M4A to Text Converter
Upload an M4A recording, such as an iPhone Voice Memo, a lecture or an interview, and get back a transcript with a time marker before each paragraph and a label for each voice. Nothing to convert first: the M4A goes in as it is.
Audio to Text
or drop MP3, WAV, M4A … files here ·
Max 95 MB per file· Up to 20 files· Deleted after 30 minutes
Files are processed on our servers and deleted after 30 minutes.
Subtitle lines longer than this are split. 42 is the common broadcast standard.
Optional. Seconds (e.g. 75) or minutes:seconds (1:15). Leave empty to transcribe from the beginning.
Optional. Same format as the start time. Leave empty to transcribe to the end.
How to use this tool
- 1
Add the M4A files
Drop up to 20 recordings of up to 95 MB each. On an iPhone, pick the memo from the Files app.
- 2
Check language and labels
Spoken language starts on Auto-detect. This page turns on Timestamps and Speaker labels under Advanced settings; switch them off for a single-voice note you only want to read.
- 3
Transcribe
Press Transcribe and download a TXT file, or change Output to Word, PDF, SRT or VTT before you start.
How do I convert M4A to text?
Upload the M4A and press Transcribe. You get a plain-text transcript with a [mm:ss] marker before each paragraph and Speaker 1, Speaker 2 labels where the voice changes.
Where M4A recordings come from
M4A is audio stored in an MPEG-4 container, the extension Apple popularized with iTunes and the iPod. The container can hold two codecs: AAC, which is lossy and small, and Apple Lossless (ALAC), which keeps every sample and is much larger. Both transcribe the same way here.
The iPhone Voice Memos app saves every recording as .m4a, and its Audio Quality setting in the iPhone Settings app switches between Compressed (AAC) and Lossless (ALAC). Samsung's Voice Recorder app on Galaxy phones also saves M4A by default, and Zoom's local recording option writes a separate audio-only M4A next to the video file. Apple added a transcript view to Voice Memos in iOS 18 for some languages; use this page when you need the text as a file, speaker labels, or another language.
Transcribe iPhone Voice Memos and other M4A files
iPhone Voice Memos
- 01Open the recording and tap the three-dot button.
- 02Choose Save to Files and pick a folder.
- 03Open this page in Safari, tap Choose files and select the memo.
Android recorder
- 01Open the recording in your recorder app or file manager.
- 02Find the .m4a in the Recordings or Voice Recorder folder.
- 03Upload it here from Chrome with Choose files.
Mac or PC
- 01On a Mac, drag a memo from the Voice Memos app to the desktop.
- 02On Windows, copy the .m4a from iCloud Drive, a USB cable or email.
- 03Drop one file or a whole folder of up to 20 here.
M4A to text for lectures, interviews and voice notes
Recorded lectures
Keep Timestamps on and turn Speaker labels off if only the lecturer talks. Set Spoken language yourself for a bilingual class.
Interviews and meetings
Leave both options on and choose Word (DOCX) under Output so you can add comments and rename speakers. Remove filler words makes quotes easier to read.
Voice notes and reminders
Short notes read better without labels. Batch a week of memos and you get one transcript per file.
How long an M4A recording can be transcribed
- 32 kbps
About 7 hours fit in 95 MB
- 64 kbps
About 3.5 hours, plenty for speech
- 128 kbps
About 1 h 45 min
- 256 kbps
Just under an hour
The limit is file size, 95 MB, not length, so bitrate decides how many hours fit: at 64 kbps one hour takes about 29 MB, at 256 kbps about 115 MB. A full-day conference or a lossless memo is the usual reason a file is refused.
There are two ways around it. Re-encode the recording at 64 kbps mono with compress audio; speech stays perfectly clear and the file shrinks several times. Or cut it into parts with trim audio and upload the parts as one batch. If you only need one passage, enter Start at and End at under Advanced settings, for example 45:00 to 52:30, and only that stretch is transcribed.
M4A transcription questions
Can I transcribe a WhatsApp or Telegram voice message?
Yes, without turning it into M4A first. WhatsApp voice notes are usually .opus files and Telegram voice messages .ogg, and both are accepted. Share the message to the Files app on iPhone, or find it in the app's media folder on Android.
Does a lossless Voice Memo transcribe better than a compressed one?
Not noticeably. Recognition needs a clear voice, and the compressed setting already keeps more detail than speech needs. Lossless memos are several times larger, so they reach the 95 MB limit much sooner.
How do I keep interview quotes attached to the right person?
Leave Speaker labels on. Each change of voice starts a new paragraph marked Speaker 1, Speaker 2 and so on, and the timestamp in front lets you replay the exact spot. Replace the labels with real names using find and replace in Word.
What should I expect from a lecture recorded from the back of the room?
Expect the main points to come through and the details to need checking. Distance and echo blur words, and technical terms or names are often spelled the way they sound. Placing the phone near the speaker helps more than any setting.
Is an M4A file the same thing as an MP4?
They share the MPEG-4 container; M4A is the audio-only version. You can upload either one here, and an MP4 video is transcribed from its sound track.
Is my recording kept after it is transcribed?
No. Recordings and transcripts are deleted automatically 30 minutes after processing, and no account is needed. The privacy policy explains how files are handled.