, then select Export video.

    1. Split
    2. Export video

Guides

Darkening guides for every device and editor

Questions about darkening video

The short answers. For the longer story of exposure, clipping and HDR, read the overexposure guide above.

How do I make a video darker?

Open the video in the tool at the top of this page and press Auto fix. If it still looks too bright, raise Strength or try Overexposed. Select Export video, then Download video. The darkening happens in your browser, so the file is not uploaded anywhere.

Can an overexposed video really be fixed?

Partly, and it depends on how far the camera went. Areas that are bright but still show some texture can be pulled back down and look natural again. Areas the camera recorded as pure white hold no detail at all, so darkening only turns them a flat light grey. The Levels graph under More options shows how much of the frame is clipped like that.

What does Auto fix actually change?

It samples frames from across the clip, measures where the brightest and darkest tones sit, and then sets Exposure, Highlights, Whites, Contrast, Blacks and Gamma to spread the tones out again. You can see every value it chose under More options and change any of them.

Why does lowering brightness make my video look grey?

A plain brightness slider moves every tone down by the same amount, including the blacks, which lifts nothing and flattens the picture. Washed-out footage usually needs its highlights brought down and its blacks deepened, with the midtones adjusted separately. That is what the presets do, and why Exposure and Gamma are separate controls here.

Is my video uploaded?

No. The page decodes the video, adjusts each frame and writes the new file inside your browser, using WebCodecs and the open-source mediabunny library. Your footage never leaves your device.

Will the sound be kept?

Yes. The audio track is copied across unchanged. If you want a silent copy, switch off Keep sound under Export settings.

Does darkening lose quality?

Any change to the picture means the video is encoded again, and this tool uses a high bitrate so the loss is hard to see. Choose High under Quality in Export settings for the largest, cleanest file. Very strong settings can reveal banding in smooth skies, which is a limit of 8-bit video rather than of the tool.

Can I darken just one part of the video?

You can trim the clip to the part you want and darken that. The correction applies evenly to the frames you keep; it does not darken one region of the frame or change over time.

What is the difference between Exposure and Gamma?

Exposure works like closing the lens aperture: it scales every tone by the same ratio, measured in stops, so bright areas fall most. Gamma bends the middle of the tone curve and leaves pure black and pure white where they are, so it darkens skin and walls without touching the extremes.

Does it work with iPhone HDR videos?

Yes, if your browser can decode them, which most modern browsers can. The result is saved as standard dynamic range (SDR) video, which is how most players and social apps show it anyway. If an HDR clip looked blinding on a phone, that conversion alone often helps.

Which formats can I open and save?

MP4, MOV, WebM and MKV open in most browsers, and unusual codecs are converted on your device first. You can save the darkened copy as MP4, or as WebM where your browser can encode it.

Is there a file size or length limit?

There is no fixed cap. Long or 4K clips take longer and need more memory, so if your browser struggles, choose a smaller size such as 1080p under Export settings.

Does it work on a phone?

Yes, in current versions of Safari, Chrome, Edge and Firefox on iPhone, iPad, Android and desktop. On a phone, Share in the finished panel lets you save the video to your photos.