Convert to and from WAV, free.
WAV holds raw uncompressed PCM audio: nothing is thrown away, nothing is guessed on playback. It is the format audio editors and mastering tools want, and it is far too heavy to send around casually.
Convert something else to WAV
Pick what you have. Each page opens the editor with WAV already selected as the output.
Convert WAV to something else
Pick where it is going. Around 10 MB per minute, so files get unmanageable quickly.
WAV next to the formats it converts with
Where each one plays, what it is for and how heavy it is, so you can pick the target before you open a converter.
WAV
MP3
M4A
AAC
MP4
WebM
OGG
FLAC
MOV
AVI
MKV
WMV
MPEG
FLV
| Format | Best for | Plays on | File size |
|---|---|---|---|
| WAV | Editing, mastering, voiceover work | Every desktop and audio tool; large for phones | About 10 MB per minute in stereo |
| MP3 | Podcasts, voice notes, music you need to send | Every device made in the last 25 years | Roughly a tenth of uncompressed audio |
| M4A | Voice memos and Apple audio exports | Apple devices natively, most others too | Slightly smaller than MP3 at the same quality |
| AAC | Audio pulled out of video files | Most modern devices; bare streams can confuse players | Similar to MP3, slightly better quality |
| MP4 | Sharing anywhere, uploads, web embeds | Every phone, browser, TV and editor | Small for the quality |
| WebM | Web embeds and browser recordings | Chrome, Firefox and Edge; hit and miss elsewhere | Very small at the same quality |
| OGG | Open-source projects, game audio, voice notes | Browsers and Android; poor on Apple hardware | Small, efficient |
| FLAC | Archiving music without losing quality | Desktop players and Android; limited on Apple | Around half of WAV, still large |
| MOV | Editing on a Mac, footage straight off an iPhone | macOS and iOS natively, patchy elsewhere | Large, especially ProRes |
| AVI | Opening archive footage from the 2000s | Desktop players with the right codec pack | Very large for the quality |
| MKV | Archiving with multiple audio and subtitle tracks | VLC and desktop players; rarely anywhere else | Depends entirely on the codec inside |
| WMV | Legacy Windows workflows and old PowerPoint decks | Windows; almost nothing else | Moderate, but dated compression |
| MPEG | DVD rips and old camcorder tapes | Desktop players; not phones or browsers | Very large for the picture quality |
| FLV | Nothing new: Flash reached end of life in 2020 | Desktop players only, with effort | Moderate, heavily dated |
What WAV actually is
RIFF / WAVE
Uncompressed PCM
Editing, mastering, voiceover work
Every desktop and audio tool; large for phones
About 10 MB per minute in stereo
Lossless, so repeated edits and exports never compound compression artefacts.
The format audio editors, DAWs and mastering tools expect.
Around 10 MB per minute, so files get unmanageable quickly.
Too large for email attachments or messaging apps.
A WAV file is capped at 4 GB by its 32-bit size field, about 6.7 hours of CD-quality stereo (44.1 kHz, 16-bit).
Uncompressed WAV runs about 10 MB a minute at CD quality, so a long recording is usually converted to MP3 or M4A before it is sent.
Questions about WAV
What is a WAV file?
WAV holds raw uncompressed PCM audio: nothing is thrown away, nothing is guessed on playback. It is the format audio editors and mastering tools want, and it is far too heavy to send around casually. It is the RIFF / WAVE container, usually holding Uncompressed PCM.
Is converting WAV free?
Yes. Convert and preview free, and a free account downloads the result. Free exports and share pages include a small REQO badge. Go Pro to remove it. Nothing is installed.
Will converting to WAV lose quality?
Some, whenever the codec changes: every re-encode discards detail. Where the container can simply be rewritten around the existing streams it is lossless, and where it cannot the default settings are chosen so the loss is not visible at normal viewing size.
Other formats
Convert it, then keep editing.
Every converter opens the full editor, so you can trim, caption and share without uploading the file twice.