FFmpeg Fade & xfade Filters — Crossfade Transitions

The fade Filter — Fade In and Fade Out

Fade In (gradually reveal the opening from black)

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "fade=t=in:st=0:d=2" output.mp4

Fade Out (fade the end of the video to black)

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "fade=t=out:st=8:d=2" output.mp4

st=8 starts the fade-out at 8 seconds, and the fade takes 2 seconds. Change st to fit the length of your video. To find where a video already fades to black, see detecting black frames with blackdetect.

Apply Fade In and Fade Out Together

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
  -vf "fade=t=in:st=0:d=1.5, fade=t=out:st=8.5:d=1.5" \
  output.mp4

Fade to a Color Other Than Black

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
  -vf "fade=t=in:st=0:d=2:color=white" \
  output.mp4

With color=white, the video fades in from white instead of black. To fade the sound as well, add an audio fade-in and fade-out with afade.

The xfade Filter — Crossfade Between Two Clips

Basic Crossfade

ffmpeg -i input1.mp4 -i input2.mp4 \
  -filter_complex "[0][1]xfade=transition=fade:duration=1:offset=4" \
  output.mp4

offset=4 means the transition (the effect that switches from one clip to the next) starts 4 seconds into the first clip.

Main Built-In Transition Effects

FFmpeg 8.1 has 58 transitions, plus custom, where you write your own expression. Names not in the table include circleopen, wipetl, zoomin, coverleft and revealleft. ffmpeg -h filter=xfade lists the names your build supports, and the xfade article has the full list.

# Wipe-left example
ffmpeg -i input1.mp4 -i input2.mp4 \
  -filter_complex "[0][1]xfade=transition=wipeleft:duration=1:offset=4" \
  output.mp4

A Note When the Two Clips Have Different Lengths

offset is a time in the first clip, in seconds. Keep offset + duration within the length of the first clip.

# If the first clip is 6 seconds long: offset=5, duration=1 is fine
ffmpeg -i clip1.mp4 -i clip2.mp4 \
  -filter_complex "[0][1]xfade=transition=fade:duration=1:offset=5" \
  output.mp4

Joining Three Clips with Two Transitions

ffmpeg -i clip1.mp4 -i clip2.mp4 -i clip3.mp4 \
  -filter_complex \
    "[0][1]xfade=transition=fade:duration=1:offset=4[v01]; \
     [v01][2]xfade=transition=wipeleft:duration=1:offset=8" \
  output.mp4

1. A fade between clip1 and clip2
2. A wipe between that result and clip3

Handling Clips with Audio

xfade handles only video. For the audio, use the acrossfade filter. acrossfade has no offset. It always overlaps the last d seconds of the first clip with the start of the second. So the picture and the sound switch at the same point only when offset equals the first clip’s length minus duration. The example below assumes the first clip is 5 seconds long. If it were 10 seconds long, the video would switch at 4 seconds and the audio at 9.

ffmpeg -i clip1.mp4 -i clip2.mp4 \
  -filter_complex \
    "[0:v][1:v]xfade=transition=fade:duration=1:offset=4[v]; \
     [0:a][1:a]acrossfade=d=1[a]" \
  -map "[v]" -map "[a]" \
  output.mp4

Adding Crossfades to a Still-Image Slideshow

ffmpeg -loop 1 -t 3 -i img1.jpg \
       -loop 1 -t 3 -i img2.jpg \
  -filter_complex "[0][1]xfade=transition=fade:duration=1:offset=2" \
  output.mp4

Things to Watch Out For

• xfade is available in FFmpeg 4.3 and later. Older versions needed overlay and fade together.
• offset must be smaller than the length of the first clip.
• Set acrossfade’s d to the same value as xfade’s duration, and set offset to the first clip’s length minus duration. Then the video and audio switch at the same point.

Common Pitfalls

• Symptom: the second clip never appears, or it cuts in halfway through the transition (no error is shown). Cause: offset + duration is longer than the first clip. If offset is at or past the end of the first clip, the output ends at about the first clip’s length. Fix: keep offset at or below the first clip’s length minus duration. If the first clip is 6 seconds, offset=5:duration=1 is the limit.

• Symptom: the crossfade works, but the audio disappears or cuts off. Cause: xfade handles only video, so the audio needs its own filter. Fix: add acrossfade and map both results with -map "[v]" -map "[a]". Set acrossfade’s d to the same value as xfade’s duration, and set offset to the first clip’s length minus duration.

• Symptom: the fade-out starts at the wrong moment. Cause: in fade=t=out, st is the time the fade starts, not the time it ends. Fix: to fade out the last 2 seconds of a 10-second clip, use st=8:d=2 (because 8+2=10).

• Symptom: the two clips differ in resolution or fps, and xfade stops with an error such as First input link main parameters (size 640x360) do not match the corresponding second input link xfade parameters (size 1280x720). Cause: xfade needs both inputs to have the same size and frame rate. When only the fps differs, the error mentions the timebase or frame rate instead. Fix: make them match with scale and fps before passing them to xfade.

FAQ

Q. What is the difference between fade and xfade? A. fade fades one clip in from black or out to black (or another color you choose). xfade blends two clips as it switches from one to the other. It needs -filter_complex and two inputs.

Q. Can I fade to a color other than black or white? A. With fade, yes: set any colour with color= (for example color=red or color=0x3366FF). xfade can fade through only black (fadeblack) or white (fadewhite), so no other colour is available as a transition name.

Q. Can I chain three or more clips? A. Yes. Give the output of one xfade a label and use it as the input of the next one. Separate the steps with ;, as in the three-clip example above.

Q. Does it work for a still-image slideshow? A. Yes. Turn each image into a looping input with -loop 1 -t 3 -i img1.jpg and join them with xfade. Set offset to match how long each image is shown.

Q. How many transition effects are there? A. FFmpeg 8.1 has 58, not counting custom. Besides fade, there are wipeleft, slideup, circlecrop, dissolve and more. Put the name after transition=.

Related Filters

• afade — Audio fade in/out
• acrossfade — Audio crossfade
• overlay — Compositing video on top of video
• concat — Concatenating video