What format should my watermark image be?

Use a PNG file with transparent background (alpha channel). A 100x100 to 300x300 PNG works well for most videos. For YouTube, a 200x60 horizontal logo is ideal.

How do I make the watermark semi-transparent?

Use FFmpeg's alpha channel: overlay=10:10:format=rgba:shortest=1 with the -pix_fmt yuva420p flag.

Step-by-Step Guide

How to Add a Watermark or Logo to Any Video (Free)

Overlay your brand logo or watermark on any video file using FFmpeg. Position anywhere — corners, center, with scaling and transparency control.

Watermark Positions

Top-left	`overlay=10:10`
Top-right	`overlay=main_w-overlay_w-10:10`
Bottom-left	`overlay=10:main_h-overlay_h-10`
Bottom-right (auto)	`overlay=main_w-overlay_w-10:main_h-overlay_h-10`
Center	`overlay=(main_w-overlay_w)/2:(main_h-overlay_h)/2`

Copy-Ready Commands

Basic logo overlay (top-left corner)

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -i logo.png \
  -filter_complex "overlay=10:10" \
  -c:a copy output-watermarked.mp4

Scaled logo in bottom-right corner

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -i logo.png \
  -filter_complex "scale=200:-1[wm];[in][wm]overlay=W-w-10:H-h-10" \
  -c:a copy output-watermarked.mp4