How to Rip a DVD: 8 Tested Tools With Step-by-Step Guide [2026]

With modern portable mobile screens far exceeding DVD resolution, ripping DVDs to digital formats is the best way to ensure convenient, high-quality viewing across all your devices. This article covers how to rip a DVD in 8 of the best and easiest ways. I tested each tool and provided a brief overview, step-by-step instructions, and a balanced list of pros and cons for each approach.

❗Disclaimer: DVDFab neither endorses nor encourages any DVD ripping activities involving commercial purposes. This tutorial is intended for personal use only. We advises users to review local copyright regulations before ripping any DVD to ensure all actions comply with legal provisions.

Snapshot of 8 Best Methods to Rip DVDs

👉To save time, scan the eight options below and start with the method that matches your DVD source and output needs.

How to Rip DVD? Check The Top 8 Ways

Ripping DVDs can make your DVD-watching experience flexible and device-independent. This section walks you through 8 commonly used methods for how to rip DVDs, with software introduction, tutorials, recommended presets, and when to choose each tool.

Author

When choosing products to review, I consider popularity and overall reputation. I consult user reviews from major platforms and include user feedback on official forums in our evaluations. I also personally test each product, comparing key features, formats, and conversion quality.

1. How to Rip a DVD with DVDFab DVD Ripper

DVDFab DVD Ripper lets you rip protected DVDs (disc, ISO, or folder) on Windows and macOS. It supports GPU-accelerated encoding on compatible hardware and supports many common and newly released DVD protections (e.g., APS, CSS, DADC, and region codes). During DVD ripping, you can fine-tune codec, bitrate, frame rate, resolution, subtitles, and audio tracks, and use the built-in editor for cropping, trimming, and watermarks. It can rip a DVD to 1000+ popular formats (e.g., MP4, MKV, MOV, AVI, MP3, AAC), with 260+ device profiles for smooth playback on phones, tablets, TVs, and media servers.

• Why I picked it: I picked DVDFab DVD Ripper because in my tests it was the most reliable option for ripping new, copy-protected DVDs on both Windows and Mac while still giving me fast GPU-accelerated encodes and full control over formats, audio, and subtitles.
• OS: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 & macOS 10.13 or newer
• Rating: 4.5/5

Tutorial: How to Rip DVDs with DVDFab DVD Ripper [Video Included]

Step 1: Download and install DVDFab 13.

Step 2: Run DVDFab and load your DVD source.

Open DVDFab and select Ripper Module. Insert your desired DVD into the optical drive, and the program will automatically load the DVD. Alternatively, click "+" or "Add Source" button to add your source files. If you want to rip DVD ISO images or folders, drag and drop files directly onto the interface.

Step 3: Select output format and customize your video.

Open "Profile Selection Box", and select the output profile format from the built-in profile library. In the format tab, you can choose to rip DVD to MP4, MKV, MP3, AVI and many other digital formats. Alternatively, in the device tab, select a profile based on what playback device you use.

Advice on format selection: 

• The "MP4.Mobile" profile (video codec H.264 and audio codec AAC) is recommended for mobile devices.
• For home theaters: either use "MKV.Passthrough" to keep the selected original video, audio, and subtitle streams without video re-encoding (with larger files) or select a re-encoded profile that balances visual quality and file size.

Next, customize the video with audio, subtitles, chapters, and other advanced settings depending on your needs. If the disc contains multiple audio tracks in different languages, simply select the one you prefer; the same goes for subtitles. You can even click the subtitles dropdown menu and choose "Add External Subtitles" to add your own subtitles.

DIY your DVDs with the built-in editing modules (Video Edit and Trim), which offers customization options such as cropping, applying effects, adding text or image watermarks, inserting subtitles, and adjusting audio volume or playback speed.

Step 4: Rip DVD.

In the Output box, click folder, and select a directory to save the output video. Then, click the "Start" to rip DVDs.

For a quick visual recap of the steps above, the official tutorial video below covers everything.

DVDFab DVD Ripper also offers a lifetime-free but simplified version - DVDFab HD Decrypter - that can rip supported DVDs and Blu-rays, mainly discs released more than one year ago, to MP4 or MKV. Both versions are installed in one DVDFab package.

2. How to Rip a DVD for Free with HandBrake

HandBrake is a well-known free and open-source program for transcoding DVD sources it can read on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It offers MP4, MKV, and WebM output, along with video filters such as Deblock, Denoise, and Colorspace and a video preview option. HandBrake itself does not defeat or circumvent copy protection.

• Why I picked it: I use HandBrake because it's a free, open-source ripper that makes it easy to turn DVDs into clean MP4 files with plenty of advanced tweaking options when I need them.
• OS: Windows 10/11, Mac & Linux
• Rating: 3.5/5

Tutorial: Rip Video from DVD with HandBrake

Step 1: Download and install the HandBrake software on your Windows or Mac system from the HandBrake official website. Then launch HandBrake.

Step 2: Next, insert the DVD you want to rip into your computer. From the "Source Selection" panel, select your inserted DVD. Then, from the drop-down menu, select the titles of the DVD you want to rip. You can also choose the range of chapters you want to rip in the "Range" box.

Step 3: For further customization for playback, choose quality presets based on your needs. In the "Format" dropdown, select your output format. On the main interface you'll also find the "Filters", "Video", and "Audio" sections, where you can adjust image effects, audio/video quality, and subtitle options as required.

Step 4: Click "Browse" and select the destination where you would like to save the ripped DVDs. Then click the "Start Encode" option next to the play button at the upper section of the window. Following the progress bar, you can monitor the required timing of the ripping process.

3. How to Rip a DVD with VLC

VLC is a free, open-source, cross-platform media player that can also perform basic DVD ripping. It plays discs, files, and streams, and includes a simple Convert/Save workflow to transcode DVD content to formats like MP4 or MKV. You can preview output and adjust essentials such as codec, bitrate, resolution, and audio tracks. DVD access can vary with the disc, drive, region handling, and local libdvdcss setup, so VLC is less predictable than a dedicated DVD ripper for protected commercial discs.

• Why I picked it: It's already my everyday media player, and its built-in ripping feature is a convenient "good enough" solution for simple, unprotected DVDs without installing another tool.
• OS: All versions of Windows, Mac OS X 10.7.5 or later, Linux/Unix
• Rating: 4.4/5

Tutorial: How to Rip DVDs with VLC

Step 1: After opening the VLC media player on your system, head to the "Media" > "Convert / Save" > select the "Disc Tab".

Step 2: Go to the "Disc Selection" > select the DVD option > then select DVD Drive location > select "Convert / Save" at the below of the screen.

Step 3: Under the Profile section select the codec and other parameters that you want to use for ripping. Generally, we choose "Video – H.264 + MP3 (MP4)".

Step 4: Next, select the "Browse" option > destination & Filename > then click "Save" > then hit the "Start" option to begin the ripping process. That's how to rip DVDs with VLC.

4. How to Use MakeMKV to Rip a DVD

MakeMKV rips DVDs without re-encoding to MKV format, preserving the original video, audio tracks, chapters, subtitles, and metadata. The resulting files play on many modern devices and players (or can be remuxed if needed). It can handle some copy-protection schemes, and no additional software is required for conversion or decryption.

• Why I picked it: I use MakeMKV because it lets me dump a DVD straight to an MKV file without re-encoding, which is perfect when I want a fast, essentially lossless backup to archive.
• OS: Windows XP or later, x86 or x64 & x64 or ARM64 Mac OS X 10.7 or later
• Rating: 4.5/5

Tutorial: Rip a DVD with MakeMKV

Step 1: Launch the MakeMKV software on your Windows or Mac, and insert the DVD to be ripped into the optical drive. Then open MakeMKV > select the optical drive option to let the tool read the DVD.

Step 2: After loading the DVD, the tool will show the loaded DVD content as a tree structure. Then customize the output profile, including the titles, audio tracks, and other options.

Step 3: Click the yellow file folder > select the directory for your output file > click MakeMKV, and the encrypted DVD will be ripped. You can monitor the ripping process with a progress bar.

5. How to Rip DVDs Using MacX DVD Ripper

MacX DVD Ripper is a macOS app that can convert DVD to digital formats. It bypasses common protections (CSS, region codes, etc.) and converts disc/ISO/folder to a wide range of outputs like MP4/H.264 or HEVC, MOV, MKV, and device presets for iPhone/iPad/Android. It also taps hardware acceleration for fast ripping. On top of that, it includes practical editing tools—crop to remove black bars or adjust the frame, trim clips to the exact duration you need, and even add subtitles—so you can fine-tune the rip before you export. 

• Why I picked it: It's compatible with my MacBook Air with Sonoma and can give reliable outputs. With hardware acceleration and presets, it makes it easy to get a playable file in one pass.
• OS: macOS 10.13 or later; current MacX DVD Ripper Pro v6.9.0 includes native Apple Silicon support.
• Rating: 4.5/5

Tutorial: Extract video from DVDs with MacX DVD Ripper

Step 1: Insert your desired DVD into your Mac and then launch the MacX DVD Ripper on your computer. Select "Disc" in the top left corner to load the imported DVD content. If you plan to rip a DVD image or a DVD folder, choose the corresponding "Image" or "Folder" module to proceed.

Step 2: Once the DVD file is analyzed, you can select your required format for the output profile. For further customization, you can try editing adjustments such as cropping, trimming, adding watermarks, etc. On the right-side panel, you can enable the hardware-acceleration option available for your Mac when supported. If your original DVD is interlaced video, tick "Advanced De-interlace Accelerator" to make the video much clearer.

Step 3: Choose the "output folder" where you want to save the ripped files. Then click "Run" to start the ripping process immediately. That's how to rip a DVD on macOS. If ripping keeps failing, try checking "Safe Mode Conversion" on the main panel before you start rip DVDs.

6. How to Rip DVD Using Leawo DVD Ripper

Leawo DVD Ripper supports 180+ output formats including MP4, MKV, MOV, AAC, and MP3, together with video editing, format conversion, and profile settings. It also allows you to merge DVD clips into one clip.

• Why I picked it: The reason why I use Leawo is its built-in web-video presets and simple editor make it handy when I want to turn a DVD clip into something ready for YouTube or social uploads.
• OS: Windows 7/8/8.1/10/11 & macOS 10.13 through macOS Tahoe 26
• Rating: 4.1/5

Tutorial: How to Extract Video from DVD with Leawo DVD Ripper

Step 1: Launch Leawo on your PC, switch to "Convert", then click "Add UHD/Blu-ray/DVD" to load your source. You can add a DVD folder or ISO for conversion.

Step 2: Open the format drop-down and choose "Change". Pick an output from "Common Video", "Common Audio", or "HD Video".

Step 3: If you prefer device-based presets, go to the "Device" tab. Use the "Profile Search Bar" to quickly find the format you need.

Step 4: Hover over your selected format to reveal "Edit", then configure parameters such as video codec, frame rate, bitrate, resolution, and audio channels.

Step 5: You can also access the "Profile Setting" panel via "MP4 Video" > "Edit". When ready, click "Convert" to start ripping. Set the output directory and any post-conversion options as prompted. You can cancel the conversion at any time.

7. How to Rip DVDs on Windows with Freemake

Freemake Video Converter provides a simple Windows workflow for loading a DVD or VIDEO_TS folder and converting selected titles to formats such as MP4, MKV, AVI, and others. Its current DVD instructions specify adding media from a disc without DRM protection. It also lets you adjust output settings to reduce file size for portable-device storage.

• Why I picked it: The interface is very beginner-friendly, so it's a quick way to do basic DVD-to-MP4 rips without learning a complex workflow.
• OS: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7/Vista
• Rating: 3.7/5

Tutorial: How to Rip DVD on Windows with Freemake 

Step 1: Launch Freemake on your PC and insert the DVD you want to rip into the optical drive. Click "+DVD" on the toolbar. In the dialog, select the DVD drive or browse to the VIDEO_TS folder, then confirm to load. Wait for Freemake to analyze the disc. The main movie and other titles will appear in a list.

Step 2: At the bottom format bar, click your target format, such as to MP4, to MKV, or to AVI. In the preset window, pick a profile that fits your needs. For advanced options, click the gear icon to adjust codec, frame rate, frame size, birate, audio channels and so on. If needed, click Edit or the scissors icon to trim the start/end, cut unwanted segments, or crop borders.

Step 3: In the format dialog, set "Save to" and choose your output directory. Click "Convert" to begin. A progress bar shows time remaining; you can pause or cancel at any point.

8. How to Rip DVDs with Prism Video File Converter

Prism Video File Converter is another tool that can rip DVDs into digital formats. Its core strength is converting between digital video formats, but it also supports DVD ripping with outputs to 30+ formats. That said, it isn't a dedicated DVD ripper and cannot open and rip copy-protected DVDs.

• Why I picked it: It can take my DVD rips and convert them into a wide range of video types, including some older or niche formats for legacy devices.
• OS: Windows (7 to 11), macOS 10.5 or above
• Rating: 3.3/5

Tutorial: How to use Prism Video File Converter to rip DVDs

Step 1: Open the program and click "Menu" → "File". If you want to rip a DVD disc, click "Add DVD Disc to Convert...". If your source is an ISO, click "Add Files to List" to load your file.

Step 2: After the software finishes loading your source, you'll see multiple entries. Check the Size; the largest one is usually the main movie. Select the main movie to rip. Click "Convert to File" at the bottom of the main window, then choose the format you want to export. You can also pick a common format quickly from the "Output Format" icons. If you accidentally added the wrong file or an entry you don't want to rip, click "Remove" to delete it.

Step 3: Next are the advanced settings. Click "Edit" on the top menu, then choose the tools you need from the dropdown, including "Color Change", "Text Caption", "Rotate", "Flip", and "Crop". You can also use "Effects" at the bottom-right of the main window to edit the video, such as "Noise Reduction", "Speed", and "Split". After adjustments, use "Preview" on the top menu to check the result.

Step 4: When everything is set, click "Browse" to choose where to save the output file. Then click "Convert" and wait for the DVD to be ripped.

How to Pick the Best Way to Rip DVDs: Tested & Compared

Now that you understand how to rip a DVD to your computer, the next step is choosing a right and reliable DVD ripping software for your needs. To help you make an informed decision, I've not only compared key features but also included hands-on test results for these tools.

To complement the step-by-step tutorial, I ran a test with two popular tools, DVDFab and HandBrake. Tests ran on a Windows 10 PC (Intel Core i7-6700, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Ti) using 8 Mile (1 h 50 min, 6.13 GB). Here are the results.

What this means:

Speed: The time can change depending on the presets, GPU use, and deinterlacing. In this test, all the conditions were the same, and DVDFab finished faster at 5 minutes and 29 seconds.

Quality of Output: Both tools made 720p video, but DVDFab's 5.1 channel audio was a big plus for people who wanted a more immersive sound experience.

Overall, DVDFab DVD Ripper is the best choice for people who care about speed and high-quality output. HandBrake is free and lets you do a lot of things, but it might not be the best choice for people who need more speed.

How to Rip a DVD: Common Errors and Solutions

DVD ripping can slow down, stop, select the wrong title, or produce a file that does not play as expected. The checks below cover common problems reported when ripping DVDs and add a specific check for unusually slow ripping.

Conclusion

The right way to rip a DVD depends first on the output you want. Use MP4 with H.264 or H.265 when smaller files and broad playback support matter, use an MKV passthrough or remux when you want to keep selected original DVD streams without video re-encoding.

 DVDFab DVD Ripper provides encoded profiles and MKV Passthrough together with title, audio, subtitle, and output controls. HandBrake is a free transcoder for DVD sources it can read, while MakeMKV is useful when MKV remuxing is the goal. If a rip is unexpectedly slow, first check whether the job is encoding or remuxing, whether filters or hardware acceleration are active, and whether the optical drive is repeatedly rereading the disc