AIFF to WAV Converter

Convert AIFF files to WAV format online for free. No installation or registration required.

Quick Answer: How to Convert AIFF to WAV

AIFF is Apple's uncompressed audio format, the Mac-side counterpart to WAV. WAV is an uncompressed audio container that stores sound exactly as digitized. Converting between them re-encodes the media with WAV's compression model, so output quality depends on the settings you pick in the converter. Run it free at practicalwebtools.com/convert/audio/aiff-to-wav: drop in your AIFF, adjust settings if you like, and download the WAV — no signup, no upload, everything stays on your device.

AIFF vs WAV: Which One and Why

AIFF is Apple's uncompressed audio format, the Mac-side counterpart to WAV, designed by Apple in 1988 from Electronic Arts' IFF standard. WAV is an uncompressed audio container that stores sound exactly as digitized, created by Microsoft and IBM in 1991 for Windows 3.1 multimedia. People reach for AIFF mainly for professional music production on macOS, DJ software libraries, sample packs, while WAV is the usual choice for studio recording and mixing, sound effects, archiving masters. AIFF's headline strength: bit-perfect quality. WAV's: bit-perfect audio with zero generational loss. On the other side of the ledger, AIFF limitation: same huge file sizes as WAV — and WAV limitation: enormous files — a 4-minute song is ~42 MB at 44.1 kHz stereo.

How to Convert AIFF to WAV Online

  1. 1

    Add your AIFF file: Drag and drop it into the converter, or click to browse. AIFF files up to the size limit are accepted, and nothing is uploaded — processing runs locally in your browser.

  2. 2

    Set WAV options: Pick your quality: the converter exposes the settings that matter for WAV. Higher bitrates preserve more of the AIFF's detail at larger file sizes.

  3. 3

    Download the WAV: Conversion runs on your device. When it completes, download the WAV file — repeat for as many files as you need, free and unlimited.

Key Facts

  • AIFF: designed by Apple in 1988 from Electronic Arts' IFF standard, uncompressed PCM — same size as WAV at equal settings.
  • WAV: created by Microsoft and IBM in 1991 for Windows 3.1 multimedia, none (typically) — CD-quality stereo WAV runs 10.6 MB per minute.
  • AIFF strength: bit-perfect quality.
  • WAV strength: bit-perfect audio with zero generational loss.
  • AIFF limitation to know: same huge file sizes as WAV.
  • WAV limitation to know: enormous files — a 4-minute song is ~42 MB at 44.1 kHz stereo.
  • Under the hood: WAV can also wrap compressed codecs, but "WAV" almost always means PCM — pulse-code modulated raw samples

Format Background

AIFF

AIFF — designed by Apple in 1988 from Electronic Arts' IFF standard. AIFF-C (compressed AIFF, the .aifc extension) can hold IMA/SDX2 codecs — rare today, but why some .aifc files are far smaller than expected

WAV

WAV — created by Microsoft and IBM in 1991 for Windows 3.1 multimedia. WAV can also wrap compressed codecs, but "WAV" almost always means PCM — pulse-code modulated raw samples

Frequently Asked Questions

Will converting AIFF to WAV lose quality?

It depends on the formats: AIFF is uncompressed PCM — same size as WAV at equal settings and WAV is none (typically) — CD-quality stereo WAV runs 10.6 MB per minute. Any step from a lossless source into WAV keeps everything; any lossy step re-encodes and discards some data.

Are my files uploaded anywhere during AIFF → WAV conversion?

No. This converter runs on WebAssembly inside your browser — your AIFF file is read from disk, processed by your device's CPU, and the WAV is written back locally. There is no server upload at any point, which also means no size-based throttling or waiting in queue.

What's the difference between AIFF and WAV technically?

AIFF is Apple's uncompressed audio format, the Mac-side counterpart to WAV (designed by Apple in 1988 from Electronic Arts' IFF standard). WAV is an uncompressed audio container that stores sound exactly as digitized (created by Microsoft and IBM in 1991 for Windows 3.1 multimedia). In practice, AIFF is typically used for professional music production on macOS, DJ software libraries, sample packs, while WAV is the usual choice for studio recording and mixing, sound effects, archiving masters.

Is WAV still a current format in 2026?

Every professional audio tool; native playback on Windows and macOS. WAV can also wrap compressed codecs, but "WAV" almost always means PCM — pulse-code modulated raw samples

Related Converters

AIFF to MP3AIFF to OGGAIFF to AACAIFF to M4AMP3 to WAVOGG to WAVAAC to WAVM4A to WAV

Read More

Guides and explainers on the Practical Web Tools blog cover audio and video formats in depth — or browse every audio converters pair from the hub.