Audio Editor · Windows 10 and 11
Cut and trim MP3 files
Drop in an MP3, drag its ends to cut off the silence, the chatter or the applause, and split out anything in the middle you do not want. You hear every cut before you save, and the new file is made right on your computer.
How to cut an MP3
- 1
Open the Audio Editor
Open Octoolo's Audio Editor and drop the MP3 onto Start with a sound, or press Add files. WAV, M4A, FLAC, OGG, WMA and the sound of videos open the same way. The first time, the editor fetches FFmpeg, its sound engine (77 MB, once).
- 2
Trim the ends
On Track 1, drag the left edge of the sound to the right to cut off the start, and the right edge to the left to cut off the end. Press Space to listen.
- 3
Cut out the middle
Click the sound, move the playhead to where the unwanted part begins and press S to Split. Split again where it ends, click the piece and press Delete. Then drag the last part left until it snaps against the first.
- 4
Export
Press Export (Ctrl E), pick MP3 or another format, and choose where to save it. When Your sound is ready appears, press Open it to check.
Cutting at exactly the right spot
Each sound on the track shows its waveform, so pauses, coughs and the gap before a song kicks in are easy to spot. Press + to zoom in until a single second is wide enough to aim at, then drag the edge of the sound right up to the first word. Edges snap to the playhead, to the start of the track and to the ends of other sounds, which makes clean joins easy.
- Step through it: the arrow keys move the playhead a thirtieth of a second, Shift and an arrow a whole second.
- Type a length: under When on the right, Lasts takes an exact number of seconds.
- Change your mind: a trimmed sound still holds the whole file. Drag its edge back out and the cut part returns, or press Ctrl Z.
One thing to watch: when you trim the start, the sound now begins later on the track, and the exported file always starts at 0:00. Drag the sound back to the left edge, where it snaps into place, or your file will open with a stretch of silence.
What the saved file sounds like
Octoolo does not snip an MP3 the way scissors would. It plays your cut and encodes a new file from it, which is what lets it cut at any point you like and add fades or volume changes on the way. Every export is 48 kHz stereo:
| Export as | What you get | A minute takes about |
|---|---|---|
| MP3 | 192 kbps, plays everywhere | 1.4 MB |
| M4A | AAC at 192 kbps, for Apple devices | 1.4 MB |
| Opus | 128 kbps, saved as .ogg | 1 MB |
| FLAC | Lossless | Often around half of WAV |
| WAV | 16-bit, uncompressed | 11.5 MB |
Cut from a 320 kbps MP3, the 192 kbps result is hard to tell apart in everyday listening. Cut from a 128 kbps MP3, the new file is about 50% bigger and no better. If the cut is headed for more editing, export WAV or FLAC: they keep the sound exactly as Octoolo decoded it, with no second round of compression. A mono voice memo comes out as stereo, the same sound on both sides.
The cuts people make most
- A ringtone: keep the 30 or 40 seconds you love and export Ringtone for an iPhone, or MP3 for Android. The ringtone maker page has the details.
- A podcast or an interview: take out the small talk before the start and the goodbyes after it, then even out the loudness.
- A long lecture in parts: split it at each topic, delete everything but one part and export it, then press Ctrl Z to bring the rest back and export the next.
- The sound of a video: drop an MP4 or MOV into the Audio Editor and its sound comes in, ready to trim.
Hard cuts in the middle of music can click. A fade of a tenth of a second or two on each side of the join hides it: see fade in and fade out. To put pieces from several files together, the same window works as an audio joiner.
Octoolo or an online tool?
| Detail | Octoolo | A typical online tool |
|---|---|---|
| Your files | Stay on your computer | Usually uploaded to the site's server |
| Without internet | Works | Does not work |
| File size | No limit | Often capped on free use |
| Watermarks and ads | None | Common on free plans |
| Cost | $4.99 a month, all 17 apps | Free with limits, or a plan per site |
Questions, answered
Does cutting an MP3 lower its quality?
Slightly, in principle: the cut is encoded again as a 192 kbps MP3. For most songs and recordings the difference is very hard to hear, and for no further loss at all you can export WAV or FLAC instead.
Can it cut an MP3 without re-encoding?
No. Octoolo always makes a new file at 48 kHz, which is what lets it cut anywhere and apply fades and volume. Cutters that copy MP3 frames untouched can only cut at frame boundaries, about every 26 milliseconds.
How do I remove several parts from one song?
Click the sound and split it with S at the start and end of each unwanted part, delete those pieces, then drag what is left together until the pieces snap. Undo takes back any step.
Can I cut the audio of a video?
Yes. Drop the video into the Audio Editor and only its sound comes in, ready to trim and export as MP3. To save a whole video's sound without cutting it, use Take the sound out of a video.
Is there a limit on length or file size?
Octoolo sets none. Hour-long recordings and big WAV files open fine; long files just take a moment longer to draw their waveform.
Is my original MP3 changed?
Never. Export always writes a new file under the name and in the folder you choose, and the editor remembers your cuts between visits.
MP3 cutter, and 16 more apps.
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