What Is Container Format?
A file format that holds video, audio, and metadata together. Common containers include MP4, MKV, MOV, and FLV.
A container format (or wrapper) is the file format that packages video streams, audio streams, subtitles, and metadata into a single file. The container doesn't affect video quality — that's determined by the codec. Common containers: MP4 (most compatible), MKV (supports all codecs, less compatible), MOV (Apple ecosystem), FLV (legacy streaming format). For recording in OBS, MKV is recommended because it's recoverable if OBS crashes. You can remux MKV to MP4 afterward without re-encoding.