Convert MPG to AAC — Free Online Tool
Extract and convert audio from MPG video files into AAC format, stripping the MPEG-2 video stream entirely and re-encoding the MP2 or MP3 audio track using the modern AAC codec. AAC delivers superior sound quality over MP2 at comparable or lower bit rates, making it ideal for playback on mobile devices, streaming platforms, and Apple ecosystem apps.
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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
MPG files typically carry MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 video alongside MP2 audio — a legacy audio codec common in broadcast and DVD workflows. During this conversion, FFmpeg discards the video stream entirely (no video codec is needed for AAC output) and decodes the MP2 audio track, then re-encodes it as AAC using the native FFmpeg AAC encoder at 128k bit rate. Because MP2 and AAC are both lossy formats, this is a lossy-to-lossy transcode: the audio is fully decoded from MP2 and then re-compressed as AAC, which introduces a second generation of compression artifacts. The result is a standalone .aac audio file with no video data, significantly smaller than the original MPG.
What Each Flag Does
| Flag | What it does |
|---|---|
ffmpeg
|
Invokes the FFmpeg tool. In this browser-based tool, it runs via FFmpeg.wasm compiled to WebAssembly, so no files leave your device. The same command works identically in a desktop FFmpeg installation. |
-i input.mpg
|
Specifies the input MPG file. FFmpeg reads the MPEG-1/2 container and identifies both the MPEG-2 video stream and the MP2 audio stream inside; only the audio stream will be used for this conversion. |
-c:a aac
|
Sets the audio codec to AAC using FFmpeg's built-in AAC-LC encoder. This decodes the MP2 audio from the MPG and re-encodes it as AAC, which is more efficient than MP2 and natively supported on iOS, Android, and streaming platforms. |
-b:a 128k
|
Sets the AAC output bit rate to 128 kilobits per second. At this rate, AAC produces perceptibly better audio than MP2 at the same bit rate, making it a practical default for voice, broadcast audio, and general music extracted from MPG sources. |
output.aac
|
Defines the output file as a raw AAC audio file. Because .aac is an audio-only format, FFmpeg automatically drops the MPEG-2 video stream from the MPG without needing an explicit flag, resulting in a compact audio-only file ready for mobile or streaming use. |
Common Use Cases
- Extracting the audio commentary or dialogue track from a broadcast-captured MPG recording to archive it as a mobile-friendly AAC file
- Pulling music or concert audio from an old VCD or DVD-ripped MPG file to load into iTunes or an iPhone, which natively supports AAC but not MP2
- Converting MPG broadcast footage audio for upload to a podcast platform or streaming service that requires AAC-compatible audio files
- Reducing file size for storage by stripping the large MPEG-2 video stream from an MPG and keeping only the audio as a compact AAC file
- Preparing audio from legacy MPG training or educational videos for use in a mobile app or e-learning platform that requires AAC-encoded audio
- Extracting background music or sound effects stored in MPG format for use in video editing software that handles AAC better than MP2
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, there will be some quality loss because this is a lossy-to-lossy transcode. The original MP2 audio in the MPG file is decoded to raw PCM and then re-compressed as AAC, which introduces a second generation of compression. However, AAC is a more efficient codec than MP2 — at 128k bit rate, AAC typically sounds noticeably better than MP2 at the same bit rate, so the output can actually be perceived as higher quality even though generation loss has technically occurred.
When the output file has an audio-only extension like .aac, FFmpeg automatically excludes any video streams from the output because the AAC container has no mechanism to hold video data. The video stream from the MPG is implicitly dropped without needing an explicit -vn flag, keeping the command clean. If you wanted to be explicit or were outputting to a container that could hold video, adding -vn would make the intent unambiguous.
Increase the value of the -b:a flag to raise the bit rate. For example, replace -b:a 128k with -b:a 192k or -b:a 256k for noticeably richer audio, especially useful if the source MPG file contained high-quality stereo or broadcast-grade audio. Keep in mind that going above 256k yields diminishing returns for AAC, and the source MP2 audio quality in the MPG caps the ceiling of what can be recovered regardless of output bit rate.
Yes. On Linux or macOS you can use a shell loop: for f in *.mpg; do ffmpeg -i "$f" -c:a aac -b:a 128k "${f%.mpg}.aac"; done. On Windows Command Prompt, use: for %f in (*.mpg) do ffmpeg -i "%f" -c:a aac -b:a 128k "%~nf.aac". This processes every MPG in the current directory and outputs a matching AAC file for each.
Yes. AAC is Apple's preferred audio format and is natively supported across the entire Apple ecosystem including iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Music. The default 128k AAC output from this conversion will play directly in the Files app, iTunes, and any standard iOS media player without any additional conversion or app.
MPG files carry very limited metadata compared to modern containers, and the plain .aac output format has minimal metadata support as well. Basic stream information like duration and sample rate will be preserved, but rich tags such as title, artist, or chapter markers are not part of the MPG format and will not appear in the output. If you need tagged audio output, consider converting to M4A instead of raw AAC, as M4A wraps AAC audio in a container that fully supports ID3-style metadata.
Technical Notes
MPG files sourced from VCD or broadcast recordings almost always carry MP2 audio (MPEG-1 Audio Layer II), typically at 128k–192k bit rate and 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz sample rate. When re-encoding to AAC using FFmpeg's built-in AAC encoder, the output is standard MPEG-4 AAC-LC (Low Complexity), which is the most universally compatible AAC profile for streaming and device playback. The libfdk_aac encoder (if available in your FFmpeg build) generally produces higher quality output than the native encoder at the same bit rate and is worth using for critical listening purposes by replacing -c:a aac with -c:a libfdk_aac. Note that raw .aac files lack a container wrapper, which means they have no support for chapter markers, multiple audio tracks, or rich metadata — limitations shared by the MPG input format as well. If the source MPG contains stereo audio, the AAC output will preserve the stereo layout. The output file size will be substantially smaller than the MPG since the MPEG-2 video stream — typically 80–95% of an MPG file's size — is entirely discarded.