Convert AIFF to AIF — Free Online Tool
Convert AIFF files to AIF format instantly in your browser — a lossless container rename that preserves your original PCM audio data without any re-encoding or quality loss. Both formats share identical Apple PCM codec support (16-bit, 24-bit, 32-bit, and 64-bit), making this a clean, bit-perfect transfer.
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FFmpeg Command
Copy this command to run the same conversion locally with FFmpeg on your desktop. Download FFmpeg
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Note: Browser-based encoding uses approximate quality targets. For precise CRF compression, copy the FFmpeg command above and run it on your desktop.
Estimated output:
Conversion Complete!
DownloadHow It Works
AIFF and AIF are technically the same Apple Audio Interchange File Format — the only meaningful difference is the file extension. During this conversion, FFmpeg copies the existing PCM audio stream (defaulting to pcm_s16be, 16-bit big-endian signed PCM) directly into the AIF container. Because both formats use identical codec structures and container specifications, no audio decoding or re-encoding occurs. The result is a bit-perfect copy of your original audio wrapped in a file that uses the shorter .aif extension, which some older Apple software, DAWs, and legacy audio hardware devices specifically expect.
What Each Flag Does
| Flag | What it does |
|---|---|
ffmpeg
|
Invokes the FFmpeg binary — the open-source multimedia processing engine running here as WebAssembly in your browser. The same command works identically in a terminal on macOS, Linux, or Windows if FFmpeg is installed locally. |
-i input.aiff
|
Specifies the input file: your source AIFF audio file. FFmpeg reads the container header to identify the embedded PCM codec (typically pcm_s16be for standard 16-bit AIFF files) and the audio stream parameters such as sample rate and channel count. |
-c:a pcm_s16be
|
Sets the audio codec for the output to pcm_s16be — 16-bit big-endian signed PCM, which is the native default codec for both AIFF and AIF containers. Since the source AIFF typically uses the same codec, this effectively copies the audio stream. Change this to pcm_s24be or pcm_s32be if your source is a higher bit-depth master to avoid unintended downsampling. |
output.aif
|
Defines the output filename with the .aif extension. FFmpeg infers the target container format from this extension, writing a valid Apple Audio Interchange File that is structurally identical to the input AIFF but uses the shorter three-character extension required by some legacy software and hardware samplers. |
Common Use Cases
- Preparing audio files for import into legacy Pro Tools or Logic Pro sessions that recognize only the .aif extension rather than .aiff
- Delivering master audio files to clients or studios whose asset management systems or ingest pipelines require the shorter .aif extension
- Satisfying broadcast or archival specifications that mandate .aif as the file extension for uncompressed Apple PCM audio
- Batch-renaming and repackaging a library of .aiff recordings from a macOS DAW session for compatibility with older hardware samplers (e.g., E-mu, Akai) that parse only the .aif extension
- Standardizing a mixed audio archive where some files are .aiff and others are .aif, ensuring a uniform .aif extension throughout without touching the underlying PCM data
Frequently Asked Questions
No — there is absolutely zero quality difference. AIFF and AIF are the same format with different file extensions, and FFmpeg copies the PCM audio stream directly without decoding or re-encoding it. The output .aif file is a bit-perfect duplicate of the input .aiff file's audio data. You can verify this by comparing MD5 checksums of the raw audio streams before and after conversion.
The FFmpeg command as shown uses -c:a pcm_s16be, which sets the output to 16-bit big-endian PCM regardless of the source bit depth. If your original AIFF file is 24-bit (pcm_s24be) or 32-bit (pcm_s32be), you should change the codec flag to match — for example, use -c:a pcm_s24be for a 24-bit output. Failing to do this when working with high-bit-depth masters will result in downsampling from 24 or 32 bits to 16 bits, which is a lossy change.
Standard ID3-style text metadata (title, artist, album) embedded in AIFF chunks is generally preserved during the copy operation since FFmpeg carries chunk data through to the AIF container. However, format-specific markers such as AIFF loop points (MARK and INST chunks), which are important for hardware samplers, may or may not be fully retained depending on the FFmpeg version. If loop point preservation is critical — for example, when preparing samples for an Akai or E-mu sampler — verify the output file in your target application after conversion.
Yes, they are structurally identical formats, but some older applications, hardware devices, and operating systems use strict filename extension matching rather than inspecting the file's actual header. Early Mac HFS file systems, certain hardware samplers, and some broadcast ingest tools were programmed to recognize only the four-character .aiff extension or only the three-character .aif extension. This conversion exists precisely to bridge that legacy compatibility gap without touching a single byte of your audio data.
Replace pcm_s16be with pcm_s24be in the command: ffmpeg -i input.aiff -c:a pcm_s24be output.aif. You can similarly use pcm_s32be for 32-bit integer PCM, pcm_f32be for 32-bit float, or pcm_f64be for 64-bit float — all of which are valid codecs in both the AIFF and AIF containers. To check the bit depth of your source file before running the command, use ffprobe -i input.aiff and look at the audio stream's codec name.
Yes. On macOS or Linux, you can loop through all AIFF files in a directory with a shell one-liner: for f in *.aiff; do ffmpeg -i "$f" -c:a pcm_s16be "${f%.aiff}.aif"; done. On Windows Command Prompt, use: for %f in (*.aiff) do ffmpeg -i "%f" -c:a pcm_s16be "%~nf.aif". Both approaches rename the extension while preserving the original filename and copying the PCM audio stream without re-encoding.
Technical Notes
AIFF (.aiff) and AIF (.aif) are not two distinct formats — they are the same Apple Audio Interchange File Format specification, distinguished only by whether the file extension uses the full four-character form or the legacy three-character form introduced for compatibility with older file systems that enforced three-character extension limits (such as MS-DOS FAT). Both containers natively support big-endian PCM codecs: pcm_s16be (16-bit signed), pcm_s24be (24-bit signed), pcm_s32be (32-bit signed), pcm_f32be (32-bit float), and pcm_f64be (64-bit float). Neither format supports video streams, subtitle tracks, chapters, or multiple audio tracks. The FFmpeg command defaults to pcm_s16be; users with 24-bit or higher-resolution masters must explicitly specify the matching codec to avoid unintended bit-depth reduction. File sizes between the input AIFF and output AIF will be essentially identical since no compression or sample rate change is applied — expect only negligible byte-level differences from container header overhead. Metadata stored in AIFF-standard chunks (NAME, AUTH, ANNO) is typically passed through by FFmpeg, but application-specific chunks from DAWs (such as Logic Pro's UUID chunks) may be silently dropped.