Convert AAC to ALAC — Free Online Converter
Convert Advanced Audio Coding (.aac) to Apple Lossless Audio Codec (.alac) online for free. Fast, secure audio conversion with no watermarks or regist...
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Upload your .aac file by dragging it into the upload area or clicking to browse.
Choose your output settings. The default settings work great for most files.
Click Convert and download your .m4a file when it's ready.
About AAC to ALAC Conversion
AAC is a lossy codec delivering transparent-sounding audio at 128-256 kbps, while ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) provides bit-for-bit perfect reproduction of the original audio. Apple open-sourced ALAC in 2011, and it has since become the preferred lossless format within the Apple ecosystem — iTunes, Apple Music, iPhone, iPad, HomePod, and AirPods Max all decode ALAC natively. Converting AAC to ALAC wraps the decoded audio in a lossless container, useful when you need an uncompressed-quality file that stays fully compatible with Apple devices.
Why Convert AAC to ALAC?
If your Apple Music library or iTunes collection contains AAC tracks and you want to archive them in a lossless format for future-proofing, ALAC is the logical choice. Unlike FLAC, ALAC files play natively on every Apple device without third-party apps. The M4A container (shared by both AAC and ALAC) means metadata, artwork, and chapter markers carry over seamlessly.
Common Use Cases
- Archiving an iTunes AAC library in lossless format for long-term preservation
- Preparing audio files for Apple Music upload where lossless is preferred
- Converting podcast AAC masters to ALAC before further editing in Logic Pro
- Building a HomePod-optimized music library in Apple Lossless format
- Creating reference copies of AAC recordings that won't degrade with future transcoding
How It Works
FFmpeg decodes the AAC stream to PCM, then encodes the raw samples using the ALAC encoder within an M4A (MPEG-4 Part 14) container. ALAC achieves roughly 50-60% compression compared to raw PCM while being fully reversible. The output inherits the source sample rate and channel layout. Since both AAC and ALAC live in the M4A container, metadata including album art, track numbers, and iTunes-specific tags transfer directly.
Quality & Performance
The decoded PCM from AAC is encoded losslessly by ALAC — no additional quality loss occurs during conversion. However, the resulting ALAC file represents the quality ceiling of the AAC source, not the original pre-compression recording. If the AAC was encoded at 128 kbps, the ALAC will perfectly preserve that 128 kbps-quality audio, artifacts and all.
Device Compatibility
| Device | AAC | ALAC |
|---|---|---|
| Windows PC | Partial | Partial |
| macOS | Native | Native |
| iPhone/iPad | Native | Native |
| Android | Partial | Partial |
| Linux | Partial | Partial |
| Web Browser | No | No |
Recommended Settings by Platform
Spotify
Resolution: N/A
Bitrate: 320 kbps
OGG Vorbis preferred
Apple Music
Resolution: N/A
Bitrate: 256 kbps
AAC format required
SoundCloud
Resolution: N/A
Bitrate: 128 kbps
Lossless FLAC/WAV for best quality
Podcast
Resolution: N/A
Bitrate: 128 kbps
MP3 mono for spoken word
Tips for Best Results
- 1Batch-convert your entire iTunes AAC library at once — the M4A container means playlists and library organization stay intact
- 2ALAC files can be synced to iPhone and iPad without any transcoding step, unlike FLAC which may trigger automatic conversion
- 3If disk space is a concern, remember that ALAC is about 2.5x larger than AAC at 256 kbps — plan your storage accordingly
- 4Use Apple Music's built-in lossless toggle to compare your converted ALAC files against the streaming versions for quality verification
Related Conversions
AAC to ALAC is ideal for users committed to the Apple ecosystem who want their compressed library in a lossless wrapper. The conversion is fast, metadata-friendly, and produces files that play everywhere Apple hardware reaches.