M4A -> MP3 · Local tool
M4A to MP3
Convert an M4A or AAC file to MP3, which plays on anything.
Last updated
How do I convert an M4A voice memo to MP3?
Drop the M4A onto filetity's converter and it becomes an MP3 in the browser tab, with nothing uploaded. That last part matters more here than on most conversions, because M4A is what phones write and the files are usually voice memos, interviews or lecture recordings. Your browser decodes AAC natively and filetity supplies the MP3 encoder as a separate file it serves itself, since no browser can write MP3 on its own. A little quality is lost, as it is whenever already-compressed audio is compressed again, and the tool never targets a higher bitrate than the source actually spent so it cannot hand you a bigger file and call it better. A DRM protected file bought from a store is refused rather than converted into something broken.
01 / Your device
the file stays here
02 / Browser memory
the work runs locally
03 / Back to you
saved on this device
When you would use this
Situations, not settings.
- Voice memos off a phone
- Apple's Voice Memos and most Android recorders write M4A. Converting is the step before sending one to somebody whose player will not open it.
- A car stereo or an older device
- Car head units and cheap players are the last holdouts that read MP3 and nothing else. This is usually the only reason anyone converts away from M4A.
- An upload form that lists MP3 and stops
- Transcription services, podcast hosts and job application portals often accept exactly one audio format. The conversion runs here, so the recording is not uploaded twice.
How it works / no cloud
A conversion engine, not an upload form.
The M4A's AAC track is decoded by your browser, which handles AAC natively, and re-encoded to MP3 by an encoder filetity serves as its own file. Both steps happen in the page. Nothing is uploaded and no account is involved, which is worth knowing because M4A files are usually voice memos.
- Offline ready
- Installable app
- No file limit queue
Straight answers
No accordion. Nothing hidden.
- Is it free?
- Yes, with no watermark and no page limit.
- Does it need an account?
- No. There is no account system.
- Is my file processed on my device?
- Yes. The file is read by your browser and never uploaded. There is no server to send it to.
- What formats are supported?
- M4A, AAC and MP4 audio in. MP3 out, at a quality you choose, or WAV.
- What are the limits?
- A DRM protected file bought from a store cannot be converted by anything running in a browser, and is refused rather than producing a broken file.
- Does it work on mobile?
- Yes, on any modern mobile browser. Large files are limited by the memory the phone gives the browser.
- Does it work offline?
- Yes, once the page has loaded. The tool keeps working with no network connection.
- Why does my phone record in M4A anyway?
- Because AAC inside an M4A sounds better than MP3 at the same size, which is why Apple's Voice Memos and most Android recorders default to it. The trouble is everything else: car stereos, older players and some upload forms still expect MP3, which is the only reason to convert.
- Am I losing quality by converting?
- A little, because an M4A is already compressed and MP3 compresses the decoded result again. It is usually inaudible for speech, which is what most M4A files are. The tool never targets a higher bitrate than the source spent, so it will not hand you a larger file and call it better.
- Will it convert a song I bought from a store?
- Not if it carries DRM, and no tool running in a browser can. Protected files are refused with a message rather than producing something broken. Files you recorded yourself, or bought without protection, convert normally.
- Is M4A the same as MP4?
- They are the same container with different extensions by convention: .m4a signals it holds only audio, .mp4 signals there is video too. This page takes either and uses whatever audio track it finds, which is why an MP4 with no picture works here as well.
- Does the recording keep its length and any chapters?
- The length is preserved exactly. Chapter markers and artwork are not, because they live in the M4A container and MP3 stores that sort of thing differently, so what comes out is the audio itself rather than everything wrapped around it.
Keep working locally
3 available · more coming