5 Best Free DVD Rippers for Mac: 100% Free to Remove DRM

Want to rip and digitize your DVD collection for playing and sharing? A DVD ripper software can help to rip your DVD discs and stream to all devices and players. You don't have to pay for expensive DVD ripping software since there already exist some freeware available to rip and convert DVDs, even for those with DRM (digital rights management) protections. This article will focus on the best free DVD rippers for Mac that are 100% free to use.

 

Be Aware of PUPs  

Usually bundled with freeware you need, a PUP (potentially unwanted program) is a software that you don’t really want on your computer, although you may have consented to download and install it by accident. That is why you should be careful to avoid PUPs when choosing free DVD rippers for Mac. These PUPs are not viruses but may be spyware, adware, or other bundled software completely different from what you want. They can eat up your Mac system capacity, display popup ads on desktop, collect personal information and be difficult to uninstall.    

How to avoid PUPs when selecting free DVD rippers for Mac: 

1. Do not download free DVD rippers from obscure websites. it’s recommended to download all apps and programs from official websites or trusted ones.   
2. When downloading, pay attention to the name of installation package. You should avoid those tricky apps named different from what you want.
3. Custom installation. Choose a different install location, and always check advanced settings.  
4. Read reviews from others.

This article will save you all the trouble and show you our top 5 picks of free DVD rippers for Mac that allow you to rip and convert DRM protected DVDs as well as homemade discs.

List of the Best Free DVD Rippers for Mac

1. MakeMKV beta

Supported system: macOS 10.7 and later, Windows, Linux

Input: Copy-protected DVDs, homemade DVDs, Blu-rays

Output: MKV file

MakeMKV is a popular free DVD ripper as well as Blu-ray ripper for Mac, Windows and Linux. As its name declares, it reads DVD and convert it to MKV files, which preserves all the video and audio tracks, also maintains a nearly lossless quality.It can also bypass various DRM protections on DVDs, such as CSS (content scramble system) and RCE (region code enhancement). As for ripping speed, it depends on how fast your drive reads and there is no hardware acceleration, so be careful if you choose it for Blu-ray ripping on a Mac.   

The disadvantages of MakeMKV are as obvious as its strengths. You cannot expect it convert your DVD content to any other formats or compress it to save storage space, not mention to custom or trim the DVD videos. But you can compress the MKV using another converter such as HandBrake.

This DVD ripper for Mac is currently in beta, all features are free, it may become a paid one in the future. But for now, it’s an ideal and free option to rip DVDs for free on Mac.

2. HandBrake

Supported system: macOS 10.13 and later, Windows, Linux

Input: DVDs and Blu-rays without copy protection

Output: MP4, MKV, WebM

HandBrake is another best free DVD ripper for Mac across platforms. It’s a free and open video transcoder that allows you input common DVDs and Blu-rays and convert to MP4, MKV, WebM formats with different encoders. Advanced users can also custom the audio tracks, change video quality and presets to watch converted videos on other devices.

But this free DVD ripper can’t handle any copy-protected DVDs by itself, unless you install a special software library called libdvdcss, which is designed to access content of CSS-encrypted DVDs. Although limited in decryption feature, HandBrake is great option to rip and digitize DVDs on Mac for free.

Tip: You can use MakeMKV to rip protected DVDs, then transcode or compress the MKV file with HandBrake or other compressor.   

3. Prism Video Converter Software

Supported system: macOS 10.5 and later, Windows

Input: DVD and Blu-ray discs without copy protection

Output: Multiple popular video formats or audio only, ISO file

Developed by NCH Software, Prism Video Converter free version is a multi-format video converter can be used as a free DVD ripper for Mac. It can reads the main titles of the DVD and convert VOB files to MP4, AVI, WMV, MOV, MPEG, etc. Before covert or compress the DVD video, you can adjust the video quality and resolution, edit by trimming and cropping, and preview it with the built-in editor.

However, Prism can only rip DVDs without any encryption. In addition, unlike MakeMKV and HandBrake, Prism Free can be upgraded to a plus edition with more professional conversion features, so there will be pop-up ads every time you open it.

4. MacX DVD Ripper Free Edition

Supported system: macOS 10.6 and later

Input: Homemade DVDs and old commercial DVDs

Output: AVI, MOV, WMV, MP4 (H.264)

MacX DVD Ripper offers a free giveaway version for Mac users. This free DVD ripping app is able to digitize DVDs to common video formats for storing, sharing, and playing on other devices.

But the free edition comes with many limitations. It doesn’t keep update for latest DVDs with DRM protection, and only bypass parts of CSS and RCE. You may select subtitles and video quality before ripping, but the editing feature is not available for free. Also, it takes much longer time to rip a DVD than its paid version, like over 70 minutes to rip a 2-hour DVD movie at an average quality.

How to get the free version of MacX DVD Ripper for Mac:

Search for "MacX DVD Ripper giveaway version" in a browser > go to the official web page of MacXDVD Giveaway > input your email address to get the giveaway installation package > activate the app with the license key sent to your email.  

Note: Giveaway edition may be time-limited. Also, if you don't want to be constantly marketed to, use an email address you don't use often.

5. DVDFab HD Decrypter

Supported system: macOS 10.10 and later, Windows

Input: Copy-protected DVDs (released 1 year ago), common DVDs/Blu-rays

Output: MKV, MP4, DVD folder, ISO file

DVDFab HD Derypter is the free and limited version of DVDFab. It can decrypt DVD and Blu-ray discs for free, and convert the full disc to MKV or MP4 format, or copy them to ISO and DVD folder. It claims to rip and convert all the DVDs and Blu-rays released one year ago, being able to bypass most copy protections. But this free DVD ripper cannot rip the latest DVDs, does not support lossless output quality, and only supports DVD ripping in two modes, full disc or main title.

It's normal to get confused when using this free DVD ripper for Mac, because HD Decrypter is a segment of the all-in-one suite DVDFab 12. This DVD ripper will convert to HD Decrypter after the 30-day trial period if you decide not to upgrade.  With very limited features compared to the paid version, it's still worth a try if you want to decrypt some old DVDs.

Free vs. Paid: Which to choose  

While using a free DVD ripper on Mac is a good start for beginners, it’s very likely that you’ll find these freeware too limited in functionality or unstable. You can refer to the comparison table below to decide which one you should choose, free or a paid and professional one?

Free DVD Ripper Alternative - Rip DVDs flawlessly

If you feel like to obtain a more professional yet easy-to-use DVD ripping software, iFunia DVD Ripper is no doubt a perfect alternative to these free DVD rippers for Mac. Designed for all users, this best DVD ripper provides a smooth and robust experience to rip all types of DVDs to any format you want.

What to expect from the best DVD ripper for Mac:

• Rip homemade DVDs and commercial discs with various copy protection
• Rip and convert DVD to 300+ popular and obscure formats
• Rip DVD to a lossless quality or compress the file size as you like
• Also rip and convert DVD ISO files and folders
• Preview and edit each title and episode by trimming, cropping, merging, watermark and subtitles and soundtrack, etc.
• Adjust resolution, codec, quality and frame rate with advanced settings
• Rip DVDs to watch on TVs, Apple & Android devices
• Easy to use with a simple interface
• 100% Secure and clean, no bundled software or malware

How to rip a DVD flawlessly using iFunia DVD Ripper:

Step 1: Download and install iFunia DVD Ripper on your Mac.

Free Download macOS 10.13 or later

Step 2: Add the source DVD disc.

Insert the DVD disc into Mac's drive. Click File to add DVD to iFunia DVD Ripper. Or, you can just drag and drop the DVD or TS folder to the interface.

Step 3: Choose an output format.

Select a video or audio format from the list, such as MP4 H.264.

Step 4: Custom and edit the DVD video.

You can choose your preferred subtitle and soundtrack language from the drop-down lists. It’s optional to click the pencil-like icon to edit the video.

Step 5: Click on the Convert button on the lower right corner to start ripping the DVD.  

Conclusion

To save you hours of trials and research, this article includes the best free DVD rippers for Mac after honest tests. You can choose the most suitable one based on your requirement and needs. If you want to rip DVDs in bulk without any hassle, we also recommend iFunia DVD Ripper as the best freeware alternative, which will let you rip all your DVDs for better storing, playing and sharing.