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AAC vs OGG

Comparing Advanced Audio Coding and Ogg Vorbis - which format should you use?

	AAC	OGG
Full Name	Advanced Audio Coding	Ogg Vorbis
Extension	.aac	.ogg
MIME Type	audio/aac	audio/ogg
Category	audio	audio

AAC Pros

+Better quality than MP3 at same bitrate
+Default format for Apple/iTunes
+Used by YouTube, Spotify, Netflix
+Efficient compression

AAC Cons

-Lossy - some quality loss
-Less universal than MP3 on older devices
-Patent-encumbered (unlike MP3 since 2017)
-Multiple profiles can cause compatibility issues

OGG Pros

+Free and open source (no patents)
+Quality comparable to AAC
+Good streaming support
+Native browser support (Chrome, Firefox)

OGG Cons

-Limited hardware support (no iPhone native)
-Less universal than MP3
-Not supported by Safari (use MP3 fallback)
-Less ecosystem support

Use AAC when...

-Music streaming
-Podcasts
-Video soundtracks
-Mobile audio

Use OGG when...

-Video game audio
-Web audio (HTML5)
-Open-source applications
-Podcast hosting

Learn more about AAC Learn more about OGG