Alternatives to foobar2000
Infinitely customizable audio player
foobar2000 ranks #4 of 9 in Music players, with an Alt Score of 82. It is proprietary, free and available on Windows, macOS, iOS and Android. 10 of 10 checklist rows are verified against a public source.
Audiophiles and power users on Windows, macOS, iOS, or Android who want fine-grained control over audio playback rather than a stock media player.
A free, lightweight player with broad format support out of the box, gapless playback, and full ReplayGain volume normalization. An open component architecture lets you add decoders, DSP effects, VST/Audio Unit plugins, and custom UI layouts. It also handles tagging, CD ripping/transcoding, and internet radio, with no telemetry or data collection.
You install the base player, then extend it by adding components (decoders, DSP, UI skins) to match your needs, organize tracks into playlists with tag-based metadata, and configure keyboard shortcuts or network streaming as desired.
Why people leave foobar2000
Dashed reasons are sourced facts; the rest are opinions. Vendors can dispute.
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Ranked alternatives
Ordered by Alt Score. Click any score to see the breakdown.
Feature comparison
Rows come from the Music players checklist (14 rows). Human-verified cells only. ? means the value has not been verified.
| Music players checklist | foobar2000 | Strawberry | AIMP | Audirvana | Roon | Plexamp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | ||||||
| Starts at | ||||||
| License | ||||||
| Platforms | ||||||
| Format support (FLAC, DSD) | ||||||
| Library management | ||||||
| Gapless playback | ||||||
| ReplayGain | ||||||
| Streaming service integration | ||||||
| Plugins / skins | ||||||
| Last.fm scrobbling | ||||||
| Open source | ||||||
| Remote server playback | ||||||
| EQ & DSP |
Every fact and feature listed for foobar2000 is verified against its own pages. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.
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Pricing model Free verified 2026-07-10
Free
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/foobar2000/id1072807669 -
License Proprietary verified 2026-07-10
Released under the foobar2000 license
https://www.foobar2000.org/windows -
Platforms Windows, macOS, iOS, Android verified 2026-07-10
A computer not older than 20 years, running Windows 7 or newer.
https://www.foobar2000.org/windows -
Status active verified 2026-07-10
foobar2000 mobile v2.25.7 has been released. It is not a full major release, but some essential improvements have been backported from 2.26 series, including improved UPnP renderer.
https://www.foobar2000.org/news -
Format support (FLAC, DSD) Yes verified 2026-07-10
MP3, MP2, MP1, M4A, AAC, Ogg Vorbis, Opus, Musepack, Speex, AC3, DTS, WMA, FLAC, WavPack, Monkey's Audio, TAK, WAV, Wave64, RF64, AIFF, AU/SND, Matroska/WebM, MPEG Transport Stream, and Audio CD
https://www.foobar2000.org/formats -
Library management Yes verified 2026-07-10
Media Library efficiency improvements for very large music libraries.
https://www.foobar2000.org/changelog -
Gapless playback Yes verified 2026-07-10
Gapless playback
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/foobar2000/id1072807669 -
ReplayGain Yes verified 2026-07-10
ReplayGain support - automatic playback volume adjustment
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/foobar2000/id1072807669 -
Streaming service integration Partial verified 2026-07-10
Allows to play tracks from Spotify.
https://www.foobar2000.org/components/view/foo_spotify -
Plugins / skins Yes verified 2026-07-10
An open-source user interface for the foobar2000 audio player, with interchangeable panels and toolbars.
https://www.foobar2000.org/components/view/foo_ui_columns -
Last.fm scrobbling Partial verified 2026-07-10
foo_scrobble is a foobar2000 component for scrobbling to https://www.last.fm/.
https://www.foobar2000.org/components/view/foo_scrobble -
Open source No verified 2026-07-10
Only unmodified installers can be redistributed; redistribution of foobar2000 binaries in any other form is not permitted.
https://www.foobar2000.org/license -
Remote server playback Yes verified 2026-07-10
Component obsolete, improved version of it is now included with foobar2000 v2.25.
https://www.foobar2000.org/components/view/foo_out_upnp -
EQ & DSP Yes verified 2026-07-10
A graphic equalizer featuring – 31 bands (1/3rd octave width) – boost/cut range of +-12 dB in .1 dB steps – master gain – minimum phase filters to eliminate pre-echo – smooth frequency response – impo
https://www.foobar2000.org/components/view/foo_dsp_xgeq
FAQ
Yes. Strawberry, AIMP and Plexamp have a free tier or are fully free. Free-tier limits in the comparison table are verified and dated.
Strawberry — every license claim links its source.