GarageBand Alternatives

GarageBand is described as 'Welcome to the school of rock. A Mac-sized practice space. Your own recording studio. If you want to learn to play an instrument, write music, or record a song, GarageBand can help — whether you’re a rookie or a rock star' and is a very popular music production app in the audio & music category. There are more than 50 alternatives to GarageBand for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Web-based and Android apps. The best GarageBand alternative is FL Studio. It's not free, so if you're looking for a free alternative, you could try LMMS or Walk Band. Other great apps like GarageBand are Reaper, AudioTool, Ardour and Ableton Live.

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GarageBand alternatives are mainly Music Production Apps but may also be Audio Editors or Digital Audio Workstations. Other popular filters includes Mac + Free. Filter by these or use the filter bar below if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of GarageBand.

GarageBand

261

Music Production App
Free • Proprietary

Welcome to the school of rock. A Mac-sized practice space. Your own recording studio. If you want to learn to play an instrument, write music, or record a song, GarageBand can help — whether you’re a rookie or a rock star.

More about GarageBand

GarageBand alternatives page was last updated Dec 4, 2023

Studio One
Studio One is an advanced digital audio workstation for Mac and Windows featuring a bevy of powerful composition, editing, mixing and mastering tools on top of standard multi-track DAW features. Highly praised for its intuitive chord track that lets users drag and drop both...
71 Studio One alternatives
License model
- Paid • Proprietary
Application types
- Music Production App
- Digital Audio Workstation
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
Top Studio One Features
1. Drag and Drop
2. Mix Music
3. Virtual Instrument
4. Music Sequencer
5. Works Offline
6. Lossless Audio
7. Support for MIDI
8. Live Performance
9. Support for VST Plugins
10. Music Looper
11. Piano Roll
12. MIDI Clips
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Studio One VS GarageBand
Is Studio One a good alternative to GarageBand?

Reason
Reason is a virtual studio rack with all the tools and instruments you need to turn your ideas into music. And it's more than just a set of excellent synths and effects. It's a complete music system. Step into the age of Reason.
72 Reason alternatives
License model
- Paid • Proprietary
Application types
- Music Production App
- Digital Audio Workstation
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
+3
Reason Features
1. Virtual Instrument
2. Synth rack
3. DRM Free
4. Beat maker
5. Loops
6. Built-in Sequencer
7. Mix Music
8. Piano Roll
9. Sequencing
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Reason VS GarageBand
Is Reason a good alternative to GarageBand?

FamiStudio
FamiStudio is very simple music editor for the Nintendo Entertainment System or Famicom. It is designed to be easier to use than FamiTracker, but its feature set is also much more limited. It is targeted at both chiptune artists and NES homebrewers.
32 FamiStudio alternatives
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application type
- Music Production App
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Android
- Wine
FamiStudio Features
Support for MIDI
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FamiStudio VS GarageBand
Is FamiStudio a good alternative to GarageBand?

DaVinci Resolve Fairlight
Every track includes real time equalization and dynamics processing to sweeten and fine tune your mix. This is in addition to your six real time track effects, making Fairlight far more powerful than other digital audio workstation software!
11 DaVinci Resolve Fairlight alternatives
License model
- Free • Proprietary
Application types
- Audio Recorder
- Audio Editor
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
DaVinci Resolve Fairlight Features
MultiTrack
Sound Effects
Mix Music
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+2
DaVinci Resolve Fairlight VS GarageBand
Is this a good alternative to GarageBand?

Bandlab
Bandlab is the cloud platform where musicians and fans create music, collaborate and engage with each other across the globe. Create and collaborate on music through intuitive mobile and web apps that lets you assemble songs from scratch or remix projects shared by others.
24 Bandlab alternatives
License model
- Free • Proprietary
Application types
- Music Production App
- Digital Audio Workstation
Platforms
- Online
- Android
- iPhone
- Android Tablet
- iPad
Bandlab Features
Music Sequencer
Support for MIDI
Music Recording
Mix Music
Show all NaN Bandlab features ▾
+8
Bandlab VS GarageBand
Is Bandlab a good alternative to GarageBand?

Qtractor
Qtractor is an Audio/MIDI multi-track sequencer application written in C++ with the Qt framework. Target platform is GNU/Linux, where the Jack Audio Connection Kit (JACK) for audio, and the Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA) for MIDI, are the main infrastructures for...
75 Qtractor alternatives
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
- Music Production App
- Digital Audio Workstation
Platforms
- Linux
Qtractor Features
Support for MIDI
Support for VST Plugins
Music Sequencer
Multitrack editing
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Qtractor VS GarageBand
Is Qtractor a good alternative to GarageBand?

Efflux
Efflux is a Progressive Web Application allowing you to create music within your browser, either on- or offline on anything from a phone to desktop machine.
52 Efflux alternatives
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
- Music Production App
- Digital Audio Workstation
Platforms
- Online
Efflux Features
1. Virtual Instrument
2. Works Offline
3. Support for MIDI
4. Music Looper
5. Support for Keyboard Shortcuts
Show all NaN Efflux features ▾
Efflux VS GarageBand
Is Efflux a good alternative to GarageBand?

Cross DJ
Mix, scratch, sample, record: rock great parties with top-DJ features.

Turn your mobile device into a complete DJ system. Mix your tracks in perfect sync, scratch, add effects, loops and more. Automix your songs for non-stop music. Record your set and share it on SoundCloud. Mus.
43 Cross DJ alternatives
License model
- Freemium • Proprietary
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Android
- iPhone
- Android Tablet
- iPad
Cross DJ Features
Music Looper
Works Offline
Mix Music
BPM Detection
Show all NaN Cross DJ features ▾
+3
Cross DJ VS GarageBand
Is Cross DJ a good alternative to GarageBand?
Comments about Cross DJ as an Alternative to GarageBand

Guest
Does not let you sequence audio files
Negative comment •Jun 13, 2015
1
- Most users think Cross DJ is a great GarageBand alternative.
- Cross DJ is Freemium and ProprietaryGarageBand is Free and Proprietary

Avid Pro Tools
Pro Tools makes music creation fast and fluid, providing a complete set of tools to create, record, edit, and mix audio. Get inspired and start making music with a massive collection of plugins, instruments, and sounds.
89 Avid Pro Tools alternatives
License model
- Freemium • Proprietary
Application types
- Music Production App
- Digital Audio Workstation
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
+1
Top Avid Pro Tools Features
1. Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
2. Music Sequencer
3. Support for MIDI
4. Lossless Audio
5. Dark Mode
6. Cloud Sync
7. Batch Editing
8. Live Performance
9. Music Looper
10. Virtual Instrument
11. Ad-free
12. Support for 4K
Show all NaN Avid Pro Tools features ▾
Avid Pro Tools VS GarageBand
Is Avid Pro Tools a good alternative to GarageBand?