How to Fix PowerPoint Cannot Insert/Play MP4 Video Error

"I have an MP4 video that is embedded in a PowerPoint 2016 presentation. When I get to the screen, it says Code Unavailable and when I hit play it says Cannot Play Media. The file plays just fine in Windows Media Player and VLC outside of the PowerPoint."

PowerPoint is an effective way to outline presentation ideas and display them visually. But it gets annoying if PowerPoint does not allow you to insert the widely-supported MP4 video and you got the "PowerPoint cannot insert a video from the selected file " error message. Or you can embed the MP4 video into PowerPoint and you got the "Cannot play back the file. The format is not supported" error message when you play the video during a presentation.

In fact, while inserting MP4 or other videos in a PowerPoint file, a lot of users encounter these two unwanted problems. The good news is that this PowerPoint MP4 incompatible error can easily be fixed. Read on and get to the possible reasons and solutions to solve the problem.

Possible Reasons for PowerPoint Cannot Insert or Play an MP4 Video?

Actually, many users might have come across the "PowerPoint cannot insert or play MP4 video" error and it can be caused by various reaons as below:

1. MP4 file missing or moved. The MP4 video file that you are trying to load might be unavailable or has the wrong path. To fix this, you can just go to the Explorer on your system and check the path of the video.

2. MP4 file is corrupted. MP4 won't play if your MP4 file is corrupted or the information in the container is wrong. You can check whether your MP4 file can be recognized and played properly using other programs. If not, repair it using a professional video repair tool.

3. MP4 format/codec is not supported. MP4 is just a video container, which can be encoded with a wide range of codecs, like HEVC, H.264, MPEG-4, VP9, DTS audio etc. Newer versions of PowerPoint (PowerPoint 2013/2016/2019) and the 32-bit older version PowerPoint 2010 only supports .mp4 files encoded with H.264 video and AAC audio. If the source MP4 file doesn't meet the above requirement, PowerPoint won't insert or play the MP4 video.

Besides these three major reasons, any other software or firmware component can also trigger this PowerPoint MP4 incompatible issue. But broadly speaking, the major cause is that some required codec is missing so that the file format is not supported. Therefore, you can either add a missing codec to your PC or convert the MP4 file to PowerPoint recommended format. Converting your media file is easier than solving an individual codec mystery.

Method 1. Installing a Third-party Codec to Fix "PowerPoint Cannot Insert MP4 File"

As mentioned above, one solution to fix the error message is to install a package of numerous codecs (e.g. K-Lite codec) on your computer. That greatly increases the likelihood that you'll have the necessary codec to play your the audio or video file that is giving you a problem. Follow the steps below to install a package of codecs on your computer to solve PowerPoint MP4 file embeding error.

1. Go online to K-Lite Codec Packs page. You will see different packages, but it is recommended that you must select the Standard pack.

2. Click Download for the Standard package and then the download of the pack begins. By default it will be copied to the "Downloads" folder on your computer. The name of the downloaded file is K-Lite_Codec_Pack_1605_Standard.exe or something similar.

3. Double-click the downloaded file to begin the process of installing it on your PC. The package will give you the opportunity to choose installation options momentarily. There are several sets of options to choose in the setup process. If you find them confusing, it's reasonable to accept the default settings that are presented to you.

4. Accept the Normal mode of installation unless you are experienced with media files and want to customize the installation. Click Next in the dialog box.

5. Accept or adjust the Installation Preferences as you see fit. Then click Next.

6. Accept the Decoding Method under Hardware Acceleration.

7. Under Preferred Language, accept the default, or make changes as you see fit.

8. After the Audio configuration settings, the dialog box will offer you additional software unrelated to codecs. You can click Decline for this extra offer, and the setup process for the codec pack will then continue.

9. Finally, under Ready to Install, click the Install button.

The K-Lite Codec pack is now installed on your PC. You can see it on the Windows Start menu. But more importantly, its presence on your PC increases the likelihood that a media file including MP4 video in a PowerPoint presentation will play successfully.

Method 2. Converting Unsupported MP4 to PowerPoint Supported MP4 with H.264/AAC Codec
-- 100% Working Solution to Fix PowerPoint Doesn't Let You Insert MP4 File

In fact, it's not easy to determine which codec you need for your MP4 file and installing third-party codec packs may risk your PC. Therefore, transcoding should be a very helpful method and converting your media file is easier than solving an individual codec mystery.

To convert the unsupported MP4 file, you can adopt EaseFab Video Converter for help. With GPU hardware acceleration tech, this tool enables you to bulk transcode MP4 files to PowerPoint best settings (MP4 with h.264 and aac codec) with fast encoding speed and zero quality loss. Moreover, it can also compress 4K to 1080p/720p, lower 60FPS to 30FPS, adjust bit rate, change audio codec, convert any video including MKV, MOV, WMV, VOB, M4V, WebM, FLV, etc. for further inserting into PowerPoint for a perfect presentation.

Further, EaseFab Video Converter also features basic editing features such as trimming, merging, cropping, watermarking, and audio replacing facility. By using the trimming action you can clip a specific duration from a video clip and turn it into PowerPoint preferred format.

[Tutorial] How to decode MP4 to PowerPoint supported codec/format

In this guide we take EaseFab Video Converter (Windows version) as an example. Mac version shares the same steps.

Step 1. Download and launch EaseFab Video Converter on Windows PC or Mac. Click Add Video button to import your MP4 video. Dragging and droppping works too. (Note: batch conversion is supported, so you can several mov videos to the program to convert at a time.)

Step 2. Click Profile pull down list, move mouse cursor to Common Video category and select MP4 (codec: h.264+aac) as the output format.

Note: For PowerPoint 2010 or older version, you're recommended to select WMV format.

Tips: If you want to trim, crop or add effects/watermark to th MP4 video, click Edit button (See how to edit video >>). If you want to adjust video audio parameters, such as resolution, bit rate, and frame rate, please click the Settings button.

Step 3. Click the small Folder button in the Output bar, and select a destination folder to save your rip. Now you can hit Convert button and then it will begin converting MP4 to PowerPoint supported MP4 files with the recommended H.264 and AAC codec.

Within minutes (note: the ripping speed varies depending on your computer configurations. ), EaseFab Video Converter will finish the conversion and put the converted MP4 video int the destination folder. Then, you can insert the encoded MP4 file to PowerPoint for presentation without any trouble.

Stepwise Guide to Insert a MP4 Video in PowerPoint

Step 1: Open the PowerPoint, click on the "Insert" tab, and select "Video."

Step 2: Select the "Movie from File" option and choose a video file from your drive by double-clicking on it.

Step 3: You can also format the video to begin "Automatically" or "When Clicked."

Step 4: Drag the video file to position it and resize it within the slide.