Apple Music Lossless Can Use Up to 2.9GB per Hour, Engadget Reports

Apple Music introduced Lossless in 2021. At that time, Apple estimated that a three-minute song would take about 6MB in High Quality AAC, 36MB in Lossless and 145MB in Hi-Res Lossless. Engadget noted these are planning estimates rather than guaranteed file sizes. High Quality uses 256kbps AAC, while Lossless uses Apple Lossless Audio Codec, or ALAC. ALAC reduces file size while preserving the original audio data, which explains why lossless streams require more data than lossy AAC.

Based on Apple's three-minute estimates, Engadget calculated that an hour of continuous playback would use roughly 120MB in High Quality, 720MB in Lossless and as much as 2.9GB in Hi-Res Lossless. Apple caps standard Lossless at 24-bit/48kHz and Hi-Res Lossless at 24-bit/192kHz.

The difference can add up on a capped mobile plan. Engadget said one hour of listening a day would work out to about 21.6GB over 30 days at the 720MB-per-hour Lossless estimate. At the upper Hi-Res estimate, the same habit would approach 87GB in a month.

Engadget noted the numbers will not match every listening session exactly. ALAC is lossless compression, so the amount of data needed varies with the recording rather than staying at one fixed bitrate. Streamed quality depends on what is available for a given song, network conditions and the capabilities of the listener's headphones or speakers. Apple's Lossless audio documentation says higher-resolution streams consume more data and that quality depends on the song, network and equipment, according to Engadget.

For users worried about data use, Engadget said Lossless does not have to be switched off everywhere. On an iPhone, open Settings > Apps > Music > Audio Quality. The screen allows separate quality settings for cellular streaming, Wi-Fi streaming and downloads, so cellular playback can stay at High Quality while Lossless is used on Wi-Fi. Downloading frequently played albums or playlists over Wi-Fi is another option. Lossless downloads take up more storage, but once the files are on the phone, playing them does not use cellular data. Engadget noted this can be useful for driving because a USB CarPlay connection supports lossless playback, though car speakers and road noise could prevent the full experience.

Listening hardware also matters, according to Engadget. Bluetooth connections are not lossless, so a Lossless stream sent from an iPhone to ordinary Bluetooth headphones will have its quality downgraded. AirPods Max 2 support lossless audio over USB-C but not wirelessly. Hi-Res Lossless requires an external digital-to-analog converter, or DAC, on an iPhone to play sample rates above 48kHz. Apple claims the audible difference between AAC and lossless audio is "virtually indistinguishable," Engadget reported. That does not make Lossless pointless, but it puts the cellular trade-off in perspective, especially when the final Bluetooth connection is not at maximum quality anyway.