What an M4R file is
M4R is the ringtone format of the iPhone. Inside, it is the same as an M4A file: AAC audio in an MPEG-4 container. Only the extension is different, and that extension tells iPhone, Finder and iTunes to treat the file as a tone instead of a song. Ringtones can last up to 40 seconds; alert tones are usually much shorter.
You get M4R files from the iTunes Tone Store, from GarageBand when you share a project as a ringtone, from ringtone apps and websites, or from our own iPhone ringtone maker. Most are encoded at 128–256 kbps, so a 30-second tone takes about 0.5–1 MB.
Why convert an M4R
An M4R works well on an iPhone but is awkward almost everywhere else. Android phones may play the AAC audio inside but usually do not recognise the .m4r extension in the ringtone picker. Windows players, car stereos and many editors ignore the extension too. Converting gives you a file that behaves normally on the device you have now, lets you edit the tone, or moves your favourite ringtone to a new phone.
Choose a target format
- MP3 – for an Android ringtone or any player: M4R to MP3.
- OGG – the format Android uses for its own system sounds: M4R to OGG.
- M4A – to treat the tone as a normal song in Apple apps: M4R to M4A. M4R to AAC gives a raw stream.
- WAV or AIFF – for editing or using the sound in a project: M4R to WAV, M4R to AIFF.
- FLAC – a lossless working copy: M4R to FLAC.
- Opus – very small files for apps and the web: M4R to Opus.
- WMA – older Windows devices: M4R to WMA.
- MMF – old Samsung and other feature phones: M4R to MMF.
- MIDI – transcribe the ringtone melody into notes: M4R to MIDI.
- MP4 – share the tone as a video: M4R to MP4.
Converting many tones and choosing settings
If you are moving a whole set of tones from an old iPhone backup, add them all at once. Tones you made in GarageBand years ago, tones from ringtone apps and tones you bought can all go into the same batch. They are converted one after another with the same settings. Because ringtones are short, conversion takes only seconds even on a slow computer.
The source is already AAC, a lossy codec. For lossy targets such as MP3 or OGG, choose a bitrate equal to or a bit above the source, typically 192 kbps. Lossless targets (WAV, AIFF, FLAC) store the decoded tone exactly, but do not improve it. Keep the sample rate, normally 44.1 kHz, and keep stereo unless you need a mono sound for a game or an app.
Some tones bought long ago may carry copy protection; those cannot be converted. Everything else is processed in your browser and never uploaded.