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Audio Sample Rate File Size Calculator

Estimate the size of an uncompressed WAV or PCM recording from its sample rate, bit depth, channel count and length — plus the data rate in kbps.

Sample rate

Bit depth

Channels

Duration

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How it works

Bytes/sec = sample rate × (bit depth ÷ 8) × channels · File size = bytes/sec × duration · Data rate (kbps) = rate × bits × channels ÷ 1000

Uncompressed PCM audio (WAV, AIFF) stores one number per sample per channel, so its size is completely predictable. Every second holds "sample rate" samples, each taking bit-depth ÷ 8 bytes, multiplied by the number of channels. There is no compression, so doubling the sample rate, the bit depth or the channel count doubles the file. Formats like MP3 and AAC shrink this dramatically by discarding inaudible detail, but for recording and archiving, uncompressed size is what fills your drive.

Worked example

CD-quality audio is 44,100 Hz, 16-bit, stereo. That is 44,100 × 2 bytes × 2 channels = 176,400 bytes per second — a 1,411 kbps data rate. A 3-minute (180 s) track therefore needs 176,400 × 180 ≈ 31.75 million bytes, about 30.3 MB.

Frequently asked questions

Why is a WAV so much bigger than an MP3?

WAV is uncompressed — every sample is stored in full. MP3 and AAC use perceptual (lossy) compression that discards sound the ear is unlikely to notice, cutting size by roughly 90% at typical bitrates. The trade-off is a small loss of fidelity that most listeners cannot detect.

What is the difference between sample rate and bit depth?

Sample rate is how many times per second the waveform is measured (higher captures higher frequencies), while bit depth is how finely each measurement is stored (higher gives more dynamic range and lower noise). Both raise the file size proportionally.

Is 24-bit worth the extra size?

For recording and mixing, yes — the extra headroom makes level-setting far more forgiving. For final delivery, 16-bit is transparent to almost everyone, so many engineers work in 24-bit and export to 16-bit.

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This calculator is for educational purposes. Double-check important results before acting on them.