MOV to WAV Converter
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Supports: MOV
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Need help?MOV to WAV Converter
MOV files record audio in AAC or PCM, locked inside the QuickTime container alongside the video track. Extracting to WAV decodes the audio to uncompressed PCM — the format that DAWs (Logic Pro, Pro Tools, Audacity, Adobe Audition, GarageBand), sample editors, and broadcast ingest systems read natively without any codec negotiation. If you filmed a live performance, recorded a voiceover, or captured audio from a QuickTime screen recording and need to edit the audio independently, WAV is the clean starting point.
How to Convert MOV to WAV
- Upload Your MOV File: Drag and drop or click "+ Add Files". Batch upload is supported — multiple MOV files process to separate WAVs in one pass. Files are uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers, and deleted automatically after a few hours — no sign-up, no watermark, never shared.
- Pick Audio Codec and Quality Preset: Default is PCM (the standard WAV codec — uncompressed). The Quality Preset dropdown (Highest through Very Low) controls the bit depth and sample-rate ceiling when re-encoding; for lossless WAV, leave it at Highest or Very High. You can also switch Audio Codec to FLAC for a compressed lossless output if size matters.
- Set Audio Sample Rate and Channel (Optional): Default is Original (44.1 kHz or 48 kHz, depending on how the MOV was recorded). Drop Audio Sample Rate to 22.05 kHz for voice-only content, or switch Audio Channel to Mono to halve the file size for a single-speaker recording.
- Convert and Download: Click "Convert". WAV files are larger than MP3 by design (no compression) — a 10-minute stereo WAV at 44.1 kHz / 16-bit is approximately 105 MB.
WAV Format at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Standard | RIFF/WAVE — Microsoft RIFF container with PCM payload |
| Released | 1991 |
| Codec (typical) | PCM (uncompressed), 16-bit or 24-bit |
| Bit depths | 8, 16, 24, 32-bit integer; 32 or 64-bit float |
| Sample rates | 8 kHz (telephony) through 384 kHz (professional archival) |
| File size (1 min stereo) | ~10 MB at 16-bit/44.1 kHz; ~16 MB at 24-bit/48 kHz |
| Browser support (HTML5 audio) | Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari — all support WAV natively |
| Best for | DAW editing, sample libraries, broadcast ingest, archival |
| Replaced by / complement | FLAC for compressed lossless; AIFF on Apple systems |
WAV vs FLAC vs AIFF — Lossless Extraction Compared
| Property | WAV | FLAC | AIFF |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compression | None (raw PCM) | Lossless (~40-60% smaller than WAV) | None (raw PCM, like WAV) |
| DAW compatibility | Universal | Broad (Logic, Audacity, Reaper; some older tools need a plugin) | Native on macOS; Windows needs QuickTime or codec pack |
| Metadata / tags | Limited (RIFF LIST chunk) | Full ID3/Vorbis tags | Good (ID3-compatible chunks) |
| Web playback | Supported natively in all major browsers | Not supported natively in most browsers | Not supported in Chrome/Firefox |
| Streaming delivery | Not used (too large) | Not used | Not used |
| Best for | Maximum compatibility, broadcast, sample editors | Archival where size matters | Apple Logic Pro, macOS audio tools |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the WAV output truly lossless if the MOV audio was AAC?
No — not in the mathematical sense. AAC in a MOV is already lossy (frequency data was discarded when the MOV was recorded). Decoding AAC to WAV produces uncompressed PCM from the AAC decode — no additional quality is lost in the extraction step, but the quality ceiling is the original AAC encode. If you have a truly lossless source (PCM audio recorded in the MOV), the WAV output preserves it exactly.
How large will the output WAV be?
WAV size (bytes) ≈ sample rate × bit depth ÷ 8 × channels × duration in seconds. For a 10-minute stereo recording at 44.1 kHz / 16-bit: 44,100 × 16 ÷ 8 × 2 × 600 = ~635 MB. For 48 kHz / 24-bit (broadcast standard): ~1.3 GB per 10 minutes. Plan your upload bandwidth accordingly.
Can I extract just a portion of the MOV's audio to WAV?
Yes — set a Trim start and end point in Step 3 before converting. Only that segment is decoded and written to WAV. Useful for pulling a specific take or segment from a longer recording.
Why does Audacity or Logic Pro show a different sample rate than I expected?
The MOV may have been recorded at 48 kHz (typical for video) while your DAW project is set to 44.1 kHz. The WAV file carries the original 48 kHz sample rate. Your DAW will either resample on import or flag a mismatch. Set your project to 48 kHz if the file is destined for video post-production, or add a sample-rate conversion step if mixing with 44.1 kHz stems.
Should I use WAV or FLAC for long-term archival?
FLAC if storage space matters — it compresses losslessly to 40-60% of WAV size with zero quality difference. WAV if you need guaranteed compatibility with every tool in your chain, including older hardware samplers and broadcast systems that predate FLAC support. For this workflow, convert MOV to FLAC if archival size is the constraint.