500 KB MKV sample file

An MKV file of exactly 512,000 bytes. It is a valid Matroska video file, generated for this site and checked with an independent parser. Use it wherever you need a 500 KB sample, test or dummy MKV file.

sample-mkv-500kb.mkv

500 KB512,000 bytes

Download 500 KB MKV

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Type: video/x-matroska
SHA-256: 6d941e60ae69b0e61a71118b120e7846b8a5f9a60f149f35746f243329847be6
Direct URL: https://www.sampletestfiles.com/downloads/mkv/sample-mkv-500kb.mkv

What is in this file

270 frames (9.0 s) of a synthetic test pattern with a frame counter, looping every six seconds, in one H.264 (AVC) video track. The index of key frames comes before the picture data, so a player can seek without reading the whole file. 6,907 bytes of an EBML Void element bring the file to the exact size.

Dimensions	640 × 360 px
Duration	9.0 s
Frame rate	30 fps
Video codec	H.264 (AVC), Main profile
Audio	No audio track
Document type	matroska
Clusters	9, one for each key frame
Seek index	Cues element before the first cluster

First bytes of the file

The first 64 bytes of sample-mkv-500kb.mkv as a hex dump: offset, bytes, then the same bytes as text. The MKV signature is 1A 45 DF A3.

00000000  1a 45 df a3 a3 42 86 81 01 42 f7 81 01 42 f2 81  |.E...B...B...B..|
00000010  04 42 f3 81 08 42 82 88 6d 61 74 72 6f 73 6b 61  |.B...B..matroska|
00000020  42 87 81 04 42 85 81 02 18 53 80 67 01 00 00 00  |B...B....S.g....|
00000030  00 07 cf cc 15 49 a9 66 cc 2a d7 b1 83 0f 42 40  |.....I.f.*....B@|

Preview

MKV files cannot be shown in a browser. Download the file and open it in an application that reads MKV, such as VLC and mpv.

Where 500 KB matters

A 512,000-byte file: larger than most API body limits, smaller than most upload limits. These are the default limits a file of this size is useful for testing:

System	Limit	Note
Amazon DynamoDB items	400 KB per item	500 KB cannot be stored as a single item.
Express body parsers	100 KB by default	Rejected unless the limit is raised.
nginx request body	1 MB by default (client_max_body_size)	Accepted with room to spare.

All 500 KB sample files

Use this file for

Typical image-upload tests
Testing media servers and players with a seekable file
Testing video upload beyond MP4

Testing notes for MKV

Safari and Firefox do not play MKV, and Chrome does so only for some codecs. Remux to MP4 or WebM before showing video in a page.
A file with no Cues element still plays but cannot seek quickly. Recordings that were interrupted, and live captures, are often like this.

MKV format reference

Technical details

File name	sample-mkv-500kb.mkv
Format	MKV (Matroska video)
Extension	.mkv
MIME type	video/x-matroska
Size	512,000 bytes (500 KB)
Kind	Binary
Signature	1A 45 DF A3
SHA-256	6d941e60ae69b0e61a71118b120e7846b8a5f9a60f149f35746f243329847be6
Created	2026-10-10
Validation	Exact size, signature bytes and structure checked when the file was generated
Preview	Not available for this file; details only
Source	Generated for this site; not copied from elsewhere
Licence	Free to use, modify and redistribute (terms)
Category	Video

Validated for expected format and integrity. As with any download, scan the file with your own security tools before opening it. How files are made and checked

Download from the command line and verify

Fetch the file with curl, then compare its checksum with the SHA-256 value above.

curl -o sample-mkv-500kb.mkv 'https://www.sampletestfiles.com/downloads/mkv/sample-mkv-500kb.mkv'
sha256sum sample-mkv-500kb.mkv     # Linux
shasum -a 256 sample-mkv-500kb.mkv # macOS

On Windows, run Get-FileHash sample-mkv-500kb.mkv -Algorithm SHA256 in PowerShell. A matching value proves that the download is complete and unaltered.

Related files

Questions about this file

Is this file exactly 500 KB?: Yes. It is 512,000 bytes, which is 500 KB in the binary units that operating systems and server limits use (1 KB = 1,024 bytes).
What is inside the 500 KB MKV file?: 270 frames (9.0 s) of a synthetic test pattern with a frame counter, looping every six seconds, in one H.264 (AVC) video track. The index of key frames comes before the picture data, so a player can seek without reading the whole file. 6,907 bytes of an EBML Void element bring the file to the exact size.
Which media type should a server send for MKV?: Most software uses video/x-matroska. RFC 9559 registered video/matroska in 2024, and an allow-list should accept both.

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