AVI vs WMV
How do AVI and WMVcompare? Here's everything you need to know to choose the right format — and how to convert between them.
.avi
Full guide →Audio Video Interleave
AVI is one of the oldest and most recognized video formats. While it has been largely superseded by MP4 and MKV, AVI files are still commonly found in legacy video libraries and older applications.
.wmv
Full guide →Windows Media Video
WMV is Microsoft's proprietary video format. It was popular on Windows platforms in the 2000s but has largely been replaced by MP4. WMV files are still encountered in corporate and legacy environments.
| Specification | AVI | WMV |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Audio Video Interleave | Windows Media Video |
| Extension | .avi | .wmv |
| MIME type | video/x-msvideo | video/x-ms-wmv |
| Category | Video | Video |
| Developer | Microsoft | Microsoft |
| Year introduced | 1992 | 1999 |
AVI advantages
- Wide compatibility
- Simple container format
- No compression overhead
- Good for uncompressed video
AVI limitations
- Large file sizes
- Limited codec support compared to MKV
- No native streaming support
- Outdated format
WMV advantages
- Native Windows support
- Good compression for its era
- DRM support
- Windows Media Player integration
WMV limitations
- Limited cross-platform support
- Proprietary format
- Declining popularity
- Inferior to modern codecs
Which should you use?
AVI and WMV target different use cases. AVI is ideal for legacy video archives, while WMV works best for legacy windows video libraries.
Best uses for AVI
Best uses for WMV
Convert between AVI and WMV
Need to switch formats? Convert for free with SquishConvert.