Video quality matters—whether you're working in post-production, verifying content authenticity, or analyzing forensic footage. The Compare Videos tool by Metadata2Go is a web-based solution that enables you to detect differences between two videos frame by frame, using cutting-edge machine learning algorithms.
What Is the Compare Videos Tool?
This tool evaluates two video files using a sophisticated algorithm based on VMAF (Video Multimethod Assessment Fusion)—a perceptual video quality assessment model developed by Netflix. VMAF combines several quality metrics to predict how viewers would perceive the quality of a video. It not only compares two video files, but also provides frame-by-frame analysis and summary statistics to help you identify even subtle changes or degradation.
Why Compare Videos?
Every video consists of thousands of frames, and small variations can lead to noticeable quality drops—especially after compression, re-encoding, or edits.
The Compare Videos tool helps you:
- ✅ Detect Compression Artifacts
Compare a high-bitrate original with a compressed version and pinpoint exactly where visual degradation occurs.
- ✅ Verify Post-Production Changes
Ensure visual edits or color corrections didn't unintentionally reduce video quality.
- ✅ Conduct Forensic Analysis
Confirm video integrity for legal or investigative use.
- ✅ Evaluate Optimization Efficiency
Measure the impact of bitrate reductions, filters, or codec settings.
How to Compare Videos?
- Visit the Webpage: Choose Compare Videos tool.
- Upload Your Videos: Select two video files you'd like to compare.
- Click "START": The analysis will begin immediately. Depending on file size, it may take a few moments.
- View the Results: Download the report for documentation or review.
What Metrics Are Used?
The Compare Videos tool uses several advanced video quality metrics to analyze and compare each frame of two video files. These metrics are designed to mimic how humans perceive video quality and help pinpoint exactly where and how quality differs.
- VMAF (Video Multi-Method Assessment Fusion): A machine learning-based metric that predicts video quality as perceived by humans. Higher scores indicate better quality (scale: 0–100).
- ADM2: Measures detail preservation and structural fidelity across frames.
- Motion: Analyzes motion energy in the video, useful for comparing how motion artifacts differ.
- VIF (Visual Information Fidelity): Assesses how much information is preserved in the visual stream at different scales.
- Harmonic Mean: Gives more weight to low-performing frames. A low harmonic mean may indicate specific frames with significant quality loss.
📊 Sample Summary Output
After comparing two videos, the tool returns detailed quality scores for every frame, as well as summarized statistics.
Below is an example of what you'll see:
| Name | Harmonic Mean | Mean | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Integer Adm2 | 0.400486 | 0.407682 | 1.000001 | 0.297201 |
| Integer Adm Scale 0 | 0.853067 | 0.853484 | 1.000007 | 0.831053 |
| Integer Adm Scale 1 | 0.512494 | 0.517249 | 1.000001 | 0.435795 |
| Integer Adm Scale 2 | 0.319611 | 0.328788 | 1.000001 | 0.222677 |
| Integer Adm Scale 3 | 0.271398 | 0.282669 | 1.000001 | 0.124636 |
| Integer Motion | 0.018031 | 0.065018 | 6.345786 | 0 |
| Integer Motion 2 | 0.016477 | 0.058565 | 6.283438 | 0 |
| Integer Vif Scale 0 | 0.049606 | 0.064906 | 0.999999 | 0.019612 |
| Integer Vif Scale 1 | 0.068209 | 0.083757 | 0.999999 | 0.027272 |
| Integer Vif Scale 2 | 0.076466 | 0.092169 | 0.999999 | 0.030313 |
| Integer Vif Scale 3 | 0.080262 | 0.096222 | 0.999999 | 0.030876 |
| VMAF | 3.521904 | 6.834969 | 100 | 0 |
What Does Harmonic Mean Tell You?
Unlike a regular average (mean), the harmonic mean is especially sensitive to outliers on the lower end of the scale.
For example, if one frame in a video has a drastic quality drop, the harmonic mean will reflect that more prominently than the arithmetic mean.
Use case: If your harmonic mean is significantly lower than the regular mean, it's a strong sign that some frames have severe degradation, even if the rest of the video looks fine overall.
This insight is critical in forensic work, professional post-production, or QA processes, where even one bad frame can be unacceptable.
Supported Video Formats
- MP4
- MKV
- AVI
- MOV
- FLV
- WebM, and more!
The tool accepts most common containers and codecs.
Secure and Online
Metadata2Go processes your videos securely. Files are never stored or shared, and all processing happens online—no installation is required.
In Conclusion
The Compare Videos tool from Metadata2Go offers a high-precision, no-installation solution for professionals who need to verify video quality, detect changes, or evaluate compression impacts.
Whether you're a content creator, investigator, or media technician, this tool gives you a data-driven edge in understanding your video assets.
👉 Try it today and see the difference. Literally.