Audacity icon

Audacity

Audacity is a powerful, free, and open-source cross-platform audio editor and recording software. It provides a comprehensive suite of tools for manipulating audio files, mixing tracks, applying effects, and recording sound from various sources. Ideal for beginners and experienced users alike, it's a versatile solution for a wide range of audio tasks. Developed by The Audacity Team

License: Open Source
Available for:
Mac OS X Windows Linux BSD PortableApps.com

About Audacity

Audacity: Your Open Source Audio Companion

Audacity stands out as a premier free and open-source audio editing and recording application. Its cross-platform compatibility means you can use it seamlessly on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Whether you're a musician recording your latest track, a podcaster editing interviews, or simply need to manipulate existing audio files, Audacity offers a robust set of tools to get the job done.

One of Audacity's core strengths lies in its recording capabilities. You can capture live audio through a microphone or mixer, and even digitize recordings from other media. For more complex projects, Audacity supports multi-track recording, allowing you to lay down multiple audio sources and mix them together. This is invaluable for music production, podcasting, and creating layered soundscapes.

Key Features & Benefits:

  • Comprehensive Editing Tools: Cut, copy, paste, and delete audio with precision. Easily remove unwanted sections or rearrange parts of your recording.
  • Powerful Effect Library: Audacity includes a wide array of built-in effects, such as noise reduction, equalization, pitch correction, and more, to enhance and manipulate your audio.
  • VST Plugin Support: Expand Audacity's capabilities by adding third-party VST effect plugins, providing access to a vast ecosystem of audio processing tools.
  • Visualize Your Audio: Audacity offers various waveform and spectrogram views, helping you visually analyze your audio and identify areas for editing or processing.
  • Export Flexibility: Export your finished projects in a variety of popular audio formats, ensuring compatibility with different devices and software.

Audacity's commitment to being open-source means it's constantly being improved by a dedicated community of developers, ensuring ongoing innovation and support. Its intuitive interface, combined with its powerful features, makes it an accessible yet capable tool for anyone working with audio.

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Completely Free and Open Source
  • Cross-Platform Compatibility (Windows, macOS, Linux)
  • Comprehensive Set of Editing and Recording Tools
  • Supports VST Plugins
  • Relatively Lightweight and Runs on Older Hardware

Cons

  • User Interface can appear dated
  • Lacks Advanced MIDI Capabilities
  • Non-Destructive Workflow is Limited
  • Steeper Learning Curve for Advanced Features Compared to Some Commercial DAWs

What Makes Audacity Stand Out

Free and Open Source

Accessible to everyone at no cost with transparent development.

Cross-Platform Compatibility

Works seamlessly on Windows, macOS, and Linux operating systems.

Extensive Feature Set

Offers a wide range of tools for recording, editing, mixing, and applying effects to audio.

Active Community Support

Benefit from a large and helpful community for assistance and resources.

What can Audacity do?

Review

Audacity Software Review

Audacity has long been a cornerstone in the world of audio editing and recording, particularly for its accessibility and comprehensive feature set at no cost. As a free and open-source application, it offers a powerful alternative to expensive commercial software. The user interface of Audacity, while functional, can appear somewhat dated compared to more modern digital audio workstations (DAWs). However, its straightforward layout makes it relatively easy to navigate, even for those new to audio editing. The main window displays the waveforms of your audio tracks, providing a clear visual representation of your sound. Recording audio with Audacity is a simple process. It supports various input sources, including microphones, line-in inputs, and even system audio on some platforms (though direct recording of system output can require additional setup). The software provides visual feedback with meters to monitor input levels, helping to avoid clipping and distortion. Where Audacity truly shines is in its editing capabilities. Users can perform fundamental edits like cutting, copying, pasting, and deleting with precision. These basic tools are essential for cleaning up recordings, rearranging audio, or removing unwanted sections. Beyond basic edits, Audacity includes a robust library of built-in effects.

Key Editing and Effects Functionality:

  • Noise Reduction: A highly valuable tool for cleaning up recordings marred by background noise. It works by sampling a portion of the noise and then applying a reduction algorithm to the entire track.
  • Equalization: Allows users to adjust the frequency balance of their audio, enhancing certain frequencies and reducing others. This is crucial for shaping the tone of recordings and improving clarity.
  • Pitch and Tempo Adjustment: Audacity provides tools to alter the pitch of audio without changing the tempo, and vice versa. This is useful for correcting off-key notes or adjusting the speed of a recording.
  • Normalization and Amplification: These effects help to optimize the overall volume of audio tracks, ensuring a consistent level across different sections or tracks.
The support for VST plugins significantly extends Audacity's capabilities. This allows users to integrate a vast array of third-party effects and instruments, from sophisticated reverbs and delays to mastering tools. While the implementation of VSTs in Audacity is generally functional, it can sometimes be less seamless compared to dedicated DAWs designed with VST integration as a core feature. Multitrack editing is another strong point. Audacity allows users to work with multiple audio tracks simultaneously, making it suitable for podcasting with multiple speakers, layering music, or combining different sound elements. The ability to move, align, and individually process these tracks provides significant flexibility. Exporting finished projects is flexible, with support for popular formats like WAV, AIFF, MP3 (requires the optional LAME encoder), and Ogg Vorbis. This ensures compatibility with various playback devices, software, and online platforms. Performance-wise, Audacity is generally lightweight and runs well on a wide range of hardware, including older or less powerful computers. However, processing complex effects on long or numerous tracks can occasionally tax system resources. While Audacity offers a wealth of features, it's important to note its limitations compared to professional-grade DAWs. It lacks advanced MIDI sequencing capabilities, sophisticated automation features, and a non-destructive workflow for effects (most effects are applied directly to the audio). Its interface, while functional, can feel less polished and intuitive than some commercial alternatives. Despite these minor drawbacks, Audacity remains an incredibly valuable tool. Its status as free, open-source software makes it accessible to everyone, from hobbyists to seasoned audio engineers. Its core features for recording, editing, and applying effects are robust and capable enough for a wide variety of tasks. For anyone looking to get into audio production or needing a reliable, free audio editor, Audacity is an excellent starting point and often a sufficient tool for many projects. In conclusion, Audacity is a highly recommended application for anyone needing a powerful and free audio editor and recorder. Its extensive feature set, cross-platform compatibility, and active community support make it a go-to choice for a diverse range of audio-related projects.

Similar Software

Adobe Audition
Adobe Audition

Adobe Audition (formerly Cool Edit Pro) is a digital audio workstation from Adobe Systems featuring both a multitrack, non-destructive mix/edit environment and a destructive-approa...

Audio Hijack
Audio Hijack

Audio Hijack Pro records audio from a variety of sources and gives you the tools to process it for multiple purposes.

Fission
Fission

Fission is a fast lossless audio editor.

Free Audio Editor
Free Audio Editor

Free Audio Editor is the professional music editor available to record, edit and share all your music.

Frinika
Frinika

Frinika is a free, complete music workstation software.

GarageBand
GarageBand

GarageBand is a whole music creation studio for mac.

GoldWave
GoldWave

GoldWave is a commercial digital audio editing software.

Macsome Audio Editor Freeware
Macsome Audio Editor Freeware

Macsome Audio Editor Freeware is a powerful audio editor freeware that supports easily and quickly editing MP3 or AAC on Mac OS X.

Macsome Audio Recorder
Macsome Audio Recorder

Macsome Audio Recorder is an audio recorder software.

Harrison Mixbus
Harrison Mixbus

Harrison Mixbus is a digital audio workstation (DAW) software.

Nero WaveEditor
Nero WaveEditor

Nero Wave Editor is a basic yet powerful audio editor.

Ocenaudio
Ocenaudio

Ocenaudio is a cross-platform, easy to use, fast and functional audio editor that bundles a rich array of audio effects.

Screenshots

Help others by voting if you like this software.

Compare with Similar Apps

Select any similar app below to compare it with Audacity side by side.

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare

Compare features, pricing, and reviews between these alternatives.

Compare