2 Results-Driven Methods to Remove Black Bars from Video Online

Why Black Bars Appear?

Have you ever experienced this: after hours of editing, you finally upload a video, only to be surprised to see frustrating black bars on both sides of the screen when you play it?

You’re not alone. These black bars, also known as letterboxing, are black areas on the top, bottom, or sides of a video, and they can appear when the video’s aspect ratio doesn’t match the screen’s aspect ratio.

There’s no doubt that in most cases, black bars will make your video look unprofessional and ruin the immersive viewing experience. Therefore, you need to remove these bars to provide a better viewing experience for your viewers.

In the following content, you’ll learn how to remove black bars from video online with Clipchamp and CapCut online video editors.

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How to Remove Black Bars from Video Online No Watermark

Before learning the specific methods to remove black bars, let’s quickly review the common aspect ratios and application scenarios.

Common Aspect Ratios

• 16:9: modern standard for YouTube, Vimeo, widescreen TVs, and most computer monitors.
• 9:16: mainly used for smartphone videos, such as Instagram and Facebook Stories/Reels, TikTok videos, YouTube Shorts, Snapchat Snaps, Stories, and ads, etc.
• 4:3: the standard for older televisions and film. You can now select this ratio for your video to create a vintage feel.
• 1:1: a perfect square format, mainly used in Instagram posts.

Generally speaking, there are 2 strategies to remove black bars from video:

1. Cropping: the most common solution and best for videos where the main subject is in the center.
2. Zooming: directly enlarge the entire video frame until the black bars disappear from view. However, this can make the video look blurry.
3. Add background fill: Replace those black bars with a colored, gradient, or blurred version of your video.

Method 1: Use Clipchamp to Remove Black Bars from Video Online

Step 1: Open Clipchamp Online Video Editor

Navigate to the Clipchamp website and sign in with your Microsoft account. Then, click the Create a new video button at the top to access the main interface.

Step 2: Import Your Video

Click the Import media button on the left to add the target video from your PC, OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, or Xbox. Then, add it to the timeline to begin editing.

Step 3: Remove Black Bars

First, without selecting the clip on the timeline, click any empty area and then choose a ratio from the Size drop-down list if desired.

Next, select the video in the timeline and click the Crop icon on the floating toolbar. Then drag the freehand crop handles left, right, up, or down to crop your clip, and click the Done icon when you’re finished.

Finally, click the Fit button in the floating toolbar to adjust the video to your project’s aspect ratio and remove any black bars.

Step: Export the Video

Click the Export button in the upper-right corner and choose a resolution to save your video.

Method 2: Use CapCut to Remove Black Bars from Video Online

Step 1: Add Your Video to CapCut Online Video Editor

Go to the CapCut website and sign in with your account. Then, click the New video option to open the editing page. Then, click the big plus icon in the center to open your video.

Step 2: Set the Video Aspect Ratio

Based on your needs, click the Ratio option and select the target aspect ratio for your project.

Step 3: Get Rid of Black Bars

Do one of the following to eliminate black bars from your video:

Crop: Highlight the clip on the timeline and click the Crop icon on the floating toolbar inside the video preview. In the Crop window, select an aspect ratio and move the cropping handles to crop the video, or custom crop the video. Then, click Apply to save changes.

Zoom: if the video dimension does not match the project aspect ratio, you can zoom in on the clip by dragging any handle on the frame outward to avoid black bars.

Add background color: click Background on the right sidebar and use the color picker to select a color from your video or choose a solid color. Then, go to the next Blur tab and experiment with all the presets to add a perfect blur background.

Step 4: Save the Video

Click the Export button, then you can choose to share the video on TikTok, YouTube, and other social media platforms. If you need an MP4 or MOV file, select Download to continue, customize export settings, and click Export.

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Conclusion

Black bars may not ruin the video impact, but they definitely affect the viewing experience. Now, with Clipchamp or CapCut, you can easily remove black bars from video online no watermark.