How to Rip and Transfer DVD to iPad Free and Easily in 2025
Summary: Ripping DVDs to iPad lets you enjoy your DVD movies on the go, without needing a disc drive. This guide walks you through how to transfer DVDs to iPad using top-rated and free DVD rippers. With blazing-fast speed and excellent output quality, you’ll save your collection to your iPad in just three easy steps.
Table of Contents
Transferring a DVD to your iPad lets you watch movies anytime without needing a disc or DVD player. Whether you're traveling or just relaxing at home, this guide will show you how to convert and transfer DVD content to your iPad quickly and easily.
Can You Play DVDs on an iPad?
The iPad is an incredibly versatile device with its high-resolution screen and portability, which provides a fantastic viewing experience for all kinds of media. However, you cannot directly play DVDs on an iPad because iPads do not have built-in optical drives or DVD players.
To watch DVD content on your iPad, the standard solution is to rip the DVD to a digital video format compatible with iPadOS, such as MP4 (H.264 or HEVC), M4V, or MOV. Once converted, the file can be transferred to your iPad for smooth offline playback.
This method not only ensures the portability of your movie collection but also extends disc life by reducing physical handling. Thus, we have tested several well-performing DVD rippers to help you quickly convert DVDs to iPad-friendly formats, even for copy-protected discs.
How to Rip DVDs to iPad with 3 Best & Free Converters
Based on performance evaluations and user reviews, we recommend three of the best DVD to iPad converters, including free and premium options, that are compatible with major operating systems and support features like DIY video and hardware acceleration.
Best DVD to iPad Converter - DVDFab DVD Ripper
DVDFab DVD Ripper
Available on: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 & macOS 10.10 - 14
Features:
- Support the latest-released protected DVDs with RC, RCE, UOPs, etc.
- Rip DVD to iPad format and other popular video or audio formats.
- Rip DVD to multiple iPad devices directly, including iPad, iPad 4, iPad Air, iPad mini, etc.
- Customize output via Advanced Settings and built-in Video Editor.
- Super-fast DVD to iPad conversion supported by GPU HW acceleration.
- Offer a lifetime-free version - DVDFab HD Decrypter - that can rip most encrypted DVDs to MP4 or MKV format only.
How to Rip and Copy DVD to iPad with DVDFab DVD Ripper?
Step 1: Launch DVDFab DVD to iPad Converter and load source DVD
Download DVDFab 13 and choose the Ripper module. Insert the DVD into the computer (external) optical drive and DVDFab will auto-recognize it. If your DVD source is an ISO file or folder, tap the '+Add' button or simply drag & drop it to the main UI.
Step 2: Choose One iPad Profile and Customize the Output Video
After loading the source, you can customize the output video. Here, you are free to rip the entire or part of the DVD movie by clicking "Choose other titles". You can also select chapters, audio tracks, and subtitles, or even add external subtitles.
Then click "Choose Other Profile" to go to the profile library. You can click "Device" or "Apple" to find your iPad device as the output profile directly. As you can see, DVDFab supports to rip DVDs to multiple iPad devices, including iPad, iPad 4, iPad Air, iPad mini, etc.
You can also click "Format" or "Video" to rip your DVD to MP4 or other output format supported by your iPad.
Then go to "Advanced Settings" to set parameters for output video and audio. Just choose your wanted output quality as your needs.
If you want to edit the output video, go to the built-in "Video Editor" pane. Here you can trim, crop, and merge clips, add watermarks or subtitles to the video, or adjust its brightness, contrast, and saturation.
Step 3: Start DVD to iPad Conversion
Then choose the output directory. You can save the output video file on your computer HDD or Mobile Device. Once done, hit the Start button to rip and convert DVD to iPad with lightning-fast speed created by GPU hardware acceleration technologies and multi-core processors. The whole DVD to iPad conversion process will be displayed on the progress bar.
Open-source DVD to iPad Converter - HandBrake
Handbrake is a free and popular open-source video transcoder that is compatible with both Windows, Mac and Linux. It is able to rip DVDs to iPad along with Android, Amazon Fire, Roku, and PlayStation, among others. Also, the tool allows you to rip general Blu-ray or DVD to USB, MP4, MKV, and WebM video formats and some audio formats.
There are also some customized options such as selecting chapters and subtitles. However, HandBrake fails to process DVD or Blu-ray that contain copy protections.
Features:
- Free and Open-source.
- Come with built-in device presets for optimal playback quality.
- Support MP4 using H.264 and H.265 encoding.
- Can downscale DVD video to balance file size and video clarity.
How to transfer non-encrypted DVDs to an iPad using HandBrake?
Free DVD to iPad Converter - VLC Media Player
VLC Media Player is a versatile media player that also includes a basic DVD ripping feature. While it's not as powerful or flexible as DVDFab or other advanced software, it can rip DVDs into MP4 format—which is compatible with iPad—without needing extra conversion steps.
Features:
- Free and no extra fee.
- Available on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
- Can rip DVDs directly to MP4 format.
- Support basic subtitle/audio track selection.
- No built-in decryption for copy-protected DVDs (needs workaround).
How to Rip DVDs to iPad using VLC Media Player
Ctrl + R).
How to Transfer Converted DVDs to iPad?
After ripping DVDs to iPad-supported video formats, you need to transfer the converted video files to the iPad. Here are three simple solutions for your option:
Solution 1: Transfer via USB cable
If you prefer using wired solutions, you can always connect your iPad to the PC with the help of a USB cable. Next, you can transfer the converted video files to the iPad on HDD. This is the most direct way and quickest method used for transferring the files.
Solution 2: Using DVDFab File Transfer
Note that DVDFab File Transfer is a free and easy-to-use tool working with DVDFab Remote, DVD Ripper, Blu-ray Ripper, UHD Ripper, and Video Converter to transfer converted MP4 video files from computer HDD to smartphones and tablets automatically and wirelessly.
Step 1: Download and install DVDFab Transfer, and choose 'Utilities>File Transfer.
When you choose the output as Mobile in the Ripper and Converter modules, DVDFab File Transfer window will appear automatically after the DVD to iPad conversion task is completed. Once you want to transfer the videos already saved on your computer HDD, just click 'Utilities>File Transfer' to launch the program, and click the 'Add' button at the top right corner to load your desired videos.
Step 2: Connect your iPad with DVDFab via DVDFab Remote.
Click the Transfer button to start the transfer process. Once done, your video files will be saved on the Gallery, Photo, or Movies folder of your iPad.
Solution 3: Using iTunes
Another way of transferring your ripped DVD to an iPad is by syncing your content with the help of iTunes. Once you are done ripping your DVD to MP4 format, you can sync the files with the help of iTunes. Next, you can watch them on your iPad easily.
iTunes is the default app by Apple for media management that permits the syncing of all kinds of media, including music, movies, and apps, to your iOS devices. You can copy the DVDs on a PC and then add them to iTunes. Below are the steps to transfer DVD to iPad with the help of iTunes:
Step 1: Open the iTunes app on your PC. Tap the File options and click Add File to Library. Browse for the DVD file that was copied to your computer and add it to iTunes.
Step 2: Navigate to the converted DVD and iPad video (say MOV, MP4) files saved on HDD. Then all the loaded video files will appear under the Movies>Home Videos on the iTunes app.
Step 3: Now connect your iPad to your computer via a USB cable. Then choose the add videos on iTunes and synchronize them with your iPad.
FAQs
The legality of ripping DVDs depends on the copyright laws in your country. In many regions, including the U.S., UK, and EU, circumventing DVD copy protection can technically violate copyright regulations.
That said, enforcement is generally lax when the conversion is done strictly for personal use, without sharing or selling the ripped content. To stay fully compliant, consider using DRM-free DVDs (such as home videos) or seek permission from the copyright holder.
No. QuickTime Player on macOS can record the screen while playing DVDs, but it can't decrypt or rip copy-protected commercial DVDs.This method will result in lower quality and longer conversion time, and it's not suitable for converting an entire DVD collection.
If you want to get higher quality results with full subtitle/audio track support, please use a specialized DVD ripping tool such as DVDFab DVD Ripper.
What is the best video format for iPad playback?
The most compatible format is MP4 (H.264 video with AAC audio). This format offers:
- High compression with good visual quality
- Full compatibility with the iOS default player (TV app, Photos, Docs)
- Efficient use of the battery on an iPad
Final Thoughts
Although iPad doesn't directly support DVD playback, the best DVD Ripper for Mac and Windows like DVDFab DVD Ripper can make the conversion process simple and efficient. This article helps you learn how to rip DVD to iPad-compatible video format with high speed and high quality. And after conversion, transferring videos to iPad is straightforward, whether via USB or iTunes.
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