If you have a video file—such as a recorded lecture, a podcast interview, or a music video—and you only need to listen to it, the video track itself is often just a waste of storage space. Extracting the audio track into a separate MP3 or M4A file allows you to listen on the go, share the file more easily, and save gigabytes of hard drive space.
When faced with this problem, many Mac users mistakenly download questionable third-party conversion software, or they upload their private videos to ad-heavy, “free video to MP3” websites. This is entirely unnecessary and poses a significant privacy risk. If you own a Mac, you already have a powerful, instantaneous audio extraction tool built right into the operating system: QuickTime Player.
How to Extract Audio Using QuickTime Player
QuickTime Player is the default application that opens when you double-click most video files on a Mac. While it may look like a simple video player, it contains excellent built-in conversion tools.
Here is exactly how to strip the video and save only the audio:
- Locate your video file on your Mac and double-click it to open it in QuickTime Player. (If your Mac defaults to a different app like VLC, right-click the video, select “Open With”, and choose “QuickTime Player”).
- With the video open on your screen, look at the menu bar at the very top of your display. Click on File.
- Move your mouse down to Export As. A new sub-menu will appear to the right.
- From this sub-menu, select Audio Only.
- A new dialogue box will appear asking you to name the file and choose where to save it. Type your desired filename and select a destination (like your Desktop or Documents folder).
- Click the blue Save button.
QuickTime will immediately process the file. Depending on the length of the video, this could take anywhere from a few seconds to a couple of minutes. Once finished, you will find a brand new M4A audio file saved in your chosen location. Your original video file remains completely untouched.
Why Does QuickTime Save as M4A Instead of MP3?
You may notice that QuickTime exports the audio as an .m4a file (Apple’s Advanced Audio Codec) rather than the older, more common .mp3 format. Do not worry—this is actually a benefit.
M4A files provide significantly better audio quality at smaller file sizes compared to MP3s. Furthermore, almost every modern device, including Windows PCs, Android phones, and smart TVs, can play M4A files perfectly without any additional software.
Alternative Method: Using Apple Music (For MP3s)
If you absolutely must have an MP3 file (perhaps for a legacy piece of hardware like an old car stereo), you can use the Apple Music app (formerly iTunes) to convert the M4A file you just created.
- Open the Apple Music app on your Mac.
- In the top menu bar, click Music, then select Settings (or Preferences).
- Click on the Files tab, then click the Import Settings button.
- Change the “Import Using” dropdown menu to MP3 Encoder and click OK.
- Drag and drop your newly created M4A file into your Apple Music library.
- Click on the track in your library to select it.
- In the top menu bar, click File, then Convert, and select Create MP3 Version.
By utilising the native tools already installed on your Mac, you can keep your data secure, avoid spammy websites, and extract high-quality audio in seconds.
