Audio file size calculator

Most encoders default to variable bitrate, which spends fewer bits on quiet or simple passages, so the file lands under a constant-bitrate estimate. Tags and embedded artwork push it the other way: a single high-resolution cover image can add a megabyte on its own.

Multiply the per-minute figure by the number of mono tracks. At 48 kHz and 24 bits a mono track is about 8.6 MB per minute, so a 16-track session runs near 8.3 GB per hour before takes, edits and backups. Recording at 32-bit float adds a third on top of that.

A megabyte is 1,000,000 bytes and a mebibyte is 1,048,576, a gap of about 4.9%. Drive manufacturers count in MB while Windows reports MiB but labels it MB, which is why a drive sold as 1 TB shows up as 931 GB. Both figures are here so the estimate matches whichever tool you are comparing against.

Not directly, because lossless compression depends on the music. As a working rule, expect a FLAC file to land between 50% and 70% of the uncompressed PCM size: dense, loud material compresses least, sparse and quiet material most. Estimate the PCM size here and take roughly 60% of it.

It makes the file bigger, which is the part this calculator can tell you. Whether it sounds better is a long-running argument that depends on converters, plug-ins and material. What is not in doubt is the storage cost: 96 kHz at 24 bits is exactly twice the bytes of 48 kHz at the same depth.