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iTunes sells drm-free music downloads. The still do, if you go to the iTunes Store and not the Apple Music streaming surface.
There are better options out there though, like BandCamp.
Bandcamp only works if the band originated there. Most labels don't sell anything through bandcamp. If a label doesn't release digital lossless for me to buy it's getting downloaded on Soulseek.
Qobuz and 7digital have pretty good libraries and high quality downloads.
Also PSA that Amazon Auto-Rip still exists for all CD and vinyl purchases you ever used your account for
256kbps AAC is still proprietary, but you can convert it to an MP3 with something like dBPowerAmp
Don't do this. You will lose quality every time you re-transcode an audio file. AAC is supported by basically everything now.
Also MP3 is a pretty bad format all things considered. The most efficient format is Opus, it's open source and transparent at 160kbps.
How is AAC proprietary?
Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) is patented and requires a license for legal use.
I mean so is MP3. If you really want to be a non-proprietary purist you need to rely on Opus for a lossy audio compression, which is not as widely supported in music players as MP3 or AAC.
MP3's licenses and patents have expired.