Export and sharing

Export renders the current composition directly to a local file and reports each stage of the job.

Choose a format

Format	Video codec selection	Audio codec	Availability
WebM	First encodable of VP9, VP8, AV1	Opus	Default format; requires an encodable video codec and, when audio is included, Opus.
MP4	AVC / H.264	AAC	Requires an AVC encoder. AAC uses WebCodecs when available, then Beam's Mediabunny AAC encoder fallback.

Encoder availability

A format can be unavailable when the machine does not provide a compatible encoder. Beam reports this before or during export.

Choose a resolution

Option	Availability	Output behavior
720p	Native canvas height is at least 720 px	Targets 720 px high without upscaling.
1080p	Native canvas height is at least 1080 px	Targets 1080 px high without upscaling.
Max	Always	Keeps the native output-canvas size.
All options	Not applicable	Preserve aspect ratio and round width and height to positive even numbers.

Choose frame rate and quality

Setting	Values	Default or recommendation
Frame rate	24, 30, 60 fps	60 for a source at or above 50 fps; 24 at or below 27 fps; otherwise 30.
Quality	Low, Medium, High	Medium
Low bitrate factor	0.055 × width × height × fps	Clamped to 0.5–40 Mbps.
Medium bitrate factor	0.095 × width × height × fps	Clamped to 0.5–40 Mbps.
High bitrate factor	0.16 × width × height × fps	Clamped to 0.5–40 Mbps.

Screenshot pendingAdd the image at:website/docs/public/screenshots/reference/export-panel.webp

Choose the rendering settings before selecting the destination file.

More options

Option	Values	Default	Behavior
Include Audio	On or Off	On	Off creates a silent file. Audio is also omitted when no enabled audio clip has positive duration.
Audio output	48 kHz, stereo, 128 kbps	When audio is included	Enabled audio clips are mixed progressively into the selected container codec.

Monitor the export

The progress view reports percentage and completed frame count and provides Copy Report. Cancel stops an active export. Closing or cancelling the destination picker ends the job without reporting an error. Live edits made after export starts do not change the in-progress file because Beam exports a snapshot.

Stage	What Beam does
Validating assets	Checks the snapshot, local assets, formats, codecs, and render invariants.
Loading assets	Loads visual, audio, cursor, font, and background resources.
Encoding	Renders composition frames, mixes enabled audio, and writes encoded chunks.
Finalizing	Closes tracks and finalizes the media container and destination file.

Validation and edge cases

Condition	Result
Missing asset	Export stops with a validation issue identifying the relevant asset or clip.
Unsupported source or codec	Export reports an unsupported format, codec, or decode failure.
No compatible output encoder	The selected WebM or MP4 format is reported as not encodable on the device.
Animated GIF	Animated GIFs are not yet deterministically exportable.
Canvas 2D unavailable	Export stops because composition frames cannot be rendered.
Cancellation	The active worker and output stream are aborted and the incomplete export is not reported as a failure.
Audio mixer unavailable	Beam reports that offline audio mixing is unavailable in the Chromium build.

Result and diagnostics

After a successful export, Beam reports the saved filename and provides Open File and Copy Report actions. If export fails, the user-facing message hides local filesystem paths while the detailed report retains configuration, codec, environment, progress, and bottleneck information for troubleshooting. Copy that report before asking for help on Discord or GitHub.