How to Reverse a Video (Play It Backwards) Free

To play a video backwards, open Reverse Video, add a short clip, choose whether to Keep (reversed) sound, and press Reverse video. Tick Boomerang to have it play forwards and then backwards instead. Download the MP4 — no app, no sign-up and no watermark.

Reverse a video step by step

1. Open Reverse Video.
2. Add a short video — MP4, MOV, WebM or MKV.
3. Choose the options:
   • Boomerang (forward, then backward) for a seamless back-and-forth.
   • Keep (reversed) sound — or untick it for a silent clip.
4. Press Reverse video (or Make boomerang).
5. Preview it — the result loops in the player — and download the MP4.

Ideas that look great backwards

• Water and liquids: pouring, splashing, waves — the water flows uphill.
• Jumps and dives: a diver flies out of the pool back onto the board.
• Throwing and catching: a ball returns to the hand.
• Breaking and building: a smashed tower of blocks reassembles; a torn paper mends itself.
• Walking and dancing: moonwalking for free.
• Smoke, steam and confetti: everything gathers back to its source.

Film the action with the phone held still (a tripod or leaning on something), with plenty of light, and keep it short — a few seconds is plenty.

Boomerang or reverse?

• Reverse plays the whole clip backwards once — best for "magic" effects where the audience shouldn't see the forward version.
• Boomerang plays it forward and then backward, so the end meets the start — perfect for loops. Make it repeat with Loop Video.

For an animated version (no sound, plays automatically), try the Boomerang GIF maker or GIF Reverse.

Make the reverse effect convincing

• Hide the trick: start filming after the action begins and stop before it ends, so viewers never see the "real" direction.
• Act it out backwards: for people, walking backwards while filming means they appear to walk forwards — but with strangely flowing hair and clothes, which makes the effect.
• Use slow motion: reversing a slow-motion clip makes splashes and falling objects look even more surreal. Slow it down with Change Video Speed first.
• Lock the camera: any camera shake also plays backwards and gives the game away.

Sound

Reversed speech and music sound strange — sometimes that's the joke. For a clean effect, untick Keep (reversed) sound, and add music afterwards with Add Audio to Video.

Limits: why short clips work best

Reversing needs the whole clip in memory (the last frame comes first), so the tool reverses up to the first 60 seconds and works at up to 720p. If your video is longer, cut out the part you want first with the Video Cutter — the tool tells you when a video is longer than a minute.

Privacy

The video is reversed in your browser with ffmpeg (WebAssembly); it isn't uploaded. The first use downloads the video engine (about 30 MB) once.

Reverse on a phone

The tool works in Safari and Chrome on phones. On iPhone, choose the video from your Photo Library; after downloading, use Share › Save Video to put the reversed clip in Photos. Short clips are quickest on a phone.

Frequently asked questions

Can I reverse just part of a video?

Trim the part first with the Video Cutter, reverse it, and — if you want it back in the original — join the pieces with the Video Merger.

Will the quality change?

The reversed clip is re-encoded as an MP4 at up to 720p. That's sharp on phones and social media; 4K clips come out at 720p.

Is there a watermark?

No.