Convert MP4 to MP3

Upload an MP4 video and get its soundtrack back as a 192 kbps MP3. The video is removed, the audio is kept, and there is nothing to set up.

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Pull the Soundtrack Out of an MP4 Video

MP4 is the video format you run into most: Android phones, most cameras, video editors, Zoom and screen recorders all save it. When all you actually need is the sound, such as a talk, an interview or a song you recorded yourself, turning the MP4 into an MP3 gives you a small file that any music app, car stereo or podcast editor can open.

Here is exactly what our converter produces. The picture is thrown away and only the audio is written, encoded with the LAME MP3 encoder at a constant 192 kbps. The original sample rate is kept (anything above 48 kHz is brought down to 48 kHz), mono stays mono, and stereo stays stereo. You don't have to pick any settings, because there aren't any to pick.

Converting an MP4 File, Step by Step

  1. Locate the video. On a computer, phone videos copied over usually land in Downloads, Pictures or a DCIM folder. On Android, tapping the upload box opens the file picker, where recent videos appear under Videos or Downloads.
  2. Check the size. Uploads are capped at 50 MB. Video uses far more space than audio: a stream at 8 Mbps fills roughly 60 MB every minute, so a full-resolution phone clip can pass the limit in under a minute. Screen recordings and lower-resolution exports tend to be much lighter.
  3. Upload it. Drag the MP4 onto the box above or choose it with the file picker.
  4. Leave MP3 selected as the output and press Convert. A progress indicator shows the upload first, then the conversion.
  5. Download the MP3. The finished file carries the same audio, minus the video, at a fraction of the original size.

Sound Quality and How Much Smaller the File Gets

Nearly every MP4 stores its sound as AAC, which is already a compressed, lossy format. Producing an MP3 means decoding that AAC and encoding it again, so a small generation loss is unavoidable. At 192 kbps it is rarely noticeable on speech or casual music listening, but keep in mind that no conversion can add back detail the AAC track never had. A phone clip recorded with a tinny built-in mic will sound just as tinny afterward.

What's inside the MP4 What happens MP3 result
AAC stereo (most common) Decoded and re-encoded 192 kbps stereo
AAC mono (some voice or screen recorders) Decoded and re-encoded 192 kbps mono
5.1 surround audio Downmixed 192 kbps stereo

Size is easy to predict because the bitrate is fixed: each minute of MP3 takes about 1.44 MB. A 10-minute MP4 therefore yields roughly a 14.4 MB MP3 no matter how sharp or large the video was.

When People Convert MP4 to MP3

If the audio is headed for further editing and you would rather avoid a second lossy step, MP4 to WAV gives you an uncompressed copy instead.

Common MP4 Problems and Fixes

The video is bigger than 50 MB

Trim the part you need in your phone's gallery or a desktop editor, or export the video at a lower resolution. Resolution changes don't affect the audio track, so a 480p export keeps the same sound in a much smaller file. Long recordings can also be split into several shorter clips and converted one at a time.

Zoom gave you two files

Zoom's local recordings usually include an audio-only M4A next to the MP4. That file is far smaller, so converting it with M4A to MP3 avoids the size limit entirely.

The download is silent or the conversion fails

Some MP4s have no audio track at all, which happens with muted screen captures and certain animations. There is nothing to extract from those. Purchased or rented films protected by DRM can't be converted either.

Online videos

The converter works on files saved to your device; it does not fetch videos from web links. Convert only material you made or have permission to use.

MP3 Format at a Glance

Full nameMPEG-1/2 Audio Layer III
CompressionLossy
Developed byFraunhofer IIS / MPEG
Introduced1993
File extension.mp3
Typically used forMusic libraries, podcasts, everyday listening
Plays onVirtually every phone, computer, browser, car stereo and media player
Our outputLAME MP3, 192 kbps CBR, stereo

Frequently Asked Questions

Will converting MP4 to MP3 reduce the audio quality?

Slightly, in theory. MP4 files almost always store audio as AAC, which is already compressed, so making an MP3 means encoding it a second time. At 192 kbps that extra loss is usually inaudible for speech and everyday music listening. The conversion can't make the sound better than the original AAC track, though.

Can I convert a YouTube video to MP3 with this tool?

The converter doesn't accept links or download anything from websites. It only works with files already saved on your phone or computer. If you have an MP4 that you recorded yourself or have the right to use, you can upload it and convert it to MP3.

My MP4 is larger than 50 MB. What can I do?

Uploads are limited to 50 MB per file. Trim the video to the part you need, export it at a lower resolution (which leaves the audio untouched but shrinks the file a lot), or split a long recording into shorter clips and convert each one separately.

How big will the MP3 be?

The MP3 is always encoded at 192 kbps, which works out to about 1.44 MB per minute of audio. A 5-minute video gives you an MP3 of roughly 7 MB, and a 20-minute one about 29 MB, regardless of the video's resolution.

Can I choose a different bitrate or cut part of the audio?

No. There are no settings on the converter: every MP3 is written at 192 kbps constant bitrate with the original sample rate kept up to 48 kHz. Trimming, volume changes and tag editing aren't available, so make any cuts to the video before uploading it.

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