Open WMA File

A file with the WMA extension is a Windows Media Audio file.

Microsoft created this format, thus becoming a proprietary, lossy format to compete with MP3, so it is often used for streaming music online.

There are multiple subformats of WMA, including WMA Pro, a lossy codec that supports high-resolution audio.

WMA Lossless, a lossless codec that compresses audio without losing quality.

WMA Voice, a lossy codec intended for applications that support voice playback.

WMA is 'sister' to the WMV file which is the Windows Media Video file format, also developed by Microsoft.

ASF is a video and audio container format also developed by Microsoft that often contains WMA or WMV data.

Open a WMA file

Windows Media Player is the best program to open WMA files because it is included in most versions of Windows.

However, you can play WMA files on other operating systems with third-party software such as VLC, MPC-HC, AllPlayer, MPlayer, and Winamp.

How to convert a WMA file

If you don't want to use the WMA format, you can try to convert it to other more common formats.

Many free file converters can be used to convert a WMA file to another audio format such as MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A, M4R, and more.

Some of them have to be installed on your computer before you can use them, but others can work completely in your web browser.

For example, VLC is an excellent program for converting between formats, whether audio or video.

Procedure to convert a WMA file with VLC

1. Open the program
2. In the 'Media' menu, look for 'Convert/save'
3. In the dialog box that appears, click on the 'Add' button
4. Find the WMA track to convert
5. Then in the 'Convert/Save' button choose the preferred output audio format
6. And finally, choose the folder where the destination file will be saved.

The process can take from a few seconds to several minutes, depending on the size of the file and the processing capacity of your computer.

Software to open and work with a WMA file

• VLC
• Windows Media
• Winamp