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System requirements and video performance

Cropped processes media locally. Your processor, memory, available storage and the video itself determine how smoothly you can edit and how long exports take. No video is uploaded to speed up processing.

#Supported computers

The current Mac installer is for Apple Silicon and macOS 14 Sonoma or later. The Windows installer is for x64 Windows 11. Use the installer for your system; a memory recommendation does not make an unsupported operating system compatible. The older Legacy Mac edition has different capabilities and is not currently offered for new downloads.

#Recommended memory and storage

These are practical starting recommendations, not measured minimum requirements or export-speed promises. We have not completed a benchmark matrix across these configurations.

Keep room for the source, optional temporary source copy, playback preview, in-progress export and final output. A temporary copy needs at least the source file's size in additional space on the system's temporary drive. Export staging and publication can briefly need space for more than one output; larger intermediate or original-quality files may exceed the source size. A fixed free-space number cannot cover every video.

Preferences › App › Your computer shows the locally available processor, logical core count, memory and free space on the temporary drive. This is a snapshot, not a speed score or a measurement of the destination drive. These details stay on this device.

#Why a video is slow

• Resolution and frame rate: a 3840 × 2160 frame has four times as many pixels as 1920 × 1080. At the same size, 60 fps has twice the frames of 30 fps. This raises the work involved, but does not predict an exact export-time multiplier.
• Codec and hardware support: compressed formats can be difficult to decode and seek. A GPU or media engine helps only when its encoder supports the requested codec, profile and settings. Cropped probes available encoders and falls back to software when needed.
• CPU: software encoding, resizing, HDR tone mapping and other filters depend on processor speed. Logical core count alone does not predict performance.
• Memory: large frames, previews and other open apps compete for RAM. Memory pressure and swapping can make editing less responsive. File size is not the amount of RAM needed: media is processed in chunks and frames.
• Storage: slow external drives, network folders and cloud files that are not fully downloaded can delay imports and seeking. Referencing an external source keeps that drive in the playback and export path.
• Power and heat: laptop power settings, other applications and sustained workloads can affect speed.

For the processing stages behind these differences, see the FFmpeg transcoding documentation. The recommendations above are Cropped guidance, not FFmpeg hardware requirements.

#Make editing and exports lighter

Start with a short representative clip. Close other heavy apps, use local SSD storage, and try H.264 or HEVC with Fast encoder speed. Hardware support is checked during export; Fast does not guarantee hardware encoding for every option. Lower the output size or frame rate if the result allows it. Avoid running a large export while recording your screen.

If playback is unsupported, use Create compatible preview. That temporary preview is for playback; export still reads the full-quality source. Preview creation itself takes time and disk space. Reducing export resolution does not change the original playback source.

#Original file or temporary copy

In Preferences › Studio › Video imports, choose Reference original (default) for quick imports without another source copy, or Make temporary copy to work from a Cropped-owned copy. This preference applies to the next videos imported into Studio in the current desktop app.

Reference original requires the file to stay in place and its drive to remain connected. If it moves or changes, re-import it. Make temporary copy adds import time and disk usage, but after the copy completes the original can move or disconnect. Cropped removes the owned copy when the video is removed or the app quits normally. An interrupted app or system may leave temporary files for later system cleanup.

Use Add files to reliably provide a native file path. A dropped file from an app that does not expose a usable path still needs a bounded temporary copy. A compatible playback preview is separate from this source-copy preference.

Both choices are nondestructive: Cropped reads the chosen source and exports a new file. “Reference original” does not overwrite or modify your original video. Drop Zone keeps its existing import behavior.

Still stuck? Click the ? button at the bottom left of the Cropped Studio to ask, send us a message, or request a feature.