Audio File Size Calculator
Estimate audio file sizes for WAV, FLAC, MP3, AAC, and OGG formats based on duration, sample rate, bit depth, and channel count.
About this calculator
This calculator splits file size into two very different families. Uncompressed WAV/AIFF size is exact math: sample rate × (bit depth / 8) × channel count × duration in seconds gives you the raw byte count, so bumping from 16-bit/44.1kHz stereo to 24-bit/96kHz roughly triples the file for the same track. Everything else — FLAC, MP3, AAC, OGG — works differently, because those are compressed formats and this tool models them at fixed target bitrates (FLAC at a flat 60% of the uncompressed size, MP3 at 128 or 320 kbps, AAC at 256 kbps, OGG Vorbis at 160 kbps) multiplied straight through by duration.
That means changing your sample rate or bit depth inputs only moves the WAV/AIFF and "Uncompressed Bitrate" numbers — the compressed-format estimates are driven entirely by duration, since a fixed-bitrate encoder targets the same output size regardless of source resolution. The FLAC figure is the roughest of the bunch: real lossless compression ratios swing from roughly 40% to 70% of the original depending on how much silence, dynamic range, or dense harmonic content is in the recording, so 60% is a reasonable planning average, not a guarantee. Use this to budget storage for a podcast archive, size out a download bundle across formats, or sanity-check why a "CD quality" WAV master is ten times heavier than the MP3 you're about to upload — just remember the compressed numbers assume a constant-bitrate encode, and real-world variable-bitrate encoders (especially well-tuned MP3 VBR or AAC) can land meaningfully smaller for quiet material.
Inputs
Results
WAV/AIFF (Uncompressed)
35.33 MB
≈ 7 songs
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter Duration in minutes.
- Select a Sample Rate (22,050 Hz up to 192,000 Hz).
- Select a Bit Depth (16-bit, 24-bit, or 32-bit).
- Select Channels (Mono or Stereo).
- Review the WAV/AIFF (Uncompressed) (MB) and Uncompressed Bitrate (kbps) results.
- Compare against FLAC (Lossless), MP3 320/128 kbps, AAC 256 kbps, and OGG Vorbis 160 kbps size estimates.
How the result changes with Duration
| Duration | WAV/AIFF (Uncompressed) |
|---|---|
| 1.75 | 17.66 MB |
| 2.63 | 26.55 MB |
| 5.25 | 52.99 MB |
| 8.75 | 88.32 MB |
What each input means
- Duration
- Length of the audio in minutes.
- Sample Rate
- Number of audio samples per second. CD quality is 44,100 Hz; professional recording often uses 48,000 or 96,000 Hz.
- Bit Depth
- Bits per sample. Higher bit depth means greater dynamic range. 16-bit is CD standard; 24-bit is professional.
- Channels
- Number of audio channels. Mono for single-source recordings; stereo for standard music.
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters4 parametersDuration = 3.5, Sample Rate = 44100, Bit Depth = 16, Channels = 2 = 4 input(s) provided
- Calculate WAV/AIFFWAV/AIFF35.33 = 35.33
- Calculate Uncompressed BitrateUncompressed Bitrate1411 = 1411
- Calculate FLACFLAC21.2 = 21.2
Engine last updated . Checked against 2 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators. Built by Paul Gunder, a software engineer, not a licensed financial, medical, or legal professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why doesn't changing the sample rate or bit depth affect the MP3, AAC, or OGG size estimates?
Those formats are modeled here at fixed target bitrates — 128 or 320 kbps for MP3, 256 kbps for AAC, 160 kbps for OGG — so their size is bitrate × duration regardless of the source's sample rate or bit depth. A fixed-bitrate encoder allocates the same number of bits per second no matter how high-resolution the source audio was; only the WAV/AIFF and Uncompressed Bitrate figures actually respond to your Sample Rate and Bit Depth selections.
How reliable is the FLAC size estimate compared to the others?
It's the least precise number on the page. FLAC is lossless compression, and this calculator applies a flat 60% ratio against the uncompressed size, but real FLAC compression ratios vary roughly 40-70% depending on how much silence, dynamic range, or dense harmonic content the recording contains. Treat the FLAC figure as a reasonable midpoint rather than a prediction of your exact encoded file size.
Why does switching from Mono to Stereo roughly double every format's file size?
Channel count is a direct multiplier in the uncompressed formula (sample rate × bit depth/8 × channels × duration) and is baked into the fixed bitrates used for the compressed formats too, since those bitrate targets already assume stereo content. Going from stereo to mono halves the data because you're recording one audio stream instead of two independent ones.
Why is a 24-bit/96kHz WAV so much larger than a 16-bit/44.1kHz WAV of the same song?
Both sample rate and bit depth multiply directly into the uncompressed size formula, so raising sample rate from 44,100 Hz to 96,000 Hz (roughly 2.2x) and bit depth from 16 to 24 (1.5x) compounds to about a 3.3x larger file for identical channel count and duration. This is why hi-res masters are dramatically heavier than CD-quality audio even though they contain the same musical content.
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