MKV
An extensible audiovisual container based on EBML that can carry multiple video, audio, subtitle, chapter, attachment, and metadata streams in one file.
General information
- Format name
- Matroska Video
- Extension
.mkv- MIME type
video/x-matroska- Category
- video
- Data type
- Binary
- Developer
- Matroska Project
Media properties
- Compression
- Varies
- Common codecs
- H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC, AV1, VP9, AAC, Opus, FLAC
File signatures
| Offset | Hexadecimal | ASCII | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 1A 45 DF A3 | — | Matroska begins with an EBML header. The EBML DocType identifies the container as matroska. |
Common uses
Movies and television files
Multi-audio video
Soft subtitles
Video archiving
High-quality media collections
Related formats
Technical resources
| Resource | Publisher | Link |
|---|---|---|
| RFC 9559 — Matroska Media Container Format Specification | RFC Editor | Open resource ↗ |
Record information
- Verified
- October 4, 2026
- Last updated
- October 4, 2026