Move Your Apple Library to an Open Lossless Format
Upload your M4A file and download a FLAC that plays on Android, Linux, VLC, Plex, and every non-Apple player without any quality loss beyond the original source.
Convert Now
Audio Format Converter
Upload any audio file, choose an output format, and download the converted result. Supports MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, OGG, ALAC, WMA, Opus and M4A.
Drop your audio file here
or click to browse
Escape the Apple Container, Keep the Audio
M4A is Apple's proprietary container. FLAC is patent-free and plays on Android, Linux, Windows, VLC, foobar2000, Plex, Jellyfin, Navidrome, and virtually every audio tool that is not made by Apple. Converting unlocks your audio from a single ecosystem without losing a single decoded sample.
Convert Now
Future-Proof Your Collection
A FLAC archive can be re-encoded to any format that exists today or will exist in the future without generation loss. Converting your M4A library to FLAC now means you will always have a clean lossless source to work from, regardless of which platform or player you use next.
Try It Now
FFmpeg-Powered Server Conversion
Every conversion runs through FFmpeg on dedicated servers. The AAC stream inside your M4A container is fully decoded to PCM, then re-encoded into a lossless FLAC container with the original sample rate, bit depth, and channel layout preserved throughout.
See It in ActionThree steps to open lossless audio
Upload your M4A file
Drop your M4A file onto the tool or click to browse. Both AAC (lossy) and ALAC (lossless) M4A files are accepted.
Convert to FLAC
Click "Convert". FFmpeg decodes the audio stream from the M4A container and re-encodes it as lossless FLAC, preserving all metadata, sample rate, and channel layout.
Download your FLAC file
Preview the output in the browser player, then download your .flac file ready for your archive, media server, or DAW.
Deep Dive
M4A vs FLAC: Apple Ecosystem vs Open Standard
M4A is Apple's audio container and works best inside Apple's own apps and devices. FLAC is the open, patent-free lossless standard supported across every platform and tool. Here is what changes when you convert.
Output sample rate and bit depth match the decoded audio stream from the M4A source. No upsampling is applied.
Why Use This Converter
Open and Patent-Free
FLAC has no licensing restrictions. Your audio works natively on Android, Linux, VLC, and every open-source media tool without any codec installation.
No Additional Quality Loss
Decoding M4A to FLAC introduces no new compression. The quality ceiling is set by the original M4A source, not by the conversion.
Metadata and Cover Art Preserved
Artist, album, track, genre, and cover art tags from the M4A file carry over to the FLAC output automatically.
FFmpeg-Powered
Industry-standard FFmpeg handles every conversion with accurate sample rate, bit depth, and channel mapping throughout.
Who Uses It
Who Converts M4A to FLAC
Apple users who want their music library to work beyond Apple devices, media server operators, audiophiles, and DAW users on non-Apple platforms all convert M4A to FLAC.
Converts using FFmpeg on dedicated servers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I lose quality when converting M4A to FLAC?
No additional quality is lost beyond what was already discarded during the original AAC encoding. FLAC is a lossless container, so decoding the AAC stream and re-encoding as FLAC captures every sample the AAC decoder produces. The quality ceiling is set by the source M4A, not by this conversion.
What if my M4A contains Apple Lossless (ALAC) instead of AAC?
If your M4A holds ALAC audio, converting to FLAC is a fully lossless container-to-container operation. Both ALAC and FLAC store every audio sample without discarding data, so the output FLAC is bit-perfect relative to the source. The file size will be similar between the two.
Why is the FLAC file larger than the source M4A?
FLAC stores every decoded audio sample. When the M4A holds AAC (lossy) audio, decoding produces a full uncompressed PCM waveform before FLAC re-compresses it losslessly. The result is always larger than the source AAC because no audio data is discarded. A 5 MB M4A may expand to 30 to 50 MB as FLAC.
Does the converted FLAC file keep artist, album, and cover art tags?
Yes. FFmpeg transfers metadata from the M4A container to FLAC Vorbis comment tags during conversion. Artist, album, track title, genre, year, and embedded cover art are all preserved in the output file.
Which players support FLAC on non-Apple platforms?
FLAC is supported natively on Android, and by VLC, foobar2000, Winamp, Plex, Jellyfin, Kodi, Navidrome, Audacity, most DAWs, and every modern music player outside Apple's ecosystem. On macOS and iOS, use a third-party player or convert to ALAC for native Apple playback.
Is there a file size limit?
The upload limit is 100 MB per file. Most M4A tracks and albums are well within this limit.
Ready to Convert Your M4A to FLAC?
Upload your file above and get open lossless audio in seconds.