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ProRes and DNxHR File Size Calculator

Estimate ProRes and DNxHR file sizes, bitrates, upload times, and drive requirements for editorial proxies, dailies, color conform, VFX pulls, and mastering.

Why this tool is useful

ProRes and DNxHR are mezzanine codecs with predictable data rates, which is exactly what makes them plannable. Each flavor has a target bitrate at a reference resolution and frame rate, and the file size scales from there with pixel count and frame rate. Once you know the flavor, you know roughly what an hour of material will cost in storage and in transfer time.

The problem is that nobody remembers whether ProRes 422 HQ at 4K UHD 23.976 is 300 Mbps or 700, or how much bigger DNxHR 444 is than HQX. This estimator does that lookup and the arithmetic together, returning bitrate, file size, upload time, and drive requirements for the flavor, resolution, frame rate, and duration you are actually working with.

What this tool is for

Use it after footage exists

The storage estimator plans the whole shoot. This planner helps decide what ProRes or DNxHR files to make for edit, review, conform, VFX, or delivery.

Compare quality against weight

See how each codec option changes file size, data rate, upload time, chroma sampling, bit depth, and alpha support.

Make a workflow call

Start with a real post-production scenario, then adjust the codec family, duration, resolution, and transfer constraints.

Quick reference table

ProRes Proxy

Role
Offline proxy
Technical
4:2:2, 10-bit
Data rate
144 Mbps
File size
64.7 GB
Upload
17 minutes

ProRes 422 LT

Role
Light mezzanine
Technical
4:2:2, 10-bit
Data rate
328 Mbps
File size
147 GB
Upload
39 minutes

ProRes 422

Role
Mezzanine
Technical
4:2:2, 10-bit
Data rate
468 Mbps
File size
210 GB
Upload
56 minutes

ProRes 422 HQ

Role
Finishing
Technical
4:2:2, 10-bit
Data rate
703 Mbps
File size
316 GB
Upload
1 hr 24 min

ProRes 4444

Role
Premium finishing
Technical
4:4:4, 12-bit, alpha
Data rate
1.1 Gbps
File size
475 GB
Upload
2 hr 7 min

ProRes 4444 XQ

Role
Highest ProRes
Technical
4:4:4, 12-bit, alpha
Data rate
1.6 Gbps
File size
712 GB
Upload
3 hr 10 min

Codec and project inputs

Resolution

Frame rate

Codec options

Workflow presets

Recommended codec

ProRes Proxy

Use Proxy when edit speed, remote collaboration, and storage savings matter more than finishing quality.

64.7 GB144 Mbps17 minutes upload

Selected codec comparison

ProRes Proxy

80% smaller than the largest selected codec option

64.7 GB

ProRes 422 LT

53% smaller than the largest selected codec option

147 GB

ProRes 422 HQ

Highest footprint in this comparison

316 GB

Example use cases

  • Choosing a proxy or dailies flavor

    Compare ProRes Proxy against 422 LT for a dailies package and see the storage and upload difference before committing to a spec.

  • Sizing a VFX or color handoff

    Estimate what a set of ProRes 4444 pulls or DNxHR 444 plates will occupy, and how long the handoff takes to send.

  • Speccing a finishing or mastering drive

    Work out the working drive capacity a conform needs at the finishing codec before the media arrives.

  • Answering a delivery spec question

    Check what a requested mezzanine deliverable will weigh so you can raise a problem with the spec before you have rendered it.

FAQ

At 1080p and 24 fps, ProRes 422 HQ runs around 176 Mbps, which is roughly 79 GB per hour. At 4K UHD and the same frame rate the pixel count is four times higher, so the rate scales to roughly 315 GB per hour. Frame rate scales it further: the same 4K UHD material at 59.94 fps is about two and a half times the 23.976 fps figure. ProRes is a fixed-bitrate intra-frame codec, so unlike RAW or long-GOP formats these figures hold regardless of how much motion is in the shot.
They are close in quality at equivalent tiers, so the decision is usually about the pipeline rather than the picture. ProRes is the default in Final Cut Pro and on macOS, is universally supported, and is the safest choice for general handoff. DNxHR is native to Avid Media Composer and is expected in most broadcast and Avid-centred post workflows, with MXF as the typical container. If the receiving facility has a stated preference, follow it. If not, ProRes 422 HQ is the more portable default for handoff and DNxHR HQX is the equivalent choice in an Avid environment.
ProRes Proxy for most editorial proxy work, at roughly 16 GB per hour at 1080p24. It is built for offline editing where you need responsive playback and small files, and the picture is more than adequate for cutting. Step up to ProRes 422 LT, around 37 GB per hour, when the proxies will also be used for client review or when someone will make framing and picture decisions from them. Full ProRes 422 or higher is unnecessary for proxies and multiplies your storage footprint for no editorial benefit.
It scales with pixel count, not with the resolution label. 4K UHD has four times the pixels of 1080p, so it is roughly four times the data rate, not twice. 8K is sixteen times 1080p. This is why the jump from a 4K to an 8K acquisition format is a much larger storage decision than it sounds: doubling the number in the format name quadruples the footprint. The same relationship holds for DNxHR, and it is the single most useful thing to remember when sizing storage from a resolution change.