Audio File Size Calculator
Sample rate, bit depth, channels, duration. That is all of it.
Work out Audio File Size. Sample rate, bit depth, channels, duration. That is all of it. Free, with no account and nothing to install.
Uncompressed file size
635 MB
1,411 kbps · captures up to 22.05 kHz
Uncompressed audio size is sample rate times bit depth times channels times duration, with no codec in the way. CD audio works out at 1,411 kbps, or about 10 MB a minute in stereo. The Nyquist limit is half the sample rate, and it is the reason 44.1 kHz was chosen: it clears the roughly 20 kHz ceiling of human hearing with enough margin for the anti-aliasing filter to roll off. Higher rates capture nothing audible on their own, but they give processing headroom and push filter artefacts further from the audible band, which is why studios track at 96. Bit depth sets dynamic range rather than frequency — about 6 dB per bit, so 16-bit gives 96 dB and 24-bit gives 144. That headroom is what makes 24-bit worth recording at even when the release is 16.
How the Audio File Size Calculator works
Size and bitrate for uncompressed audio, with the Nyquist limit that comes with the sample rate. CD quality works out at 1,411 kbps and about 10 MB a minute in stereo — everything else scales directly from those four inputs.
Also known as: how big is an hour of wav · wav file size calculator · what is the nyquist frequency · 44.1 vs 96 khz file size
Frequently asked questions
How big is an hour of CD-quality audio?
About 635 MB uncompressed — 44.1 kHz, 16-bit, stereo comes to 10.6 MB a minute. That figure is why an audio CD holds roughly 74 minutes.
What is the Nyquist frequency?
Half the sample rate, and the highest frequency the recording can represent. 44.1 kHz captures up to 22.05 kHz, which clears human hearing with enough margin for the anti-aliasing filter to roll off.
Is 96 kHz audibly better than 44.1?
Not on its own — the extra bandwidth is above hearing. It helps during processing, where it gives plugins headroom and pushes filter artefacts further from the audible band, which is why studios track high and deliver at 44.1 or 48.
What does bit depth actually change?
Dynamic range, at about 6 dB per bit. 16-bit gives 96 dB and 24-bit gives 144, so the benefit is recording headroom rather than resolution in any meaningful sense — you can set levels conservatively and lose nothing.
Should I record in 32-bit float?
If your recorder supports it, yes. It effectively removes clipping as a concern, because the format carries far more range than any converter, and levels can be recovered afterwards without penalty.
Put this calculator on your own site
Free to use, on any site, commercial or not. Paste this where you want it to appear. It is a plain iframe, so it works in WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, Webflow, Ghost and anything else that accepts HTML.
<iframe src="https://www.thecalclibrary.com/embed/audio-file-size-calculator" width="100%" height="640" style="border:1px solid #e2e8f0;border-radius:12px" loading="lazy" title="Audio File Size Calculator"></iframe>
<p style="font:13px/1.5 system-ui,sans-serif;margin:6px 0 0;color:#64748b">Powered by <a href="https://www.thecalclibrary.com/audio-file-size-calculator" style="color:#64748b">Audio File Size Calculator</a> from The Calc Library</p>The only condition is that the credit line below the frame stays in place. That one line is what pays for the tool being free — it is how anyone else finds it.
Related calculators
Video File Size Calculator
Bitrate times duration. Resolution does not enter into it.
OpenNote Frequency Calculator
Frequency to note, note to frequency, with cents.
OpenSpeaker Impedance Calculator
Series adds, parallel divides — and parallel is how amps die.
Open