How To Convert FLAC to MP3
FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) is a lossless audio compression format. It’s often used to digitally store and transfer music without any loss in quality. The files tend to be rather large though – for example, 3 minutes of audio could take up around 18 Mb.
On the other hand, MP3 is a lossy compression format that is supported by pretty much any audio player (plus the files tend to be smaller). Sometimes you need to convert FLAC to MP3, e.g. to be able to play it on your iPod. In this post I’ll describe how you can do that.
I tried out several free FLAC to MP3 converters prior to writing this tutorial. According to my testing, dBpoweramp seems to be the best choice. So that’s what I’ll use here. However, if this converter doesn’t work for you, there are certainly other viable alternatives, e.g. Foobar2000.
Okay, on with the tutorial 
Here’s the step-by-step guide for converting FLAC to MP3.
- Install dBpoweramp Music Converter. You can download it here.
- Install the FLAC codec for dBpoweramp.
- Start up the dBpoweramp Batch Converter. Usually you can find the converter here : Programs -> dBpoweramp Music Converter -> dBpoweramp Batch Converter
- Locate the FLAC files you want to convert using the built-in navigator and tick their checkboxes. You can also select an entire folder (or several) by clicking the boxes near them. Click “Convert”.
- A conversion settings window will pop up. There’s a lot of options here, but don’t worry – in most cases you will only need a few of them. First, select “MP3 (Lame)” from the Converting To dropdown. Then set the quality and bitrate according to your preferences. And finally, choose where you want the MP3 files to be placed. Then click “Convert >>”.
- dBpoweramp will then convert the FLAC files to the MP3 format. Depending on how many files you’re converting, and the quality settings, this could take a few minutes.
- Congratulations! Now you can put the converted MP3’s on your iPod, or whatever
Nice guide.
OT: I stumbled here from your “Blog Personality Analyzer”. Ha, nice try. Gotcha.
Heh, thanks
Cheers, if u like FLAC quality downloads check this out
http://thepiratebay.org/tor/3695611/Rolling_Stone_Magazine____s_500_Greatest_Songs_Of_Al
Hey thanks man, works great for me! bout time i found something simple!
You can also use the VBScript at http://code.google.com/p/reflacer to convert from FLAC to MP3, including tags and images.
useful tip. i also use eufony from http://www.softe.net
Epic article. Cannot thank you enough for making this hassle free
thnx so much
I’ve been using this method already for converting my FLAC to mp3 and other various formats, but because I feel lazy I don’t want to type this out for my members @ my forum.
I have copied your instructions on there as well as giving you credit for the tut
If you would like to look at it here it is:
http://www.japanimusic.net/technical-support-center-f32/flac-flac-to-mp3-t2504.html
Thanks again!
Thanks! And since the comment was too short to post with thanks alone, Thanks again!
does powerrap work for mac???
@stroy – your comment is entirely irrelevant and looks spammy, I think.
thx so mich i had dbpoweramp wasent using correctly this was so helpfull
piece of CRAP!
do not bother because it simply doesnt work
@ed – You are, of course, wrong. From my personal experience, and the other comments, it does in fact work.
White Shadow, nice tutorial. Worked great. Thanks!
hey, not sure is this a dumb question but do you have to keep the flac file after converting or can you get rid of it cause they’re huge
If you want you can delete the .flac file after you’ve got the .mp3.
thanks you saved my life! xD
Cheers mate!
I was looking for this desperately…
Thanks! Most helpful!
Wow, this is great. The program you recommended is absolutely amazing. Uses each core on my PC to do a file and goes from one file to the next seamlessly. I converted around 50 FLAC files to 320KBPs 48KHz MP3s in less than 10 minutes.
Thanks,
-Ex
http://www.brothersoft.com/flac-to-mp3-192853.html
Please Download MY software and Create a review or tutorial for this .
Download Me and create a review for me !
@Download Me – Flac to MP3 – Nope.
I don’t just review software. In this case, I wrote a tutorial about solving a particular problem. I used dBpoweramp because it seemed like the right tool for the job, not because I wanted to “review” it. Why would I write another tutorial that says basically the same thing, but uses a different program? (this is of course a rhetorical question)
@White Shadow –
Thank you for reply
But Also I have some other applications ,If you like You can review or create a tutorial for them , Also I will get you register code for free :
MP3 Converter http://www.fullmm.com/mp3-converter/
WMA Converter http://www.fullmm.com/wma-converter/
Convert WMA TO mp3 http://www.fullmm.com/convert-wma-to-mp3/
Flac Converter http://www.fullmm.com/flac-converter/
Why not try “Magic FLAC to MP3 Converter” ?
You can download it at:
http://www.magicvideo.net
Thank you so much for this guide and program referral. You’ve taken something I knew was going to be a pain and made it so easy.
Sonata Arctica, woo! =]
Thanks for the tutorial.
@Carrie – Yeah, that’s one of my favorite bands
WOW! This is an awesome program! Thanx alot.
I like how it uses both cores to do 2 songs at once. And conversion is VERY fast!
Thanx again!
O, and just a note – CONVERTED 15 SONGS IN 1MINUTE 17SECONDS
What was your files size ( or Length in seconds ) !
Hey, I just got an ipod and I had a bunch of .flac songs. This really helped me out. Thanks. Happy new year.
Great tutorial and software. Thanks.
Great tutorial, very easy to follow – thanks a lot!
P.S. I tried Magic convertor, and it’s only a trial version so it only converts half the song – wtF?
You’re welcome
Regarding the Magic converter – wow, that’s a nasty limitation.
Hah nice music collection
Thanks for the turorial, I spent some time downloading crappy converters that didn’t work, but with your help I just finnished converting a very nice collection of jazz that I thought I would have to download again in another format. So thank you for taking the time to create this tutorial.
Glad to help
very useful tips. http://www.softe.net
worked great.
THANKS!
Whenever I try to convert the songs, it says there’s an arror because no encoder is specified, what should I do?
I’m computer ‘lingo’ dumb so this tutorial worked out nicely!
Thanks!
@ Aimee : Try selecting a different setting from the “Converting To” or “Encoding” boxes (see the second image in the post).
Thank you for your help!
Great tutorial, but it doesn’t work. It locks up every time it starts. Try writing something that actually works!
Fantastic!
I’ve been searching for hours trying to find the right converters.
I can’t thank you enough!
this is an advertisement. the db poweramp is a paid program, you only get a free trial. this is basically an ad for db poweramp. there are free (actually free) versions out there.
I disagree. Yes, it is a paid program, but the trial version is functional and works for this purpose.
Errm,
well this just does not work at all, its badly made, full of bugs, and incaple of anything other than wasting my time – this software should not be on the internet…
Same goes for the “flac” codec they offer – another complete waste of time…
Simply put, after installing the required programs and codecs in the right location, this program just throws out errors and does absolutely nothing…. ?!?
Better off just recording with playback and a microphone…
…ah well.
Let me just note that FLAC is an open codec and not affiliated with this software.
Awesome directions and great recommendation on dBpoweramp. Thanks man!
dBpoweramp is not working for me anymore. It says, “mp3 Encoder trial has expired, purchase mp3 License to continue encoding to mp3″. Costs $36. I thought it was free.
Thanks…!!! this software was really helpfull… thanks again man!!!
Thank you thank you!
well sure, but I like things that are actually free
It clearly states that it is not free software and that this a trial version a few times before actually downloading the software. It’s scary seeing how many people actually download stuff and they have absolutely no clue what they are downloading. I mean it could clearly state “THIS IS A VIRUS THAT WILL F UP YOUR COMPUTER PERMANENTLY” but you will be able to convert FLAC into MP3 and people would STILL download it. Sheesh.
Anyways thanks for the tutorial.
Thankyou for this it worked great and very fast (one note tho the files I wanted to convert were on my desktop and dBpoweramp could not find my desktop!!!) but as soon as I moved the files somewhere else it found them easily.
Easy to use…who cares that it’s a trial. It got the job done that I needed it to do. I highley recommend this software. 400mb FLAC to mp3 in 3 minutes, that’s not too bad at all =-)
I’ve been trying to figure out how to convert FLAC to MP3 for weeks… this was super simple! Thank you for putting this together!
>Great tutorial, but it doesn’t work. It locks up every time it starts.
Just push Ctrl-Alt-Del to bring up the task manager and then X it closed. The lockup will take care of itself. Or didn’t you try that?
>Try writing something that actually works!
Try thinking for yourself or simply asking for help instead of being a jackass!
Thx
this is pretty cool
Thanks a lot man. I had downloaded OGG MP3 converter and it would only convert half the songs.
And Sonata Arctica is awesome!
So easy. I though this was gonna take some time, I was going to leave the computer on, but it converted 3GB+ in 25mins or less. Nice program, great tutorial.
Thanks.
Thanks a bunch man!! And anyone who wants to get the latest FULL version of this program check out “www.warez-bb.org” (No viruses or porn) ..
i converted the flac to mp3 but when i try to play it on winamp, the whole song fast forwards in seconds
Excellent, I have been looking for a free converter that actually converts the entire song! Good tutorial even though the converter program is pretty straight forward. People who can’t get this to work either have a MAC or is a moron.
Thanks so much this a very easy and useful tutorial.
thank you so much for this! thanks to you, I am now able to convert my FLAC files with ease!
great tutorial.
so…
after the conversions what good are the flac files? which programs use flac and where can i find them? it took a good six hours to download the flac files; i’d like to assume there’s something i can do with it….
I think most modern multimedia players support the Flac format. For example : Winamp, VLC (aka Videolan), Foobar2000.
foobar put out a really easy converter that i just started using. I was having some trouble with winamp and found it to be a great alternative.
FYI
Yay! Thank youuuu!
Super easy to use. Many thanks!
Thanks many times
. It was the first time I converted some Flac files and this software was the first I’ve used. It’s actually very usefull.
It works out perfect for me. Spend quite some time to find this website
Thanks
It’s always hard trying to find a good converter online, but I’m glad I found this!! This is a really good converter, and best of all, it works! lol. AND, best of all, someone posted this really easy to follow tutorial! Perfect!
Works fine for me. I don’t care if it’s a trial, I just converted all my FLAC at once and do NOT INTEND to acquire any more. Clarity is cute and all, but useless if I can’t broadcast that file format. Just do all your FLAC and avoid it like the plague it is after that. : )
Thanks for the tutorial, dear. Big help for a Luddite like me.
Anyone, please I need a certainty. Is this software really really working? Because if isn’t, I won’t waste my time for hoping so much with this converter..
Just download this…it’s free and there is alot more you can do with this program.
http://audacity.sourceforge.net/
Thanks, it was useful.
This is the MOST USLESS converter. It took 1hr:35:45 to convert a singfle .flac file. On top of it all the converted file was useless too!
I was surprised to see that it used both my duel cores efficiently, it did 2 songs at a single time. Output quality was good too.
Wow, you couldn’t have made converting flac files to mp3s any easier. Thanks so much for your tutorial!!
Thank you!
Macintosh users have a very easy option. And it’s totally free. Downoad MAX (Google Macintosh file converter), drop it into your dock, and it converts FLACS into mp3s without you even thinking about it. No tutorial required, no cash required, and it’s quick and 100% reliable. I even use it to transform “troublesome” mp3 files into usable ones.
PC users, as usual, struggle on with their creaky old apps on their dim-bulb old pcs. Sigh!
Great job dude. Thanks.
That was awesome! Worked like a charm. Thanks for the walkthrough!!
That was super easy. Thanks for making complicated computer stuff easy for us non-tech savvy people.
Worked perfectly. Utilized my dual-core processor well, putting each CPU to work on a different audio file. Sweet software, great walkthrough.
Brilliant! I made it!
Hey, I was wondering what is the best idea to use for the quality settings? I saw it goes up to 320, does that make it the best choice. I downloaded a live metallica album from their website and want to make it the best quality possible.
Thanks so much. Great free converter that actually converts the whole song.
AWESOME TUTORIAL and AWESOME PROGRAM! easy and SUPER QUICK! i’m one of those people that hunts and hunts to find the perfect program, and this.is.it.!
AwEsOmE
Awesome tutorial, thanks a lot!
Is it really free? The free version says it only some basic converts but no MP3 encoding.
Hmm, interesting. Nevertheless, the trial version still works for converting to MP3.
Thanks!!! Now I can listen to Rick Ross
i cant cut it into tracks
Thanks a lot fella, was trying to download a decent one for AGES. It really is appreciated.
The step by step was great, but when I got to the last step the program did nothing. I repeated several times but that final box gave no indication it was converting anything. It also looked different than the one in the tutorial as it had two boxes where the status bar should have been that were listed as cpu 1 and cpu 2. Any thoughts?
It’s been a while since I wrote the tutorial, so it’s quite possible that the current release of dbPoweramp has a slightly different interface. Still, clicking the “Convert” button should have made it start conversion. If it didn’t then that’s probably a bug.