TS to MKV Converter
FileFlip converts TS to MKV entirely inside your browser, using WebCodecs and FFmpeg compiled to WebAssembly. The file is never uploaded to a server: it is read off your disk, converted on your own machine, and saved back by the browser. That means no file-size limit, no queue and no account.
How do I convert a TS file to MKV?#
- Drop your TS file onto the converter at the top of this page, or click it to pick one from your computer. You can add as many as you like.
- Leave the target set to MKV and the conversion starts on its own. FileFlip usually downloads nothing, falling back to 30.8 MB of WebAssembly if your browser cannot encode these codecs itself, then runs WebCodecs and FFmpeg on your own machine.
- Save the MKV file. Your browser writes it straight to your downloads folder, because there was never a server holding it.
Does converting TS to MKV lose quality?#
Sometimes. When the codecs inside the TS file are ones the MKV container can hold, the streams are copied straight across and nothing at all is lost. When they are not, the file has to be decoded and encoded again, and that step does cost a little quality.
Is it safe to convert TS files online?#
Yes, because nothing is uploaded. FileFlip converts TS files inside the browser tab you already have open, using WebAssembly builds of the same engines a desktop converter would install. Your file is read from your own disk into the page's memory, and no request carrying it is ever made.
You do not have to take that on trust. Open your browser's network panel, run a conversion, and you will see the engine come down and your file go nowhere. There is no upload, no server-side copy, no retention window, and no account tied to what you converted.
How FileFlip works lists every engine, its version and its download size, and shows how to check for yourself that nothing leaves your machine.
What TS to MKV actually does to the file#
Converting TS to MKV runs on WebCodecs and FFmpeg, usually downloads nothing, falling back to 30.8 MB of WebAssembly if your browser cannot encode these codecs itself, copies the streams through when the codecs fit and re-encodes when they do not.
| Engine | WebCodecs and FFmpeg |
|---|---|
| Conversion path | One step: TS → MKV |
| Downloaded to your browser | Nothing in most browsers, or 30.8 MB if yours cannot encode these codecs itself |
| Quality | Lossless when the codecs fit, lossy when they do not |
| You get back | One file |
| Where it runs | In a background worker, so the page stays responsive |
What survives the conversion
| What is in the file | This conversion | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Encoded streams | Sometimes | Survives for some files and not others. |
Worth knowing before you start:
- the FFmpeg fallback is an LGPL build, so a re-encode produces MPEG-4 Part 2, VP8, VP9, or Theora rather than H.264 or H.265
- whether the browser can do this without FFmpeg depends on the codecs it exposes through WebCodecs
- the encoded streams are copied when the file's codecs fit the target container, and re-encoded when they do not
What is a TS file?#
A TS file carries MPEG transport stream data, the packetized container built for broadcast so a receiver can start decoding correctly at any point after tuning into a channel already in progress.
Keep a recording as TS while it's still being processed by broadcast or streaming tools that expect the transport stream structure, such as a DVR or an HLS pipeline.
Convert TS to MP4 once a recording is done being processed and just needs to play back or get edited, since MP4 drops the broadcast-oriented overhead without losing any video quality.
What is an MKV file?#
An MKV file is a Matroska container built on the EBML binary format, and it can hold any number of video, audio, subtitle and attachment tracks, encoded with essentially any codec, in a single file.
Use MKV when a video needs multiple audio tracks, several subtitle languages, or a codec MP4 doesn't accommodate, and it's staying on software you control, like a media server or a desktop player.
Convert MKV to MP4 when a file needs to play on a device that never added MKV support, since that's usually a hardware or software gap rather than anything wrong with the codec inside.
TS to MKV questions people ask#
What produces a TS file?
TS files come from DVB or ATSC TV tuners and DVRs recording a broadcast, from screen or capture card recordings saved by streaming software, and from downloaded HLS video that got reassembled into one file. Anything captured from a live broadcast feed tends to land in this container.
Why won't my TS file play in some apps?
TS is built for tuners and set-top boxes, not general media players, so some software either doesn't recognize it or can't find the program information it needs before starting playback. VLC and other FFmpeg-based players handle it without issue; if a player still fails, the video or audio codec inside the stream is the more likely culprit.
What is a TS file good for converting to?
Convert TS to MP4 for normal playback and editing. The transport stream's packet structure exists to survive a broadcast link, which a saved file doesn't need, so remuxing or re-encoding to MP4 gives the same video in a container every device already understands.
Is a TS file the same as an MPG file?
No. Both can hold MPEG-2 video, but TS is the transport stream, split into small self-contained packets for a broadcast link, while MPG is the program stream, built for a single continuous read off a disc or hard drive. They're sibling formats from the same MPEG systems standard rather than the same file structure.