Best Audacity Alternatives
The top-ranked Audacity alternative is Adobe Audition (Subscription). The best free option is GarageBand.
Audacity is the go-to free audio editor, but users seek alternatives for multitrack music production, non-destructive editing, professional mastering, or a more modern interface. Others want DAWs for recording and mixing rather than a wave editor.
1Adobe Audition
SubscriptionProfessional audio workstation for editing, mixing, and restoration.
2Affordable, lightweight, and highly customizable DAW for recording and mixing.
3Apple's free, beginner-friendly DAW for recording and producing music on Mac and iOS.
Easy, fast cross-platform audio editor with real-time effect preview.
Ardour
Open SourceOpen-source, cross-platform DAW for recording and mixing.
WavePad
FreemiumFeature-rich audio editor for recording, editing, and effects.
Feature-rich DAW with a pattern-based workflow loved by beatmakers and producers.
Apple's professional DAW with deep production tools, instruments, and mixing features.
Cakewalk by BandLab
FreeFull-featured professional DAW available free for Windows music producers.
Free, open-source DAW for producing beats, melodies, and full tracks.
Studio One
FreemiumPreSonus's modern DAW with drag-and-drop workflow for recording and mastering.
WaveLab
PaidSteinberg's professional audio editing and mastering suite.
Compare head-to-head
Side-by-side comparisons of apps on this list.
Audacity alternatives: FAQ
What is the best alternative to Audacity?
Adobe Audition is ranked first on this list (Subscription). The ranking combines our base score with readers' votes, so it can change.
What is the best free alternative to Audacity?
The highest-ranked free or open-source options here are GarageBand, Ocenaudio and Ardour.
Which Audacity alternatives work on Mac?
Adobe Audition, Reaper, GarageBand and Ocenaudio run on macOS.
Which Audacity alternatives work on Linux?
Reaper, Ocenaudio, Ardour and LMMS run on Linux.
Are there Audacity alternatives for Android?
Yes: WavePad have Android apps.
Know a Audacity alternative we missed? Suggest it — we review submissions before they go live.