If you used Permute on a Mac and now work on a Windows PC, you'll find its website only offers Mac versions. Santra isn't a copy of Permute and has nothing to do with Charlie Monroe Software. It's a Windows app that covers a smaller, everyday set of media jobs: changing a video's format, pulling the sound out as MP3, making a GIF, compressing a clip, trimming and joining.
Permute and Santra compared
| Feature | Santra | Permute |
|---|---|---|
| Runs on | Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit) | Mac only |
| Price | First 25 files free, then US$19 once for up to 3 PCs | US$14.99 one-time, up to 3 activations |
| Video formats out | MP4, MOV, MKV, WEBM, AVI, WMV, GIF, MP3 | 100+ formats across video, audio and images |
| Trim and join video | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Target file size, speed, subtitles | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Transcription and OCR | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Documents and PDFs | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF tools | PDF pages to images only |
Where Permute is ahead
- It has far more video settings: aiming for a file size, changing speed, adding subtitles, transcribing speech to subtitles.
- Presets, drop zones and automation help when you repeat the same job, and you can run your own FFmpeg commands.
- It's built for the Mac. If you're on a Mac, it's the more natural choice.
Where Santra fits better
- You're on Windows 10 or 11, where Permute isn't available.
- You want quick results without settings. When a video only needs a new container, for example many MKV files to MP4, Santra copies it in seconds without re-encoding, so nothing is lost.
- You also deal with photos and documents: Santra converts pictures, Word, Excel and PowerPoint files and works with PDFs from the same gesture.
- Everything happens on your PC. Santra never uploads files.
Moving from Permute to Santra
- Install Santra on your Windows PC. No admin rights are needed.
- Drag a video or audio file, tap Shift and drop it on a format; tap Alt instead for Trim, Compress or Join.
- Find the result next to the original. A progress card with a Cancel button shows while it works.
Step-by-step guides: MOV to MP4, MKV to MP4, MP4 to MP3, MP4 to GIF, compress a video and trim a video.
A word on the details
Permute's details come from its own website, checked on 22 October 2026. Its site doesn't say whether conversions in general run fully offline or what the trial limits are, so we don't claim either.