HEVC, also called H.265, is a video codec that compresses video about twice as efficiently as the older H.264, so an IPTV channel in HEVC needs roughly half the bandwidth for the same picture quality. It is the standard for 4K streams, but your device must support HEVC decoding to play it smoothly.
H.264 vs H.265 (HEVC) #
| H.264 (AVC) | H.265 (HEVC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Efficiency | Baseline | About 2× better |
| Typical 1080p bitrate | ~6–8 Mbps | ~3–4 Mbps |
| 4K support | Rarely used | Standard |
| Device support | Everything | Most devices from recent years |
| CPU load without hardware decoding | Low | High |
Does my device support HEVC? #
- Yes: Fire TV Stick 4K / 4K Max, NVIDIA Shield, Apple TV 4K, recent Android TV boxes, most 4K smart TVs.
- Often no or slow: very old Android boxes, older Fire TV Lite/HD sticks for 4K, some older laptops without hardware decoding.
When to choose HEVC channels #
Choose HEVC when your connection is slow, you are on a data cap, or you watch 4K. On an older device, stick with H.264. More on data in how much data IPTV uses.
Frequently asked questions #
What is HEVC in IPTV?
HEVC (H.265) is a video codec that gives the same quality as H.264 using about half the data, and it is used for most 4K channels.
Is HEVC better than H.264?
It is more efficient, but needs a device with hardware HEVC decoding. On older devices H.264 can play more smoothly.
Why do HEVC channels not play on my device?
Your device may lack hardware HEVC decoding. Use the H.264 version of the channel or upgrade the device.
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