Skip to main content
rotate.video

How to rotate a video on a Chromebook

Fix a sideways clip in Chrome on any Chromebook, then find the new file in Downloads or move it to Google Drive.

Choose a video to rotate

Drop one here or choose one from your device.

Works withMP4MOVWebMMKVand more

Private: your video never leaves your device.

  1. 1Choose video
  2. 2Rotate
  3. 3Download

Quick answer: open Chrome, go to rotate.video and choose your video in the window that pops up. Click Right or Left until it's upright, then click Export video and Download video. The rotated copy lands in the Files app under My files → Downloads.

ChromeOS plays videos in its Gallery app, which is designed for watching rather than editing. Its tools also differ between ChromeOS versions, so it isn't a dependable way to turn a clip. Chrome is on every Chromebook, which makes the browser method the one to rely on.

Rotate a video in Chrome on a Chromebook

There is nothing to install and no account to create. The video stays on the Chromebook the whole time.

  1. Get the video onto the Chromebook

    If the clip is on your phone or in Google Photos, copy it into Downloads or Google Drive first. The section below covers the usual routes.

  2. Open the tool

    Open Chrome and go to rotate.video. The tool sits at the top of the page.

  3. Choose the file

    Click the upload area and a Files picker opens, listing Downloads, Google Drive and any USB stick or SD card. You can also drag a clip in from an open Files window.

  4. Turn it upright

    Use the Right or Left button, or the ] and [ keys, until faces and text stand the right way up. Pick 180° for a clip that is upside down.

  5. Export

    Leave Canvas on Expand and click Export video. A quarter turn is a quick, lossless copy, even on a low-powered Chromebook.

  6. Download and find it

    Click Download video. Chrome saves the file to Downloads, and pressing Ctrl + J lists it among your recent downloads.

Getting the video onto your Chromebook

  • From an Android phone: connect it with a USB cable, choose File transfer in the phone's USB notification, and copy the clip from the phone's folder in the Files app.
  • From Google Photos: open photos.google.com in Chrome, open the video, and download it from the three-dot menu.
  • From Google Drive: there's no need to copy it. Google Drive appears in the file picker, so you can open the clip from there, though a large file may take a moment to come down first.
  • From an iPhone: upload the clip to Google Drive or iCloud on the phone, then download it on the Chromebook. AirDrop only works between Apple devices.
  • From a camera: put its SD card in the Chromebook's card slot or a USB card reader, and the card shows up in Files.

Choosing where the rotated file is saved

Chrome puts downloads in the Downloads folder under My files unless you've told it otherwise. To choose a folder every time, open Chrome's settings, go to Downloads and turn on Ask where to save each file before downloading.

To keep the clip in the cloud, open the Files app and drag it from Downloads onto Google Drive in the left-hand list. Anything in Downloads exists only on that Chromebook, so moving important videos to Drive also protects them if the device is ever reset.

The new file takes the original's name with "-rotated" added, such as beach-rotated.mp4, so it sits beside the original instead of replacing it.

Flips, fine angles and other edits on a Chromebook

The same page can flip, mirror, straighten by a fine angle, crop or trim. Those edits redraw every frame inside the browser, and on a Chromebook with a modest processor a long clip can take a while.

  • Leave the tab open until the export finishes, since closing it stops the work.
  • Choose 720p under Export settings if the clip is only for a quick share. Smaller frames take less work to encode.
  • Plug the charger in for a long export so the battery doesn't run down part of the way through.

For crooked footage, see straightening a tilted video. For backwards selfie clips, see mirror a video.

Other ways to rotate a video on a Chromebook

  • Android apps: many Chromebooks can install apps from Google Play, including video editors that rotate clips. Features differ from app to app, and some add a watermark or charge for export. The Android guide covers rotating on a phone.
  • Linux: if you've switched on the Linux development environment, ffmpeg can rotate files from the terminal. That suits people already at home on the command line.
  • School and work Chromebooks: an administrator can block downloads, app installs or Linux. The browser tool needs only Chrome and permission to save a file.

Rotating video on a Chromebook: FAQ

Can the Chromebook Gallery app rotate a video?

Gallery is built for viewing, and we can’t point you to a dependable rotate command for video in it. Rotating the clip in Chrome with the tool above works on every Chromebook and saves a proper upright copy.

Where do rotated videos go on a Chromebook?

Into the Downloads folder, which the Files app shows under My files. In Chrome, Ctrl + J opens your downloads list, where you can open the file or show it in its folder.

Does this work on a school Chromebook?

Usually, as it needs nothing beyond Chrome. If your school blocks the site or blocks downloads, the file can’t be saved, and only the administrator can change that.

Will rotating a video on a Chromebook lower its quality?

A plain quarter or half turn keeps it exactly, because the tool copies the frames and updates only the rotation flag. Rotating without losing quality lists the settings that matter.

Which video formats open on a Chromebook?

The tool opens MP4, MOV, WebM and MKV files, including MOV clips from an iPhone. The rotated copy downloads as MP4, or as WebM if you choose it under Export settings.

Is my video uploaded anywhere?

No. Chrome does all the processing on the Chromebook, so the clip never reaches a server. That matters for school projects or family footage you would rather keep private.