AIFF to WAV: macOS to Windows Audio Workflow

AIFF and WAV are siblings. Both are uncompressed PCM containers, both store identical audio data sample-for-sample, and both are universally considered lossless. The only practical reason to convert between them is to switch which operating system or DAW treats the file as a first-class citizen. Mac people deliver in AIFF; Windows people deliver in WAV; converting from one to the other is essentially a stream copy with a new wrapper.

AIFF and WAV Are Both Lossless PCM

The PCM samples inside an AIFF file are bit-for-bit identical to what you would get if the same audio were saved as WAV. Both formats can hold sample rates from 8 kHz up to 192 kHz, bit depths of 8, 16, 24, or 32 bits, and any channel configuration from mono to multi-channel surround. There is no audio quality difference. A 24-bit/96 kHz AIFF and a 24-bit/96 kHz WAV of the same recording sound identical and have nearly identical file sizes — about 33 MB per minute of stereo audio.

The two formats differ in three small ways. AIFF is big-endian (most significant byte first), WAV is little-endian. AIFF was developed by Apple in 1988, WAV by Microsoft and IBM in 1991, both derived from the earlier Electronic Arts IFF chunk format. And the metadata chunks each format uses have different names: AIFF uses MARK, INST, COMT, and ANNO chunks; WAV uses LIST INFO, bext (Broadcast Wave), and iXML.

For audio quality, none of those differences matter. For workflow compatibility, all of them do.

Why Convert: The Real Reasons

Windows DAW compatibility. Pro Tools on Windows reads AIFF, but Cubase, FL Studio, Reaper, Studio One, and Ableton Live all prefer WAV as their native session format on Windows. Importing AIFF works in most cases, but exports default to WAV, and project templates expect WAV. Delivering WAV to a Windows-based mix engineer avoids friction.

Broadcast workflows. The Broadcast Wave Format (BWF) extends WAV with a bext chunk that stores timecode, originator info, and history coding. EBU R128 broadcast delivery, podcast distribution to NPR-style networks, and television post-production all expect BWF. AIFF has no direct equivalent.

Game audio engines. Most middleware (FMOD, Wwise) and engines (Unity, Unreal) treat WAV as the canonical uncompressed source format. AIFF imports work but trigger an internal conversion step.

Older Windows software. Anything pre-Windows 10 may not recognize the .aif or .aiff extension by default. WAV is recognized everywhere a Microsoft codec stack exists.

Cross-platform delivery to clients. Mac users export from GarageBand, Logic, or Final Cut as AIFF by default. Windows clients receiving that file may double-click it and have nothing happen. WAV solves it.

What Conversion Actually Does

Because both formats store the same PCM data, converting AIFF to WAV is essentially a repackaging operation. A good converter (ffmpeg, dBpoweramp, XLD, the AIFF to WAV tool) does a stream copy: read PCM samples from the AIFF, swap byte order if needed, write PCM samples into a WAV container with appropriate header chunks. No re-encoding, no resampling, no quality loss. Some encoders mistakenly run the audio through a codec round-trip, which is wasted work but still lossless because PCM in equals PCM out.

What can change: metadata. AIFF MARK chunks (loop and cue points) translate to WAV cue chunks in most converters but not all. INST chunks (sampler instrument definitions) often do not survive. ANNO and COMT comments may map to WAV LIST INFO ICMT but with character-set conversion. If you depend on specific metadata fields, test one file end-to-end before batch-converting a library.

What does not change: sample rate, bit depth, channel count, or audio content. A 24-bit/48 kHz AIFF becomes a 24-bit/48 kHz WAV with byte-identical audio samples.

File Sizes Are the Same

This is the question every first-time converter asks. The answer is no, WAV is not smaller than AIFF, and AIFF is not smaller than WAV. Both store raw PCM with a small header (44 bytes for WAV, similar overhead for AIFF). One minute of stereo 16-bit/44.1 kHz audio is exactly 10.09 MB in either format. One minute of stereo 24-bit/96 kHz is 33 MB in either format. If you need smaller files, convert to FLAC (about 50–60% the size, still lossless) or to MP3 (about 10% the size, lossy).

The GarageBand and Logic Workflow

GarageBand and Logic Pro both export AIFF by default when you choose "Send to Mastering" or "Bounce > Uncompressed." If your mix is going to a Windows-based engineer, change the bounce settings to WAV before exporting, or convert the AIFF after the fact. In Logic, the Bounce dialog has a Format dropdown — switch from AIFF to WAVE. In GarageBand, the AIFF default is harder to override; bouncing then converting is often easier.

The ffmpeg One-Liner

For batch conversion or scripting:

ffmpeg -i input.aiff -c:a pcm_s16le output.wav

For 24-bit, use pcm_s24le. For 32-bit float, use pcm_f32le. The -c:a flag specifies the PCM codec — you almost always want little-endian for WAV output regardless of the AIFF source endianness. To preserve the original bit depth automatically:

ffmpeg -i input.aiff -c:a copy output.wav

The copy codec works only if the bit depth is one ffmpeg recognizes; most 16- and 24-bit AIFFs work this way and are nearly instantaneous.

Batch Conversion for Mac Users Delivering to Windows

If you regularly send audio to Windows clients, set up a batch process. ffmpeg can convert a folder in one command:

for f in *.aiff; do ffmpeg -i "$f" -c:a pcm_s24le "${f%.aiff}.wav"; done

The browser-based AIFF to WAV converter handles single files instantly without any installation, and the audio never uploads anywhere — useful for sensitive material like unreleased music or client work. For a deeper look at AIFF, see What Is AIFF. For WAV background, see What Is WAV. And if you also need an MP3 version of the same source, the AIFF to MP3 guide covers that path.

Broadcast Wave Format: When You Need More Than WAV

If your delivery target is broadcast television, radio, podcast networks like NPR, or major audiobook platforms, plain WAV is often not enough — they expect Broadcast Wave Format (BWF), an EBU-defined extension to WAV that adds a bext metadata chunk. The bext chunk stores SMPTE timecode, originator name, originator reference, creation date and time, coding history, and UMID (Unique Material Identifier). EBU R128 loudness compliance often requires the bext chunk to carry the integrated loudness measurement.

AIFF has no native equivalent. Converting AIFF to WAV is the first step; converting WAV to BWF requires a tool that writes the bext chunk (Adobe Audition, iZotope RX, ffmpeg with -metadata flags, or Sound Devices' Wave Agent for sync workflows). If your AIFF carries timecode in MARK or APPL chunks, manually transfer those values to the bext fields before delivery.

Common Pitfalls When Converting

Three things go wrong in AIFF-to-WAV workflows often enough to mention:

• Endianness corruption. Some legacy converters fail to swap big-endian to little-endian and write WAV files with reversed sample bytes. The result plays as static. Modern tools (ffmpeg, all major DAWs, the AudioUtils browser tool) handle this correctly. If you ever hear pure noise from a "converted" WAV, check the byte order with a hex editor or re-run with a known-good tool.
• Bit depth mismatches. A 24-bit AIFF converted with default settings in some legacy tools comes out as 16-bit WAV with the bottom 8 bits truncated. Always verify the output bit depth matches the input unless you are intentionally downsampling.
• Metadata loss. Track names, artist credits, and embedded album art written into AIFF ID3 chunks (yes, AIFF can carry ID3v2) sometimes do not survive conversion. If metadata matters, verify it after conversion and use a tag editor (Mp3tag works on WAV) to re-apply if needed.

Quick Decision Guide

Choose AIFF when: working entirely in the Apple ecosystem, exporting from GarageBand/Logic for Apple-native delivery, or your downstream tools all read AIFF cleanly. Choose WAV when: collaborating with Windows users, delivering to broadcast or podcast networks, working in any non-Apple DAW, or sending files to clients with unknown software stacks. Choose FLAC when: the receiving system supports it and storage matters — it is half the size with bit-identical audio. Choose MP3 only when the destination requires lossy delivery.