AIFF to M4A Converter
Convert AIFF to M4A free — no upload, no signup
To convert AIFF to M4A, drop your AIFF audio files into the box below and click Convert. Fylo converts with ffmpeg running inside your browser, so nothing is uploaded and there's no signup or watermark. Turn AIFF into compact M4A for iPhone and Apple Music.
Drop audio files here
or tap to browse · paste with Ctrl+V · add many at once
Your files never leave your device
Advanced
How to convert AIFF to M4A
Add your AIFF files
Drag and drop AIFF files into the box or tap to choose them. The converter engine (about 31 MB) downloads once, the first time you convert.
Pick a bitrate
192 kbps suits music and 128 kbps or less suits speech. Sample rate and mono/stereo are under Advanced.
Convert and download
Click Convert, then download each M4A file or all of them as one ZIP.
Why convert AIFF to M4A?
M4A keeps Apple compatibility while saving ~90% of the space.
What happens when you convert AIFF to M4A?
Fylo encodes AAC at 160 kbps in M4A.
How does Fylo convert AIFF to M4A?
Fylo decodes the PCM audio in the AIFF with ffmpeg compiled to WebAssembly and encodes it with FFmpeg's AAC encoder at 160 kbps inside an MPEG-4 (M4A) container. Going from lossless to lossy is where the big saving happens: a 3-minute song is ≈ 32 MB as AIFF but ≈ 3.6 MB at 160 kbps as M4A. The original sample rate and channel layout are kept unless you change them under Advanced.
What's the difference between AIFF and M4A?
AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format) was created by Apple in 1988, based on Electronic Arts' IFF format. Like WAV it stores uncompressed PCM audio — just with big-endian byte order — so the two contain identical sound data at the same settings.
M4A is an MPEG-4 container that holds only audio — usually AAC, or Apple Lossless (ALAC). Apple popularised the extension with the iTunes Store in 2003; iPhone Voice Memos and many podcasts also use it. Audiobooks often use the related .m4b extension.
Learn more: AIFF format guide · M4A format guide
| Property | AIFF | M4A |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | None (PCM) | Lossy (AAC) or lossless (ALAC) |
| Typical bitrate | 1,411 kbps (CD quality) | 128–256 kbps |
| 3-minute song | ≈ 32 MB | ≈ 3.6 MB at 160 kbps |
| Tags and cover art | Yes (ID3 chunk) | Yes (full, with cover art) |
| Compatibility | macOS, iTunes, DAWs; less common on Windows | Apple devices, Android, Windows 10+, browsers |
| Best for | Mac audio editing and music production | iTunes/Apple Music libraries, voice memos, audiobooks |
| Introduced | 1988 | 2003 |
Frequently asked questions
Lossless option?
Use AIFF to FLAC for lossless compression.
Will tags be kept?
Not all; add them in Apple Music.
Is my AIFF file uploaded to a server?
No. Fylo runs ffmpeg, the same engine used by professional video tools, compiled to WebAssembly inside your browser. Your AIFF file is read directly from your device and never sent anywhere.
Related tools
Updated