H.264 at a glance
- Full name
- ITU-T H.264, “Advanced video coding for generic audiovisual services”; also ISO/IEC MPEG-4 Part 10 (AVC)
- First approved
- May 2003; still maintained (latest ITU edition June 2026)
- Used for
- Most HD IPTV channels and streaming apps
- Typical 1080p bitrate
- 6 to 7.8 Mbps in Apple’s example HLS settings
From ITU-T and Apple’s HLS authoring specification, checked 1 October 2026.
What a codec does
A raw HD picture is far too much data to send over broadband. A codec compresses it by storing complete pictures only now and then (key frames) and, in between, only what changes. The player’s decoder rebuilds each frame. H.264 was a big step in efficiency over the MPEG-2 codec used for early digital TV, which is what made HD streaming over ordinary broadband realistic.
Why IPTV still uses H.264
- Universal hardware decoding. Phones, smart TVs, sticks, boxes and browsers all decode it, so a channel in H.264 plays almost anywhere.
- Compatibility advice. Apple’s HLS authoring specification says some video content should be encoded with H.264 for backward compatibility, even when newer codecs are offered too.
- Low decoding load. Older and budget devices handle H.264 comfortably, where H.265 can push them to the limit.
How much data it needs
The bitrate decides how much detail survives compression. Apple’s example settings for HLS streaming to its devices:
| Resolution | H.264 bitrate |
|---|---|
| 540p | 2 Mbps |
| 720p | 3 to 4.5 Mbps |
| 1080p | 6 to 7.8 Mbps |
Apple doesn’t list a 4K H.264 rung; its 4K examples use HEVC. For 4K, H.265 needs much less data, which is why 4K IPTV channels normally use it. See H.264 vs H.265.
H.264, H.265 and AV1
| H.264 (AVC) | H.265 (HEVC) | AV1 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Device support | Almost universal | Most devices from recent years | Newer devices only |
| Data for the same picture | Most | Less | Less again |
| Typical IPTV use | HD channels | 4K and some HD channels | A few newer streams |
If a channel won’t play, the codec is one of the first things to check. H.264 channels failing on a device is unusual, and points to the stream or the player rather than the codec. See codec not supported and playback error.