Xora vs FFmpeg Micro — Cloud FFmpeg API Comparison

Feature	FFmpeg Micro (ffmpeg-micro.com)	Xora (xora.sh)
Billing Model	Duration of the input video (1 token per 10 seconds)	Credits — processing time + output produced
Filter Graphs	`-filter_complex` not supported	Full `-filter_complex`, multi-input jobs
Output Formats	MP4 and WebM video (plus SRT from transcription)	MP4, WebM, MOV, GIF, MP3, AAC, WAV, JPG, PNG
Max Input File	100 MB free · 1 GB Starter · 2 GB Pro	250 MB free · 2 GB Build · 6 GB Scale
Storage Architecture	Signed download link from FFmpeg Micro’s storage	Managed storage with signed URLs, or your own Cloudflare R2 bucket (BYOB, paid plans)
Job Notifications	Poll for job status	Poll, or webhooks on every terminal state
AI Agent Access	Remote MCP server that runs jobs (OAuth 2.1)	Remote MCP server that runs jobs (OAuth or API key), plus `/llms.txt` and OpenAPI
Free Tier	200 tokens at sign-up (~33 min of input video), no card	25 credits every month (no card required)

Billing Mechanics: Input Minutes vs. Credits

FFmpeg Micro charges for the length of the video you send in, whatever the job does to it. Xora charges credits for the work a job actually performs — processing time plus output produced.

Scenario A

Make a 45-min recording web-ready

A 1.2 GB 1080p MP4 that only needs its metadata moved to the front so it starts playing at once. No re-encode.

FFmpeg Micro Pricing

~$1.93

45 minutes of input = 270 tokens. The 1.2 GB file is over Starter's 1 GB cap, so this is at Pro's $49.99 / 7,000 tokens.

Xora Pricing

~12.5 credits

Well under a minute of processing + 12 credits for the 1.2 GB output — about $0.47 at Build's ~4¢/credit.

Xora is ~75% cheaper when the job is light and the video is long

Scenario B

10-min 1080p transcode

A full re-encode: 1.5 GB in, 0.8 GB out.

FFmpeg Micro Pricing

~$0.43

10 minutes of input = 60 tokens, at Pro's rate (the 1.5 GB file is over Starter's cap).

Xora Pricing

~12 credits

About 4.3 minutes of processing + 8 credits for the 0.8 GB output — about $0.45 at Build's ~4¢/credit.

On a plain transcode the two meters land close — the difference is what each job is allowed to do

Options List vs. Real FFmpeg Args

FFmpeg Micro takes FFmpeg flags as a list of option and argument pairs, which works well for single-input changes like scaling or quality. It does not support -filter_complex, so jobs that combine streams — a logo from a second file, picture-in-picture, mixing audio tracks — need its built-in virtual effects or a different tool.

Xora takes the same arguments array you run locally. Filter graphs, multiple inputs and codec flags all pass through as written. Same args, different machine.

{
  "inputs": [{ "url": "gs://your-bucket/source.mov" }],
  "outputFormat": "mp4",
  "options": [
    { "option": "-vf", "argument": "scale=1280:-2" },
    { "option": "-crf", "argument": "23" }
  ]
}

{
  "mode": "ffmpeg",
  "input_files": {
    "in_1": "https://example.com/source.mov",
    "in_2": "https://example.com/logo.png"
  },
  "output_files": { "out_1": "output.mp4" },
  "ffmpeg": {
    "args": [
      "-i", "{{in_1}}",
      "-i", "{{in_2}}",
      "-filter_complex", "[0:v]scale=1280:-2[v];[v][1:v]overlay=W-w-10:H-h-10",
      "-c:v", "libx264",
      "-crf", "23",
      "{{out_1}}"
    ]
  }
}

Two Major Architecture Upgrades

1. Every Output Format FFmpeg Writes

FFmpeg Micro’s transcode output is MP4 or WebM. A JPEG thumbnail, an MP3 of a podcast or a GIF preview is not something a transcode job returns.

Xora returns video, audio and images: mp4, webm, mov, gif, mp3, aac, wav, jpg and png. With stageInput: false, the thumbnail recipe uses a ranged read, so a frame from a 2 GB file costs about 0.1 credits and the 2 GB never moves.

2. Direct Storage Delivery (BYOB)

FFmpeg Micro gives you a signed download link for each finished file, and your app pulls it from there.

On paid plans, Xora can write finished files straight into your own Cloudflare R2 bucket, so outputs land in storage you control when the job completes. On any plan, managed storage gives you signed URLs and a Files API to list and delete outputs, and downloads are free.

See all options in the best FFmpeg APIs compared, and Xora’s pricing.

Xora vs. FFmpeg Micro