m4a → text · free · no signup
M4A to text, in your browser.
iPhone voice memos, Zoom audio-only recordings, anything saved as .m4a. Drop it in, read the transcript.
// short answer
To convert M4A to text, drop the .m4a file into the box above. The transcript appears on the page, usually within seconds, in whatever language was spoken. Free: 3 files a day with no account, transcripts on screen for recordings up to 15 minutes, and emailed for 15–30 minutes (15 MB upload cap). Unlimited ($9/month) takes files up to 2 hours and 50 MB, 30 hours of audio a month, no daily limit, with speaker labels.
Updated 2026-09-17
Where your M4A file probably came from
M4A is AAC audio in an MPEG-4 container. It is compact, which is why so many apps default to it.
- iPhone Voice Memos. Every recording in the Voice Memos app is an .m4a file.
- Zoom local recordings. Zoom can save an audio-only .m4a next to the meeting video. Upload that instead of the video. It is far smaller.
- Exports from Mac apps. QuickTime's File → Export As → Audio Only produces an .m4a.
Why M4A usually fits the free tier
Before uploading, your browser re-encodes audio to 16 kHz mono, the format the model uses anyway. For a compressed file like M4A that would make it bigger, so the original is sent as it is. A normal voice memo stays well under the 15 MB free cap.
The exception is a memo recorded with the iPhone's Lossless audio quality setting. Those are much larger. Set Audio Quality back to Compressed in the iPhone's Voice Memos settings for future recordings, or shrink an existing one with the command below.
ffmpeg -i memo.m4a -vn -ac 1 -b:a 48k output.mp3Transcribing straight from your iPhone
You don't need a computer. In Voice Memos, tap the recording, tap the … button, choose Share → Save to Files. Then open this page in Safari, tap the upload box and pick the file from Files.
Free vs Unlimited
| Free | Unlimited | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0 | $9/month, cancel anytime |
| Files per day | 3 | No daily limit |
| Longest file | 15 min on screen, 30 min by email | 2 hours |
| Upload size | 15 MB | 50 MB |
| Audio per month | — | 30 hours |
| Speaker labels | No | Yes |
| Account | None | None, Stripe checkout |
FAQ
Can I convert M4A to text on my phone?+
Yes. The page works in Safari and Chrome on iOS and Android. Save the recording to Files first, then pick it from the upload box.
Does a Zoom .m4a know who was speaking?+
No. Zoom's audio-only file is one mixed track with no names in it. On Unlimited, the transcript is split into Speaker 1, Speaker 2 and so on by telling voices apart. It can't know anyone's name. Free transcripts have no speaker labels.
My M4A is over 15 MB. What now?+
Re-encode it as a 48 kbps mono MP3 with the ffmpeg command on this page. A 30-minute recording comes out around 10 MB, with no accuracy cost for speech. Or use Unlimited, which accepts 50 MB and files up to 2 hours.
Is my voice memo kept?+
No. The upload sits in temporary storage only while it is transcribed and is then deleted. The transcript goes back to your browser and is not saved on our side.