.aiff File — Audio Interchange File Format

AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format) is an uncompressed audio format developed by Apple in 1988, based on Electronic Arts' IFF (Interchange File Format). AIFF stores audio in raw PCM format, similar to WAV but using big-endian byte order (reflecting its Macintosh origins) and the IFF chunk structure. Standard AIFF provides lossless audio quality at CD specifications (16-bit, 44.1 kHz) or higher, making it suitable for professional audio production and archival. AIFF-C (compressed AIFF) is a variant that supports various compression codecs, with Apple Lossless being a common choice. AIFF files support embedded metadata through chunks for name, author, annotations, markers, and instrument definitions, making them useful for loop libraries and sampled instruments. The format was the standard audio format in the Apple/Macintosh ecosystem before being largely replaced by ALAC and AAC. AIFF remains used in professional audio production, particularly in Logic Pro, GarageBand, and other Apple professional audio applications. The format is supported by all major DAWs and audio editors across platforms.