Check if a Specific Decoder is Supported by FFmpeg

To determine if a specific audio, video, or subtitle decoder is supported by your system’s FFmpeg installation, you can use built-in command-line queries. This guide demonstrates how to list all available decoders, search for a specific one using filtering tools, and use direct help commands to verify support and view configuration options.

List All Decoders

The most comprehensive way to see what your FFmpeg installation supports is to list all decoders. Open your terminal or command prompt and run:

ffmpeg -decoders

This command outputs a long list of all supported decoders prefixed by a configuration legend (such as V for video, A for audio, and S for subtitle).

Search for a Specific Decoder

Since the full list can be overwhelming, you can filter the output to search for a specific codec or format.

On Linux and macOS

Use the grep utility to search for your desired decoder (for example, h264 or aac):

ffmpeg -decoders | grep h264

On Windows (Command Prompt)

Use the findstr utility to filter the results:

ffmpeg -decoders | findstr h264

If the decoder is supported, the terminal will return the line containing the decoder’s name and its capabilities. If no output is returned, the decoder is not supported by your current FFmpeg build.

Verify Support with the Help Command

A more direct method to check for a specific decoder is to request the help documentation for that exact decoder name.

Run the following command:

ffmpeg -h decoder=decoder_name

Replace decoder_name with the specific codec identifier (e.g., hevc, vp9, mp3).