MP3 vs M4A vs WAV: which audio format should you use?

Audio formats confuse everyone. Here's the honest, useful breakdown of the four formats you actually meet.

The quick table

• MP3 — universal, small, good quality. The default for music sharing.
• M4A (AAC) — smaller than MP3 at the same quality, but less universally supported.
• WAV — uncompressed, huge, perfect quality. For editing, not sharing.
• FLAC — lossless but compact. For archiving music you own.

When to use what

• Sharing with friends — MP3 192kbps
• Podcast production — WAV while editing, MP3 for delivery
• Archiving CDs — FLAC
• Phone ringtones — M4A or MP3

Convert in one click

Our Audio Converter switches between MP3, WAV, M4A, OGG, FLAC and OPUS — fully in-browser. Extract audio from video first with Video to MP3 if you're starting from a video.