# .flv MIME Type: video/x-flv

> Flash Video. Nothing plays it in the browser anymore, but the format lives on in live streaming.

- MIME type: `video/x-flv`
- Extensions: .flv
- Content-Type header: `video/x-flv`
- Compress in transit: no (already compressed)
- File signature: `46 4C 56 01`

## Good to know

- RTMP — still the common way to push a live stream from OBS to a streaming platform — carries its audio and video as FLV tags.
- To put old FLV files on the web, remux or transcode them to MP4.

## Server configuration

### nginx (inside the types block in mime.types)

```
video/x-flv flv;
```

### Apache (.htaccess or server config)

```
AddType video/x-flv .flv
```

### Express

```
res.set("Content-Type", "video/x-flv");
```

### Python

```
import mimetypes

mimetypes.add_type("video/x-flv", ".flv")
```

### HTML file input

```
<input type="file" accept=".flv,video/x-flv">
```

## FAQ

### What is the MIME type for .flv files?

`video/x-flv`.

### What Content-Type header should a .flv file be served with?

`Content-Type: video/x-flv`. It's already compressed, so servers shouldn't gzip it.

### How can I tell if a file is really a .flv?

Check its bytes rather than the extension: FLV files start with `46 4C 56 01` (`FLV.`). On the command line, `file --mime-type name.flv` does this for you.

## Related types

- [.mp4 — video/mp4](https://www.devkult.com/mime/mp4.md)
- [.m3u8 — application/vnd.apple.mpegurl](https://www.devkult.com/mime/m3u8.md)

Open the interactive page: https://www.devkult.com/mime/flv