SiftVid is built around four capabilities that almost no other tool does well together: a four-state tag-chip filter that composes AND / OR / NOT in a single click, A-B section loop, fuzzy library search at 30k-clip scale, and optional encrypted personal cloud. The rest is conveniences on top.
SiftVid is a web app. There's nothing to install, no codec packs, no admin permissions. You grant your browser a folder, and SiftVid reads the files directly from your drive — the video stream goes from your disk to the player without leaving your machine. For uncommon formats, Pro and Studio cloud transcode them to H.264 on upload so they'll play anywhere.
<video> tag. Zero codec packs.SiftVid is a browser-side player. It relies on your browser's built-in video decoders — which, on modern Chromium, cover MP4 H.264/H.265, WebM, M4V, and OGV. That's the bulk of footage shot since 2015. For older or stranger formats, upload to Pro or Studio cloud and we transcode them to H.264 on the way in.
SiftVid parses every filename and folder on import, extracts entities, and indexes the result with uFuzzy — the same fuzzy library that powers Obsidian, Logseq, and Linear's command palette. AND / OR / NOT operators compose in one search bar.
uFuzzy under the hood, with a 0.85 typo tolerance on common terms and configurable strictness. Hit the same operators you'd use in Gmail or Google: +, −, &, |, and double-quote for exact phrase. Combine them freely.
Filenames, folder paths, and external sidecar files are parsed on import. Tags appear as chips next to each clip — click to filter, shift-click to exclude.
Names, places, dates, and other entities extracted from filenames where structure allows. Generic NLP — not tied to any one content category.
Unlimited user-defined tags per clip. Apply in bulk from a selection. Saved alongside your library, never in the cloud unless you sync.
Star clips for quick recall. Lock favorites so they can't be accidentally deleted from the library — useful when culling thousands of clips.
Mount multiple folders across C:, D:, and external drives as one library. Search and tag treat them as a single set.
Hit the dice key for a random clip from your filtered set. Rediscover footage you forgot you had.
The reason coaches and instructors use this and not VLC. A-B loop is a first-class control, not a hidden shortcut. Speed cycling with pitch preservation. Hover-to-preview thumbnails. Favourite, lock, and the dice button for re-discovery — the whole player is built around review, not just playback.
First-class custom Video.js control with three visible states: idle, point-A set, looping. Tap to set A, tap again to set B, the player loops the section indefinitely.
Cycle 0.25× / 0.5× / 0.75× / 1× / 1.25× / 1.5× / 2× with a visual gradient indicator. Pitch-preserved audio at every speed.
Thumbnails play a short auto-generated highlight reel on hover. Smart algorithm picks segments based on motion and duration. Toggle off if you prefer static thumbnails.
Space, M, arrows, [ / ] for speed, F for fullscreen, Esc to back out, Ctrl+F to search. Every common action mapped, every binding customisable.
Memory + IndexedDB + DynamoDB. Three tiers of caching mean a fresh library load takes seconds, repeat loads are instant, and a cold cache rebuild after a crash is bounded. Sub-3-second first search on a 30k library; sub-200ms thereafter.
Real-world load with 30,000 clips on a USB 3.0 external. First load: 5 s. Warm load: 0.4 s. We benchmark every release.
Thumbnail extraction runs in a worker pool sized to your CPU count. Throttles on battery, scales up on AC power.
Add a folder, start using SiftVid immediately. Tagging, metadata, and thumbnails fill in behind you.
Paid plans extend your library into an encrypted personal cloud — so your second machine, your phone, your iPad on set can all see the same library. Client-side encryption means SiftVid staff cannot decrypt or view your content. Cancel and everything wipes after a 14-day grace.
Files are encrypted on your machine before they leave it. The decryption key is derived from your password and never sent to our servers.
Your data lives in an S3 bucket with no public access. Bucket policies block anonymous reads. Object ACLs are owner-only.
Library metadata, tags, and favorites sync across your own devices. Video bytes stream on demand — only the clips you actually play download.
Companion mobile apps for streaming your own library on the road. iOS uses native AVPlayer; Android uses ExoPlayer. Cloud-transcoded clips play natively on both.
Choose per-clip or per-folder what syncs to the cloud. Lock the rest to local-only. Default is local-only on first sign-in.
Delete a clip from the cloud and it's gone — purged from S3 within 60 minutes, removed from backups within 30 days. Account-wide deletion on cancellation.
The free web app is fully usable with no account, no signup, and no analytics. The cloud features are explicit, opt-in, and end-to-end encrypted. We don't want your video data — and we've designed the system so we can't see it anyway.
Open siftvid.com, grant a folder, start using. The free web app never phones home for content. No email required, no signup wall.
Crash reports and anonymous usage stats are opt-in. Even when on, they include no filenames, paths, tags, or thumbnails — only counts and timings.
We do not use your files, metadata, or search queries to train any model. Not now, not later, full stop.
SiftVid is not the right tool for every job. If you want a Netflix-for-your-house, use Plex. If you want a media server for guests, use Jellyfin. If you're happy with Finder, stay there. Below is when we win.
| What you're trying to do | Finder / Explorer | VLC | Plex / Jellyfin | SiftVid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open a random video file | good | great | via library | great |
| Find one clip in 30,000 | no | no | slow | designed for it |
| Compare 4 angles of the same play | launch 4 apps | no | no | roadmap |
| Loop a 5-second section forever | no | A-B kludge | no | A-B native |
| Play a 2003 camcorder AVI | launches default app | great | transcodes | MP4 only |
| Stream library to family TV | no | no | designed for it | single-user only |
| Share clips with a friend | via cloud links | no | guest accounts | single-user only |
| Cull 200 wedding clips fast | no | no | no | tags + favorites + lock |
In plain English: Plex and Jellyfin are home media servers for distributing content to multiple viewers. SiftVid is a single-user organisation and review tool. Different jobs, different software.
Free web app. Free forever for local use. No install. No credit card.