MP4 to MP3 converter for Mac & Windows: 5 ways to convert MP4 to MP3 smoothly

My new car allows me to play MP3 songs off a flash drive. But my entire iTunes library appears to be MP4 music videos. Any way to extract audio off it and convert to MP3 format on my MacBook Pro? Where can I get a batch MP4 to MP3 converter for Mac as iTunes not allowed to select the "convert to mp3 option."

You can easily remove audio from a movie or video in QuickTime Player, but there're times when you need to convert MP4 files to MP3 files on Mac. Maybe it's a video of a beautiful speech that was shot in dark footage. Or maybe the soundtrack of the video is stunning that is worth playing on a media player, burning to CD, posting on the website or sharing with others.

Whatever could be your purpose, getting MP3 off MP4 videos in Mac computer isn't a big deal—provided you have a dedicated MP4 to MP3 converter Mac. Whether you're a novice user or an experienced individual, these are the best and free MP3 converters for macOS and Windows you can count on to do the conversion between video and audio formats without any quality loss. We also cover an option to convert an mp4 movie to mp3 on Mac online. Swim across to get started!

1. How Do I Convert MP4 Files to MP3 with iTunes on Mac or PC?

There're a number of third-party MP4 to MP3 converters for Mac or PC, and MP4 to MP3 conversion sites available, but iTunes or Music app a great place to start. It's a powerful media management tool that greatly expands what you can do with the file conversion through the "Convert to MP3" feature, at no charge.

Unlike other MP3 converters with clear-cut buttons, this is not simply a "Convert to MP3" option showing in the context menu at iTunes or Music. You're required an extra step before clicking File tab in the menu bar by holding down the Option key on Mac (or Shift key on PC) to make sure the conversion from an MP4 to an MP3 on Mac is working as intended.

Important! The MP4 video you start with must be in your Mac's drive or iTunes library (not in the cloud) and cannot be an iTunes-purchased file with DRM protection; or it will fail to convert it to MP3 audio.

In macOS: Convert to MP3 in iTunes or Music App

With iTunes and Music app served as a free MP4 to MP3 converter on Mac, the steps to extract MP3 songs from MP4 videos are easy. Before moving on, import the MP4 files to your library.

• Launch iTunes on Mac or Music in macOS Catalina 10.15.
• In the menu bar, click Music > Preferences.
• Click File, and then click Import Settings.
• Change the "Import Using" to MP3 Encoder. Click OK.



• In your library, select the .mp4 video(s), hold down the Option key, and choose File > Convert > Convert to MP3.
• This will create a .mp3 version and the original .mp4 will still be there.

In Windows: Convert from MP4 to MP3 format in iTunes for Windows

If you haven't already installed the latest version of iTunes, do that first, and then it's a simple process of converting mp4 files to mp3 format on PC's computer.

• Open iTunes for Windows.
• Go to Edit > Preferences, then click General.
• Click Import settings.
• Set import format to MP3 Encoder in the Import Using menu.
• Go back to your library, select the MP4 music video files, hold down Shift key and click File > Convert > Convert to MP3.

When the conversion is complete, MP3 versions will appear below the original MP4 music files in your iTunes library. Cheers!

This also works for Mac users to convert MP4s to MP3s: first convert the MP4 video file to an Apple audio-only file by using QuickTime Player in Mac and then, convert the Apple audio-only file to an MP3 audio file by using iTunes or Music app.

• Run QuickTime Player, and use it to open the MP4 video you want to work on.
• Click File > Export As > Audio Only.
• Name the file and choose the location where it will be stored. Click Save.
• This will create an Apple MPEG-4 audio with the .m4a file extension.

Once that's done, drag the M4A audio to iTunes library, then follow the instructions mentioned above to convert to MP3 on Mac in Music or iTunes.

2. MP4-to-MP3 Converter for Mac - Excellent, Fast Product

While iTunes and Music app can act as an MP4 to MP3 converter Mac free for file converting affairs, they're not that straightforward or fast, especially you have a large number of videos to convert. Third party software like Video Converter for macOS (also available in Windows PC) will give you the ability to convert MP4 to MP3 files on Mac and PC efficiently, leaving your original videos unchanged. It also gives you a decent speed and a finer level of control over how your audio sounds, from focus to audio parameters to audio editors and effects.

The program is designed specially to simplify as much as possible the process of conversion and you don't need to learn any tutorial to get started - add all files you want, select the output format and click Convert. Though its name implies that it only encodes videos in different formats - and it does that very well - but it's also capable of converting audio files, and files between videos and audio, such as MP4 to MP3 Mac in this post.

Pros of MP4 to MP3 converter for macOS:

• Clean interface, easy to understand.
• Batch processing is allowed.
• Handy presets for output files.
• Fast speed at converting to .mp3 with high quality.
• Split the video into several segments to get the soundtrack you want.
• Adjust audio volume, and hear changes in real-time Preview window.

Easy Steps on converting to .mp3 format from .mp4 format on Mac:

• Open Video Converter for Mac after installation.
• Click Add File to import MP4 files to convert to MP3. The drag-and-drop is supported.
• In the "Profile" drop-down menu, choose MPEG Layer-3 Audio (*.mp3).
• Specify an output destination if necessary.
• Click Convert button.

The Mac MP4 to MP3 converter take care of the rest. You'll then get an mp3 version of a file. Happy converting!

Tips: The steps are specific to the macOS platform, but are similar in the Windows computers.

3. VLC Media Player

VLC is not just a Media Player, it has a pretty decent built-in converter, say the free MP4 to MP3 converter Mac. So if you haven't used VLC before, go download and install it. The follow the instructions to convert MP4 videos to MP3 songs in Mac computer or PC so you can enjoy the songs on portable devices.

• Start VLC media player.
• Click File > Convert / Stream.
• Click Open media..., select .mp4 video you need to convert, then click Open.
• From the Choose Profile pull-down menu, choose Audio - MP3.
• Click Save as File to set a output directory.
• Hit Save to begin converting video to mp3 in Mac.

4. Best MP4 to MP3 Converter Mac Online

Many free MP4 to MP3 converters for macOS include powerful conversion ability but are ultimately designed for music production with a full set of basic editing controls. If you're looking for a plain program for the conversion from MP4 to MP3 in Mac, one of the simpler browser-based converters might be a more suitable option. You don't need to download anything though they're not as stable as the dedicated desktop applications.

CloudConvert

One MP3 converter for Mac online is CloudConvert. It works fast but allows you to convert only 25 files per day on gest mode. You can purchase a subscription to increase the limit. There's no option for previewing the songs before converting process.

• Head to https://cloudconvert.com/mp4-to-mp3 on Mac or PC's browser.
• Click Select File and open the MP4 video file.
• Tweak the profile settings for the MP3 audio you want it in.
• Click Convert.
• Once the process is done, download the new .mp3 file to the computer.

Online Audio Converter

Another better online free MP4 to MP3 converter that is worth considering is Online Audio Converter. Not only can it convert audio files from one format to another right in the browser, but it also be able to extract audio from a video file and save it in MP3 format. It requires that you have an Internet connection as well.

• Navigate to https://online-audio-converter.com/.
• Click Open files, then choose an MP4 file to convert.
• Select mp3, and adjust the quality by using the slider.
• Click Convert to initiate converting MP4 to MP3 format for Mac.

5. MediaHuman YouTube to MP3 Converter

Looking for the software or site that was best for converting MP4 version of YouTube videos in to .mp3 format on Mac to grab all your favorite songs? MediaHuman's YouTube to MP3 Converter is already out there for you. It's a freeware audio conversion utility that lets you download the YouTube videos in an .mp3 format, regardless of the internet connection. There's also an option that automatically add the grabbed file to your iTunes library.

A Legal Warning: Converting YouTube videos to MP3 is a breach if the streaming video site's terms of use. So make sure the music video files are your original content, as well as public domain and non-copyrighted videos.

• Locate your favorite YouTube video, and copy the URL.
• Launch the video to MP3 converter Mac, and click Add icon to paste the URL.
• Change the output format to MP3.
• Click Start icon to download YouTube video and convert .mp4 to .mp3.