How to install FFmpeg for Audacity and open M4A files
To open M4A, WMA or the soundtrack of a video in Audacity, install FFmpeg, a free library that Audacity loads at startup but is not allowed to ship because of patent restrictions. On Windows and macOS, run the FFmpeg for Audacity installer, restart Audacity, and open Preferences ▸ General, which shows the FFmpeg library version once Audacity finds it. On Linux, install ffmpeg from your package manager. Audacity 4.0 adds one catch of its own. Its import dialog hides M4A files even when FFmpeg works, so those need one of the workarounds below.
This guide shows which FFmpeg file to download for each system and where Audacity looks for it. It covers the fixes for “FFmpeg library not found”, the Audacity 4 M4A problem, and whether to convert an M4A to WAV before you edit.
Tested on Audacity 4.0.1 on macOS Sequoia and Windows 11, with notes for Audacity 3.7 where the steps differ.
Audacity 4 and Audacity 3 on MuseHub
Which FFmpeg to download
Audacity needs the FFmpeg libraries, the shared files it loads from inside the app. The command-line program ffmpeg.exe on its own is no use to it. The installer from the FFmpeg for Audacity download page puts the right files where Audacity looks, which is why it is the first choice on Windows and macOS.
| Your system | What to install | File Audacity loads | Where Audacity looks without help | The trap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows, 64-bit | FFmpeg_5.0.0_for_Audacity_on_Windows_x86_64.exe from the download page | avformat-NN.dll | The folder the installer records, C:\Program Files\FFmpeg For Audacity by default | Ad buttons on the download page |
| Windows on ARM | The native ARM64 build linked from Audacity’s support page | avformat-NN.dll | Point Audacity to it by hand in Step 5 | A ZIP that holds only ffmpeg.exe |
| macOS (Apple Silicon or Intel) | FFmpeg_5.0.0_for_Audacity_on_macOS.pkg, a universal installer | libavformat.NN.dylib | /Library/Application Support/audacity/libs | The installer can sit on “Validating packages” for a while |
| macOS with Homebrew | brew install ffmpeg | libavformat.NN.dylib | /opt/homebrew/lib (Apple Silicon), /usr/local/lib (Intel) | A brand-new FFmpeg release Audacity does not read yet |
| Linux | ffmpeg from the package manager | libavformat.so.NN | The system library folders | A distribution version Audacity does not support |
NN is the avformat version number, such as 61. The installers come from lame.buanzo.org, the site Audacity’s Installing FFmpeg page sends you to.
What you need
- Audacity 3.2 or later, or Audacity 4. Both are free. FFmpeg is a separate install whichever installer you used for Audacity; the MuseHub installer does not add it.
- Permission to install software. The Windows installer writes to Program Files.
Step 1: Check what Audacity already sees
You may have FFmpeg already, from an earlier install or another app.
- Open Preferences. On Windows and Linux choose Edit ▸ Preferences; on a Mac choose Audacity ▸ Preferences.
- Go to the General page. Scroll to the FFmpeg library section at the bottom.
- Read the version line. “FFmpeg library version:” followed by a number means FFmpeg is loaded and you can skip to the M4A section. A path field that reads “FFmpeg library not found” means Audacity has none.
The same section has two buttons. Download FFmpeg opens Audacity’s Installing FFmpeg page, which still describes the Audacity 3 Libraries page; in Audacity 4 the setting stays here, on General. Locate existing installation is for Step 5. With the installer’s FFmpeg loaded, the version line reads “F(59.16.100),C(59.18.100),U(57.17.100)”, and the path field ends in FFmpeg For Audacity\avformat-59.dll on Windows and in libavformat.59.16.100.dylib on a Mac.
On Audacity 3: the section is a page of its own, Edit ▸ Preferences ▸ Libraries, with a Locate… button next to FFmpeg Library.
Step 2: Install FFmpeg on Windows
- Open the download page. Click Download FFmpeg in Preferences. It opens Audacity’s Installing FFmpeg page, which links to the FFmpeg for Audacity page on lame.buanzo.org.
- Click the file name, not a button. The page carries ads with large download buttons. Ignore them and find the heading FFmpeg Installer for Audacity 3.2 and later. Its package is the one Audacity 4 needs, although the heading names only Audacity 3. Click
FFmpeg_5.0.0_for_Audacity_on_Windows_x86_64.exe, the right file for almost every Windows PC. The 32-bit…_Windows_x86.exeis only for 32-bit Windows. - Run the installer. Windows may warn about an unknown publisher; Audacity’s support page says you can ignore it. Accept the license and keep the default folder,
C:\Program Files\FFmpeg For Audacity. - Restart Audacity. It reads FFmpeg only at startup. Check the version line from Step 1.
On a Windows ARM laptop, take the native ARM64 build that the support page links instead, then point Audacity to it in Step 5.
Step 3: Install FFmpeg on macOS
- Download the package. From the same page, click
FFmpeg_5.0.0_for_Audacity_on_macOS.pkg. It is a universal installer that matches Apple Silicon and Intel Macs on its own. - Run it. Open the .pkg and click through. On some Macs it looks stalled on “Validating packages”; wait for it to finish.
- Restart Audacity and check the version line.
With Homebrew. If you already use Homebrew, brew install ffmpeg in Terminal works too. Audacity checks both Homebrew library folders, /opt/homebrew/lib on Apple Silicon and /usr/local/lib on Intel. Right after a new FFmpeg release, Audacity may not read it for a while; then brew install ffmpeg@6 installs version 6, and Step 5 points Audacity to it.
Any FFmpeg you install by hand must match the Mac and the app. An Apple Silicon (arm64) Audacity needs an arm64 FFmpeg, and an Intel (x86_64) build needs an x86_64 one.
Step 4: Install FFmpeg on Linux
Install FFmpeg and LAME from your distribution, then restart Audacity. It looks for the libraries on its own.
| Distribution | Command |
|---|---|
| Debian, Ubuntu, Pop!_OS, Mint | sudo apt install ffmpeg lame |
| Fedora, Red Hat, CentOS | add the RPM Fusion repository first, then sudo dnf install ffmpeg lame |
| Arch, Manjaro | sudo pacman -Syu ffmpeg lame |
If your distribution ships an FFmpeg version Audacity does not support (the table under Step 5 lists them), it will not be detected. The fix is a shared build of a supported version, which the support page explains how to compile.
Step 5: Point Audacity to FFmpeg by hand
Use this when FFmpeg sits somewhere Audacity does not look, such as a ZIP you unpacked yourself, the ARM build, or a Homebrew version like ffmpeg@6.
- Open the FFmpeg section. Preferences ▸ General, FFmpeg library.
- Click Locate existing installation. If Audacity already has a library loaded, a window titled FFmpeg has already been found says “Installation found” and asks whether to choose another installation; click Change FFmpeg.
- Select the avformat file. On Windows the file picker is titled Locate avformat.dll; pick
avformat-NN.dllin the FFmpeg folder. On a Mac the picker has no title and lets you select only libavformat files, such aslibavformat.NN.dylib. On Linux picklibavformat.so.NN. Pickingffmpeg.exedoes not work. - Restart Audacity. A Success message asks you to restart the application, because the library loads only at startup.
On Audacity 3: Edit ▸ Preferences ▸ Libraries (Audacity ▸ Preferences ▸ Libraries on a Mac), click Locate…, then Browse… to the avformat file, then Open, OK and OK.
Which FFmpeg versions work
Audacity identifies FFmpeg by the version of its avformat library, which is numbered separately from FFmpeg itself. FFmpeg 6 carries avformat 60, FFmpeg 8.1.2 carries avformat 62, and FFmpeg 9 carries avformat 63.
| Audacity version | avformat versions it reads |
|---|---|
| before 3.1 | 55 |
| 3.1 | 55, 57, 58 |
| 3.2 | adds 59 |
| 3.3 | adds 60 |
| 3.6 | adds 61 (FFmpeg 7) |
| 3.7.6 | adds 62 (FFmpeg 8) |
| 3.7.9 and later, including Audacity 4 | adds 63 (FFmpeg 9) |
If you download a build yourself, a member of the Audacity team recommends the FFmpeg 7.1 or 8.1 release builds, in their shared variant, the one that contains the library files. Nightly “master” builds are not supported because their interface keeps changing.
Fix “FFmpeg library not found”
Find the symptom in the left column. Most cases come down to the wrong download or the wrong file.
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| “FFmpeg library not found” right after installing | Audacity was open during the install | Quit and reopen Audacity |
| The download you ran installed an app store or another program | A click on one of the ads on the download page | Uninstall it, return to the page and click the file name itself |
Your ZIP holds only ffmpeg.exe, ffplay.exe and ffprobe.exe | A static build, the command-line tools without libraries | Use the FFmpeg for Audacity installer, or a shared build that contains avformat-NN.dll |
You found avformat-NN.dll on a DLL download site | A single file without the rest of FFmpeg | Install a complete FFmpeg package; Audacity needs avcodec and avutil beside it |
| The installer link returns a 403 error | The download server refused that request | Try again later or in another browser; a forum user had the same link work on a later attempt |
macOS: you selected libavformat.dylib and it is still not found | The FFmpeg architecture does not match Audacity, or the version is too new | Use the universal .pkg, or install a matching version and run Step 5 again |
| Homebrew FFmpeg stopped working after an update | Homebrew moved to a release Audacity does not read yet | brew install ffmpeg@6, then Step 5 |
| Linux: FFmpeg is installed but Audacity ignores it | The distribution’s avformat version is unsupported | Install a shared build of a supported version |
| FFmpeg is detected, but one file still fails | The file is DRM-protected, as some purchased music is | Only the app it was sold for can play it; Audacity cannot import it |
| Audacity 4: the M4A file is greyed out or missing in File ▸ Import | A known Audacity 4.0 bug, unrelated to FFmpeg | See the next section |
M4A files in Audacity 4
In Audacity 4.0, the File ▸ Import dialog greys out M4A files on macOS and leaves them out of the list on Windows, with or without FFmpeg, and Audacity 4.0.1 still does this on both systems. M2TS, MOGG and DSF files are affected the same way. It is a confirmed bug, and the Audacity team plans to fix it in a future release. A forum helper’s answer to users who hit it was “They’re working on it.”
M4A is the format of iPhone voice memos and of the audio-only file Zoom saves with a local recording, so podcasters run into this first. Until the fix ships, try these three routes:
- Drag the file onto the tracks area. With FFmpeg installed, this imports the M4A in Audacity 4.0.1 on Windows and macOS, though a forum user notes the track does not get the file name the way an import does.
- Open it in Audacity 3.7.9. Audacity 3 imports M4A once FFmpeg is installed, and it runs next to Audacity 4. Install Audacity 3 through MuseHub, edit the file there, or export it as WAV or FLAC and continue in Audacity 4.
- Convert it to WAV or FLAC elsewhere first. Any converter you already trust will do; import the result into Audacity 4.
The rest of what Audacity 4.0 does not do yet, and the workaround for each, is in what’s missing in Audacity 4.
Should you convert M4A to WAV before editing?
No, unless the Audacity 4 import problem leaves you no other way in. Audacity decodes a compressed file when it imports it, so every edit already happens on uncompressed audio. Converting to WAV first adds a step and gains nothing.
Quality is lost at the other end, each time you export to a lossy format such as M4A or MP3. So export once, at the end. If the file goes to someone else for more editing, send WAV or FLAC so their export is the only lossy one.
Export to M4A
With FFmpeg installed, Audacity can also write M4A. Choose File ▸ Export audio… (Ctrl+Shift+E), then Export to computer, and set Format to M4A (AAC) Files (FFmpeg). AC3, WMA (version 2) and Custom FFmpeg Export in the same list go through FFmpeg too, so none of the four exports until Audacity has found it. MP3 needs no FFmpeg on Windows and macOS, because the LAME encoder now ships with Audacity; on Linux, the lame package in Step 4 covers it.
Common mistakes
- Clicking an ad. The real downloads on the FFmpeg for Audacity page are the three file names; anything else on the page is advertising.
- Downloading the command-line FFmpeg. Builds made for the terminal often come as static ZIPs without the library files. Audacity needs the shared libraries.
- Pointing Audacity at the wrong file. Audacity wants the avformat library itself. A path without “avformat” in it is refused with an error.
- Mixing architectures on a Mac. An Intel-only FFmpeg does not load into Apple Silicon Audacity, and the reverse.
- Skipping the restart. Audacity loads FFmpeg only when it starts.
After the import
An M4A from Zoom or a phone usually needs the same work as any other recording. How to edit a podcast in Audacity takes an interview from import through cleanup and loudness to an MP3. For a remote guest, recording computer audio in Audacity covers getting each side of the call onto its own track. Room noise in a phone recording comes out with noise reduction in Audacity, and a set recorded as one long file splits into separate songs with splitting a recording into tracks.
FAQ
Next steps
New to the app? How to use Audacity covers importing, editing and exporting in Audacity 4. If you are deciding where to get Audacity, do you need MuseHub for Audacity compares the installers. Audacity 4 is on its MuseHub page, Audacity 3 installs next to it from MuseHub, and the voice-cleanup plugins below are in the same place — download MuseHub free.
