How to Export a WAV File in GarageBand (Mac & iOS)
By Michael Venia
From the engineer's desk
How to Export a WAV File in GarageBand — Mac & iOS
The right export settings make a real difference to what your mastering engineer can do with your track. Here's exactly how to do it on every platform — and why it matters.
✦ 5 min read✦ Mac & iOS covered✦ Updated 2025
GarageBand is genuinely excellent software — millions of artists have recorded, produced, and finished tracks on it. But when it comes time to export, the default settings aren't always optimized for mastering. This guide covers exactly what to do on Mac and iOS, the settings that matter, and the mistakes that are easy to avoid once you know about them.
Why WAV and not MP3?
WAV files are lossless — they contain every bit of audio data from your session. MP3 is a compressed format that permanently discards audio information to reduce file size. When you send a mastering engineer an MP3, they're working with a degraded copy of your mix. WAV gives them the cleanest possible source to work with.
Step-by-step export guide
Select your platform below. The process is slightly different on Mac vs iOS.
1
Finalise your mix first
Before exporting, make sure your mix is done. Check that no tracks are clipping in the red, your master fader has headroom (peaks around –6 dBFS is a good target), and you're not running any limiter or heavy compression on the master bus — that's the mastering engineer's job.
2
Open the export menu
In the top menu bar, click File, then hover over Export and select Song to Disk.
GarageBand — File menu
File→Export→Song to Disk…
3
Set your export settings
In the dialog that appears, set the format to WAV and the audio settings to 24-bit. GarageBand on Mac exports at 44.1 kHz by default — keep that unless your project ran at 48 kHz (common for video work), in which case match it.
Export Song to Disk
Export Song to Disk
File FormatWAV
Audio Settings24-bit
Sample Rate44.1 kHz
NormalizeOff
4
Turn off normalization
GarageBand has an auto-normalize option that adjusts your levels on export. Turn this off. Normalization can change your carefully balanced levels, and it means your mastering engineer isn't working with what you actually mixed — they're working with a modified version of it.
5
Name and save your file
Choose a clear filename — include the song title, artist name, and either a version number or date. Something like SongTitle_Artist_v1.wav makes it easy to track revisions. Choose your save location and click Export.
6
Double-check before sending
Open the exported WAV in another app — QuickTime, VLC, or even Apple Music — and listen back. Make sure it starts and ends correctly, the levels are where you expected, and there are no glitches or unexpected silence at the beginning or end.
1
Finish and save your project
Make sure your mix is done and the project is saved. iOS GarageBand auto-saves frequently, but it's worth double-checking before exporting.
2
Open the My Songs view
Tap the back arrow in the top-left to return to the My Songs browser. You'll see your project as a tile here.
3
Select and share
Tap Select in the top-right, then tap your project to select it. Tap the Share icon (box with arrow), choose Song, then select Uncompressed (AIFF).
4
Transfer to Mac and convert
AirDrop the AIFF to your Mac. AIFF is lossless — identical in quality to WAV — so you won't lose anything in the transfer. If your mastering engineer specifically requests WAV, open the AIFF in Logic Pro, Audacity (free), or QuickTime and export as WAV. Any lossless-to-lossless conversion is fine.
5
A note on iOS limitations
iOS GarageBand doesn't offer direct WAV export or 24-bit settings in the same way Mac does. If you're doing serious recording work on iPad, consider transferring your project to a Mac and finishing the export from there — you'll have more control over the output settings.
The settings that matter
Here's what to aim for when you export. These are the numbers your mastering engineer is looking for.
Format
WAV or AIFF
Both are lossless. Never send an MP3 to a mastering engineer.
Bit depth
24-bit
More dynamic range than 16-bit. Better source material.
Peak level
–6 dBFS
Leave headroom. No limiter on the master bus.
Common mistakes to avoid
Leaving a limiter on the master bus
If you've put a limiter on your master track to make things louder, remove it before exporting. Mastering applies its own limiting — double-limiting crushes dynamics and gives the engineer less to work with.
Exporting with normalization turned on
Auto-normalization changes your levels on export, which means the mastering engineer isn't starting from what you actually mixed. Turn it off in preferences before you export.
Sending the MP3 bounce instead of the WAV
GarageBand can export MP3 too, and it's easy to accidentally grab the wrong file. Double-check the file extension before sending. If it ends in .mp3, it's the wrong one.
Clipping the master before export
If any part of your mix is hitting 0 dBFS and clipping in GarageBand's master meter, that distortion is baked into your WAV file. Lower your master fader until peaks sit around –6 dBFS before exporting.
Pre-send checklist
Run through this before sending your WAV to a mastering engineer.
GarageBand export checklist
0 of 5 confirmed
Exported as WAV (not MP3 or AAC)
No limiter or heavy compression on the master bus
Peaks around –6 dBFS — no clipping in the red
Normalization turned off before export
Listened to the exported file before sending
One more thing
When you send your WAV, include a note about what you're going for — genre, references, any direction on loudness or feel. The file tells me what's there. The note tells me what you're trying to achieve. Both together make for a much better master.
Ready to send your GarageBand mix for mastering?
You've done the export right — now let's make it sound like it belongs on a playlist next to the tracks that inspired it. First-time clients get a free mastered sample before committing.
