Wondering how to convert WAV to MP3 using Audacity, the free open source audio recording and editing software? Very simple. Audacity now offers a fast and easy solution for creating MP3 versions of WAV and other audio files. Let’s download the latest version of Audacity from https://www.audacityteam.org/ and follow the tutorial below.
NOTE: If you are using an earlier version of Audacity where MP3 export is not available, you are advised to update the program to the latest version or manually install the LAME MP3 encoder to export MP3 from Audacity.
Linux users must download and install LAME to enable the MP3 export option. See how to export MP3 in Audacity.
Step 1. Open Audacity.
Step 2. Go to “File” > “Open”, then import your WAV audio.
Step 3. Click “File” > “Export” > “Export as MP3”.
Step 4. Adjust the name of the file and choose a location to save the output file. In the “Format Options”, you can further modify the quality of your MP3 audio. Then click “Save” to start the conversion.
If you are using Audacity for the first time, a dialog window will appear and you can edit the metadata tags of your audio. If you have nothing to change and don’t want to see the window again, just select “Don’t show this when exporting audio” and then click “OK” to complete the process.
Tip: If you want to convert multiple .wav into .mp3 at once, you’ll need to drag the WAV files into Audacity, and then go to File > Export > Export Multiple. Then follow the instructions to start batch conversion immediately.
Audacity provides an easy way to convert audio files. But for some, Audacity may not be the best choice, as it's not as direct as some other audio converters and also lacks format support. It is recommended that you try a few other audio conversion programs to find out which one works best for you.
For example, WonderFox Free HD Video Converter Factory is a free and powerful video and audio converter with excellent format support. And it can easily convert all mainstream video and audio formats in just a few clicks. Here is how:
1. Launch the program and click “Converter”.
2. Click “Add Files” to import your WAV file into the program. Drag-and-drop is also supported.
3. Expand the output format page on the right. Then go to the “Audio” format tab and choose “MP3” as the output format.
4. Finally, press the “Run” button to start the conversion.
Audacity is a very powerful program that not only helps you record and edit audio, but also helps you convert audio to other formats. With the above steps, I believe you should have no problem converting WAV to MP3. If you want a different experience, you can also try the free audio converter recommended to see if it works for you. That’s all I want to share in this post. I hope it's useful. Thanks for reading. Have a great day!
1. How do I convert audio to MP3 in Audacity?
Step 1. Open the audio file in Audacity.
Step 2. Click 'File' > 'Export' > 'Export as MP3'.
Step 3. Save the MP3 file to a local folder.
Note: Depending on your version of Audacity, you may not find the MP3 export option directly. In this case, you need to install the LAME MP3 encoder. Additionally, if Audacity doesn't recognize your audio, you'll also need to install FFmpeg.
2. Why is Audacity not letting me export MP3?
The most likely cause is that the Project Rate selected in the Audio Settings Preferences is very different from the actual audio track's sample rate. So resampling takes a lot of time.
3. What is the best MP3 export settings for Audacity?
For good audio quality output, you can select 320 kbps bitrate for MP3 in Audacity.
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