# MakeMKV

10 Hacker News commenters recommended MakeMKV and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 5 of 13 months. It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Recommended for ripping DVDs and Blu-rays to files, with a long free trial. Caveat: some UHD discs cannot be decrypted.

## Why people recommend it

- Go-to tool for ripping discs (5 comments): "Unofficially you use MakeMKV and just rip the disc." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47017608)) "you can use MakeMKV to decrypt and rip the discs" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47721809)) "MakeMKV is where it's at now as far as I know." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46449813))
- Easy once learned, nearly automated (2 comments): "you can get a real nice nearly-automated workflow for ripping with makemkv" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47118224)) "It's easy once you get the hang of makemkv." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47719809))

## What people warn about

- Cannot decrypt some UHD discs (1 comments): "MakeMKV not being able to decrypt all UHD discs, since some are encrypted with keys that aren't easily available" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48442123))

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "MakeMKV", https://hackerapproved.com/p/makemkv/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).