5 Easy Ways to Convert DVD to MP4 on Mac [2024 Guide]

Chloe LEE
July 12, 2023 Preview 156 Preview 0
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MP4 video format is widely compatible with most media players, portable devices as well as video streaming platforms. So when you have a DVD disc with your favorite movie or videos on it, you may want to convert it to MP4 format for easier playback and sharing. So how can we convert a DVD to MP4 on Mac? This guide will introduce 5 tools that you can use to successfully convert DVD to MP4 on Mac, including some tips and tricks you may need.  

1. iFunia DVD Ripper - A easy and fast way

Your best bet to convert a DVD to MP4 on Mac without a hassle is to use a reliable DVD ripper, and always use the best one. iFunia DVD Ripper is an easy-to-use yet powerful DVD converter for Mac. It can rip any DVD to MP4 and other media formats quickly and with high quality. Main features of the best DVD to MP4 converter:

  • Convert burned discs and commercial DVDs to MP4 H.264, HEVC, MKV, AVI and 300+ formats.
  • Bypass various DVD copy protection, including CSS encryption, region codes, UOPs, Disney & Sony protection and more.
  • Convert the main title or the whole disc to MP4.
  • Select preferred subtitle and audio track for the output video.
  • Configure the video and audio parameters
  • Modify the DVD video with the built-in DVD editor
  • Merge all titles/chapters into one file during conversion
  • Convert all DVD titles in batches with 30x faster speed

Free Download macOS 10.11 or later

How to convert DVD to MP4 on Mac with iFunia DVD Ripper:

Step 1. Add DVD to the program

Insert the DVD you want to convert and open iFunia DVD Ripper. Go to File > Add DVD to add the source DVD to the converter. Or, you can just drag and drop the DVD to the main interface. It will display all the DVD titles in a few seconds, including the video duration, file size, available language.

add DVD to the program

Step 2. Set the output format

Open the drop-down list in the lower left corner, “Convert all tasks to” > “General Video” > “MP4 Video”. You can also choose MP4 HEVC or other video format. To set different output format for each video, click the Format icon of each title to open the format menu.  

choose mp4 output format

Step 3. Start the conversion

Click the Convertconvert button in the lower right corner to start converting DVD to MP4 on your Mac. For a DVD movie, you can choose to convert only the main movie or merge it with other bonus contents. 

Pro Tips:

  1. To edit the video before converting, click the pencil-like icon next to the thumbnail. You can trim, crop, rotate and adjust video effects and audio volume.edit DVD video before conversion
  2. After the DVD video conversion is finished, you can click the Check icon to find the converted MP4 file in the folder.conversion complete

In short, this is a friendly option for anyone who wants to rip DVD to MP4 on Mac in a simple and effective way. Download this DVD ripper now and give it a try.

 

2. HandBrake

HandBrake is a free and open-source tool that you can use to convert video from almost any format, including DVD and Blu-ray sources. It can convert a DVD to MP4, MKV and WebM formats with common encoders. It does not support encrypted DVDs per se, but it can handle CSS-protected DVDs via the libdvdcss library.

How to convert DVDs to MP4 on Mac with HanbBrake:

1. Install libdvdcss on Mac for protected DVDs. Go to https://www.videolan.org/developers/libdvdcss.html and get libdvdcss from the releases list. The latest version for macOS is v1.4.2.

2. Launch HandBrake, you will be presented with a file browser to select the DVD you want to convert, click “Open”. It will take some time to scan the DVD contents. Here you can also choose to scan only a specific title.

add dvd to handbrake

3. Select the title you want to convert. If you want to convert the whole DVD with multiple titles, click Add to Queue on the toolbar. It will encode videos one by one.

4. Choose “MP4” as the output format. You can use the default settings or adjust the video parameters yourself. For example, choose a constant framerate of 30 fps under Video tab, and select audio track and subtitles.

convert dvd to mp4 with handbrake on Mac

5. Enter a file name and set a destination folder for the converted video file.

6. Click the “Start” button to begin encoding the DVD to MP4. How long it will take to convert depends mainly on CPU performance, encoding settings, etc.

 

3. VLC

VLC is the most popular free and open-source media player across platforms. It’s not only a powerful player but can also be used to rip raw DVDs and convert DVD videos to MP4. Similar to HandBrake, VLC cannot bypass copy protection without the help of libdvdcss.

How to rip and convert a DVD to MP4 with VLC on Mac:

1. Open VLC, click “Open media” > “Disc” tab, select the DVD you want to convert.

2. Check the “Stream output” box, then click “Settings” to adjust transcoding options.

  • Check“Disable DVD menus” option, or VLC will try to convert a looping menu.

3. In the new dialog, click “Browse” to select where you want to save the converted MP4 file, and choose MPEG 4 in the “Encapsulation Method”. Then you can check the Video/Audio box to configure the settings. Recommended settings for MP4 conversion:

  • Video: h.264 format, 1024 Bitrate, scale 1
  • Audio: mp4a format, 192 Bitrate, channel 2  

convert DVD to MP4 with VLC on Mac

4. Finally, click the "OK" button to start converting DVD to MP4 with VLC on your Mac. VLC will show the progress in the bottom progrss bar of the main interface.

 

4. MakeMKV beta

MakeMKV is a useful DVD ripper with a simple interface. It allows users to rip both common and copy-protected DVD and Blu-ray discs for free on Mac. Since it can only rip a DVD to lossless MKV format, you will need to convert the MKV file to MP4 using HandBrake or other video converters.   

How to use MakeMKV to convert a DVD to MP4 on Mac:

1. Insert the DVD disc you want to convert, and open MakeMKV. It will detect the disc and display all the meta information.

2. Click the big DVD icon to start scanning DVD contents, which can take a few minutes.

3. When the scanning process is finished, you will see all the video contents in the left panel. You can choose which titles you want to save and which subtitle and audio tracks to rip in each title.

4. Click the folder icon on the right side to choose an output folder where you want to save the MKV files. Then press the “Make MKV” button to initiate the process.

convert DVD with Makemkv on mac

5. MakeMKV will show you the ripping progress, the time it takes depends on the reading speed of your DVD drive.  

save DVD to MP4 with MakeMKV

6. When the process ends, you can check the .mkv file(s) in the save folder. Open the MKV file in HandBrake and convert it to MP4 format.

 

5. CloudConvert - online tool

Can we convert a DVD to MP4 online for free without any software? Yes and no. It's impossible for online converters to read and detect the DVD titles or remove any copy protection, but they can help to convert .VOB videos to MP4. CloudConvert is one of the online file converters that you can use to convert unprotected DVD to MP4 online. Here’s how it works:

  1. Visit https://cloudconvert.com/. Click “Select File” to select the VOB video stored in the VIDEO_TS folder. There can be multiple files for the main movie of the DVD, you can convert them all.
  2. Choose MP4 as the output format.
  3. Click the "Convert" button to initiate the conversion process. It will take some time to upload and convert the file.
  4. After the conversion is finished, you can download the MP4 file to your Mac.         

This online converter only works with unprotected DVDs, and the converting speed is much slower.

convert dvd to mp4 online

 

FAQs about Converting DVD to MP4 on Mac:

1. How to choose the tool that works best for You?

There are some key factors to consider before converting a DVD to MP4, and you can choose a workable method from the above options according to your specific needs.  

  • Speed: Some tools offer faster conversion than others. If speed is a priority, consider using a dedicated DVD converter such as iFunia DVD Ripper or MakeMKV.
  • Ease of use: If you’re new to DVD and video conversion, it’s normal to get confused by the complex settings and options of the free tools. It’s recommended to use iFunia DVD Ripper to convert DVD to MP4 on Mac in three steps, with no learning curve.
  • Budget: You can use free tools like HandBrake and VLC for basic DVD to MP4 conversion, it will take some effort but worth a try. While premium software like iFunia offers more advanced features such as video trimming, merging and better performance.      
  • Copy protections: For copy-protected DVDs, it’s best to use professional decrypter app like iFunia, especially for the latest DVD movies and TV shows. You can also try HandBrake with libdvdcss and MakeMKV for some encrypted DVDs.

2. Will the quality of the converted video be the same as the original DVD?

Converting a DVD to MP4 will result in a smaller file size while maintaining high quality. MP4 is a more efficient format, but converting to it from DVD-Video may reduce picture quality to some degree depending on the encoding parameters and software performance. To minimize the quality loss, you can use higher resolution and bitrate presets, and choose a commercial DVD ripping software like iFunia DVD Ripper. The quality loss will be unnoticeable this way.

3. How can I speed up the DVD ripping process?

Convert DVD to MP4 does not only rips the DVD content, but also transcode the DVD video to MPEG-4, which can take a long time. Here are some tips to speed up the DVD conversion on Mac:

  • Keep the default settings. Most tools will offer an optimized settings to ensure a successful conversion.
  • Choose a faster DVD ripper tool. HanBrake and VLC can be slower in ripping DVDs, choose a dedicated DVD ripper software like iFunia DVD Ripper to rip a DVD to MP4 on Mac in 15 minutes with optimized encoding.
  • Choose the main title only. Converting a single main movie will be faster than converting the entire DVD with bonus contents.

 

Conclusion

Converting DVDs to MP4 format can bring a lot of benefits, you can enjoy your DVD movies and TV shows on any device, and effectively back up the DVD contents in case of disc damage. The above 5 methods provide you workable ways to rip all your DVD collections to MP4 on Mac with good quality. Leave a message in the comment section if you have more questions about converting DVD to MP4.

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Chloe LEE

Chloe LEE is good at explaining and solving complex technology problems to her readers. Since joining iFunia Studio, she has focused on writing articles about video and DVD software, and how-to tutorials.

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