MP4 to M4A Converter
An MP4 and an M4A are built the same way, and the sound in most MP4 videos is already AAC. Extracting to M4A keeps that codec family, drops the picture and gives you a file Apple Music, iPhone and almost every Android phone play directly.
Video to Audio
or drop MP4, MOV, MKV … 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.
Keep the source rate unless a device or app asks for one. 44.1 kHz is CD standard, 16 kHz is enough for speech recognition.
Mono halves the size of lossless files and is fine for speech.
16-bit is CD quality. Choose 24-bit only if you will edit or master the audio.
Videos with several languages or a commentary have more than one track. 1 is the main track.
Optional. Seconds (e.g. 75) or minutes:seconds (1:15). Leave empty to start at the beginning.
Optional. Same format as the start time. Leave empty to keep everything up to the end.
How to use this tool
- 1
Choose the MP4 files
Upload up to 20 videos of up to 95 MB each, from your phone, a screen recorder or a download folder.
- 2
Keep 256 kbps
Bitrate starts at 256 kbps, the rate Apple Music streams at. Use 128 kbps for spoken content to halve the size.
- 3
Extract to M4A
Press Extract to M4A and save the files. They open in the Music app, Files, VLC and most Android players.
Upload the MP4, press Extract to M4A, and the video's sound comes back as an AAC audio file at 256 kbps. Nothing changes codec family, so the result sounds like the original video.
MP4 vs M4A: the same container with one job
Both extensions follow the MPEG-4 Part 14 file format, ISO/IEC 14496-14. An .mp4 is expected to contain video; .m4a is the extension Apple popularized for files with audio only, so players know to file them under music rather than movies. Phones and screen recorders write AAC audio into almost every MP4, which makes this the most natural audio extraction there is.
Apple's history explains why so many apps prefer M4A. The iTunes Store opened in 2003 selling AAC files at 128 kbps; its DRM-free iTunes Plus tracks moved to 256 kbps, and Apple Music streams AAC at that rate today. iPhone ringtones are the same format again, just renamed to .m4r.
- AAC rate of Apple Music and iTunes Plus
- 256 kbps
- iTunes Store opens selling AAC files
- 2003
- one minute of M4A at 256 kbps
- ≈ 1.9 MB
- iPhone ringtones use the same format
- .m4r
MP4
MPEG-4 video
MP4 (MPEG-4 Part 14) is a multimedia container standardised by ISO/MPEG and based on Apple's QuickTime format. It usually holds H.264 or HEVC video with AAC audio, and can also carry subtitles, chapters and metadata. It is the most compatible video format in the world, playing on phones, browsers, TVs, game consoles and social platforms. The video inside is almost always lossy, so repeated re-encoding gradually reduces quality.
- Compression
- Lossy
- Transparency
- –
- Animation
- –
- Introduced
- 2001 · Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG)
M4A
MPEG-4 audio (M4A)
M4A is an audio-only MPEG-4 file, popularised by Apple's iTunes. It usually contains lossy AAC audio, but it can also hold lossless ALAC. AAC in M4A generally sounds better than MP3 at the same bitrate, and the format is used for iPhone voice memos, Apple Music downloads and many podcasts. Most modern devices play M4A, but some older players, car stereos and web tools only accept MP3.
- Compression
- Lossy or lossless
- Transparency
- –
- Animation
- –
- Introduced
- Apple / MPEG
People convert MP4 to M4A to keep a video's AAC soundtrack in the audio-only format Apple Music, iPhone ringtones and podcast apps expect, without switching to a different lossy codec.
What people get wrong about M4A
MythRenaming .mp4 to .m4a does the same job.
FactSome players accept the renamed file, but the video stream stays inside, so the file is just as large and music apps may still treat it as a movie.
MythM4A only works on Apple devices.
FactAAC is an MPEG standard. Android, Windows, Chrome, Firefox and VLC all play it without extra software.
MythEvery M4A is lossless.
FactMost M4A files are lossy AAC. Apple Lossless (ALAC) also uses .m4a, but a video's sound is almost never stored that way.
Bitrate and trimming for M4A
A higher bitrate than the source buys nothing. Phone videos usually carry AAC at 128–256 kbps, so 256 kbps covers almost every case, while 128 kbps is enough for lectures, voice memos and meetings, at about 0.96 MB per minute.
If you only want one song from a concert video or an audio clip for a slideshow, enter Start at and End at under Advanced settings. The MP4 to MP3 guide explains the trade-offs between M4A and MP3 for car stereos and older players.
MP4 to M4A questions
Is MP4 to M4A conversion lossless?
It can be. When an MP4's audio is AAC, the track can in principle be moved into an M4A without re-encoding. When a bitrate is applied, the AAC is encoded again; at 256 kbps that second pass is not audible in normal listening, which is why this page uses it.
How do I make an iPhone ringtone from an MP4 video?
Extract a short part to M4A with Start at and End at, keeping it under about 30 seconds, then convert it with M4A to M4R. Add the .m4r to your iPhone through Finder on a Mac or iTunes on Windows.
Will an M4A file play on Android and Windows?
Yes. Android has decoded AAC in M4A since its early versions, and the Media Player and Groove apps in Windows 10 and 11 open M4A without add-ons. Some older car stereos and cheap MP3 players are the exception.
Is M4A smaller than MP3 at the same quality?
Usually. AAC is a more efficient codec than MP3, so a 192 kbps M4A tends to sound at least as good as a 256 kbps MP3. If a device refuses M4A, use MP4 to MP3 instead.
How do I add the M4A to my Apple Music library on a Mac?
Open the Music app and choose File → Import, or drag the files into the library window. With Sync Library turned on, they also become available on your iPhone through iCloud Music Library.
