# Vorbis

Open-source, royalty-free audio codec for WebM and OGG containers.

## Overview

### What It Is

Vorbis is an open-source, royalty-free audio codec developed by the Xiph.Org Foundation as a free alternative to proprietary audio formats. Released in 2000, Vorbis delivers audio quality comparable to AAC at similar bitrates and is the original audio codec for the OGG and WebM containers. While Opus (also from Xiph.Org) has largely superseded Vorbis for new projects — offering better compression and lower latency — Vorbis remains the default audio codec in many existing WebM deployments and is still used when Opus support is unavailable.

## Decision Guide

### When to Choose Vorbis

Choose Vorbis when:

- You maintain existing WebM content that uses Vorbis audio — no need to re-encode if the quality is acceptable.
- You need a royalty-free audio codec for OGG container delivery — Vorbis is the native OGG audio codec.
- Your target platform does not support Opus — some older systems only decode Vorbis.

Consider alternatives when:

- You are starting a new project — [Opus](https://cloud.qencode.com/audio-formats-codecs/opus) is strictly better in compression, latency, and quality from the same Xiph.Org team.
- You need HLS audio — [AAC](https://cloud.qencode.com/audio-formats-codecs/aac) is required for HLS delivery.
- You want the best quality at low bitrates — [Opus](https://cloud.qencode.com/audio-formats-codecs/opus) achieves transparent quality at 128 kbps vs. Vorbis at 192 kbps.

## Reference

### Key Characteristics

|     |     |
| --- | --- |
| Standard | Xiph.Org Foundation, 2000 |
| Bitrate range | 32 kbps – 500 kbps |
| Sweet spot bitrate | 128 kbps (high quality stereo) |
| Channels | Up to 255 channels (typically stereo) |
| Latency | ~20ms (comparable to AAC) |
| Sample rates | 8–192 kHz (typically 44.1 or 48 kHz) |
| Royalty status | Royalty-free, open-source (BSD license) |
| Container support | [WebM](https://cloud.qencode.com/video-formats-codecs/webm), OGG |
| Browser support | Chrome, Firefox, Edge; Safari 14.1+ (limited) |
| Typical use case | Legacy WebM audio, OGG containers, open-source projects |

## Compatibility

### Browser & Device Support

| Platform | Vorbis | Opus | AAC | MP3 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Chrome (desktop) |  | 33+ |  |  |
| Firefox (desktop) |  | 15+ |  |  |
| Safari (macOS) |  | 14.1+ |  |  |
| Edge |  | 79+ |  |  |
| iOS Safari |  | 14.5+ |  |  |
| Android Chrome |  |  |  |  |

## Implementation

### How Qencode Handles Vorbis

Qencode encodes Vorbis audio using libvorbis for WebM output. Specify `libvorbis` as the audio codec.

```
{
  "query": {
    "source": "https://your-storage.com/video.mp4",
    "format": [
      {
        "output": "webm",
        "video_codec": "libvpx-vp9",
        "resolution": 2160,
        "quality": 20,
        "audio_codec": "libvorbis"
      }
    ]
  }
}
```

Copy this payload and use it with your API key to encode Vorbis audio from any source.

## Comparison

### Vorbis vs. Opus

|  | Vorbis | Opus |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Compression | Good for its era | ~20–30% better at same quality |
| Quality at 128 kbps | Transparent for most content | Transparent for all content |
| Low-bitrate performance | Degrades below 96 kbps | Excellent down to 6 kbps |
| Latency | Standard | Low-latency mode (5 ms) |
| Royalty status | Royalty-free (Xiph.Org) | Royalty-free (IETF RFC 6716) |
| Container support | Ogg, WebM | Ogg, WebM, DASH |
| Browser support | Chrome, Firefox, Edge (not Safari) | All modern browsers incl. Safari 14.1+ |
| Best for | Legacy Ogg/WebM content | VoIP, streaming, modern web audio |

For a detailed Opus breakdown, see [Opus](https://cloud.qencode.com/audio-formats-codecs/opus)

## Explore More

### Related Technologies

[**Opus** \
\\
The modern successor to Vorbis with better compression and lower latency.](https://cloud.qencode.com/audio-formats-codecs/opus)[**WebM** \
\\
The open container format that supports both Vorbis and Opus audio.](https://cloud.qencode.com/video-formats-codecs/webm)