MTS to TAR Converter
Processing entirely on your device — large files may take a moment.
AVCHD Video and TAR Archive exist for different jobs: MTS is the raw AVCHD clip format Sony/Canon camcorders write — high-bitrate H.264 transport streams straight off the memory card. TAR preserves the exact file tree and permissions that Linux tooling expects.
This converter runs entirely in your browser using WebAssembly — your files never leave your device, nothing is uploaded, and there are no watermarks, sign-ups or queues. Drop in several files at once to convert them as a batch.
How to convert MTS to TAR
- 1
Select your files
Select your MTS file — it never leaves your device.
- 2
Convert instantly
The engine packs the file, byte for byte, into a TAR container — no re-encoding, no quality change.
- 3
Download results
Download the finished TAR archive.
About the MTS format
MTS is what actually comes off a Sony or Canon AVCHD camcorder's memory card: high-bitrate H.264 transport streams with AC-3/PCM audio, often split across a BDMV folder structure. The video inside is excellent — the container is what edit software refuses to import.
Converting MTS to MP4 remuxes or re-encodes into a container every device opens. Stream-copy is possible when the H.264 profile is baseline-compatible; otherwise a light re-encode fixes compatibility without visible loss.
+Strengths
- ✓Native camcorder quality (24-28 Mbps)
- ✓Audio in AC-3/PCM survives remux
- ✓ffmpeg handles the transport stream natively
!Limitations
- −AVCHD H.264 profiles not always stream-copyable
- −Interlaced variants need deinterlacing
- −60p modes confuse older editors
About the TAR format
TAR (tape archive) is Unix's fifty-year-old answer to bundling: it concatenates files with headers into a single stream, preserving POSIX permissions, ownership and symlinks — but compressing nothing. It is the container half of the classic .tar.gz pairing and the native format of Linux source trees and backups.
Being pure bundling, TAR pairs with a compressor: gzip (the classic), bzip2, zstd. Alone, a TAR is the same size as its contents. Windows 10+ ships bsdtar, so even Windows can unpack it now — permissions aside, where NTFS has no room to be faithful.
+Strengths
- ✓Preserves Unix permissions and symlinks
- ✓Streamable: works over pipes and tapes
- ✓The standard of Linux distribution and backup
!Limitations
- −No compression by itself
- −No built-in encryption
- −Permissions meaningless on Windows filesystems
Why convert MTS to TAR?
There is a concrete reason this conversion exists: AVCHD H.264 profiles not always stream-copyable TAR sidesteps that — Preserves Unix permissions and symlinks If that is your situation, the tool above settles it in seconds, entirely on your device.
Frequently asked questions
Is this MTS to TAR converter really free?
Yes — completely free, with no sign-up, no watermark and no daily conversion limits. The site is supported by advertising.
Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. The conversion runs entirely inside your browser using WebAssembly, so your files never leave your device — that is what makes it instant and private.
Does it work on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android?
Yes. Anything with a modern browser works: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. No software installation is required.
Is there a file size limit for MTS to TAR?
The only limit is your device's memory, since nothing is uploaded. Files up to a few hundred megabytes work fine on a modern desktop browser; very large files simply take a little longer.
Why is video conversion slower than image conversion?
Every frame has to be decoded and re-encoded. This site runs that work on your own CPU via WebAssembly — nothing is uploaded, but a multi-minute video reasonably takes a few minutes. Images, by comparison, are single-frame jobs.
Does converting MTS to TAR re-encode my video?
Yes. The video is decoded and re-encoded with the settings chosen by the quality slider, which is what allows the format and size to change. For an archival copy, keep higher quality; for sharing, lower quality gives a much smaller file.