Lossless music, video platforms
FLAC is the format of serious music collections and independent releases, but no video or social platform accepts it. If you are a musician with a FLAC master, a label sharing a new release, or a listener who wants to post a favourite recording with its artwork, you need an MP4. Converting FLAC to MP4 combines the track with a picture or animation in a standard video file that YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and messengers all accept.
Why start from FLAC
Video platforms re-encode the audio after upload, often to AAC or Opus at around 128 kbps. Every lossy step adds artefacts, so the cleaner the audio you upload, the better the final stream sounds. A video made from a FLAC master involves only one lossy step before upload, the AAC encode during rendering. A video made from an MP3 involves two, and that difference can be audible in cymbals, reverb tails and quiet passages.
Picture and format options
- Album art or photo from your device.
- Plain colour background.
- Two-colour gradient when no artwork is available.
- Animated waveform or spectrum that follows the music.
| Format | Pixels | Platform |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p | 1920 x 1080 | YouTube, full tracks and albums |
| 720p | 1280 x 720 | quicker renders, lighter files |
| Square | 1080 x 1080 | Instagram and Facebook posts |
| Vertical | 1080 x 1920 | Shorts, Reels, TikTok |
File size and hi-res sources
A four-minute FLAC of about 25 MB becomes a video of roughly 6 to 10 MB with a still image, because AAC needs far less data than lossless audio. Hi-res FLAC at 24-bit and 96 kHz works too; it is converted to the standard sample rate for MP4 audio. The extra resolution does not survive the video platform's processing anyway, so a CD-quality FLAC is just as good a source.
Rendering takes place in your browser. Long tracks with an animated visualiser at 1080p take the most time; a still image at 720p is fastest. For a short teaser, cut a highlight first with Cut audio. Upload only music you have the rights to. More layout options are available in audio to video, and for a plain audio copy use FLAC to MP3.