# Alternatives to GarageBand

Free entry point to music making.

GarageBand ranks #8 of 12 in Digital audio workstations, with an Alt Score of 63. It is proprietary, free and available on macOS and iOS. 10 of 10 checklist rows are verified against a public source.

Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/garageband/
Category: Digital audio workstations

## Where GarageBand stands out

- **Collaboration** — 3 of 9 apps with a verified answer have this
- **Free tier / lite version** — 6 of 12 apps with a verified answer have this

## Overview

- **Who it's for**: Beginners, hobbyists, and students learning music, as well as casual musicians who want to record and produce songs on a Mac or iPhone/iPad without prior audio engineering experience.
- **What you get**: A free digital audio workstation with virtual instruments (keyboards, guitar/bass amp simulations, synths), a library of royalty-free sound loops, and Drummer/session player tracks that generate realistic accompaniment. It supports multi-track recording and editing (up to 255 tracks), a Piano Roll for MIDI editing, and built-in mixing tools like EQ, compression, and reverb. It also includes guided lessons for piano and guitar.
- **How it works**: You create a project, then add tracks by recording live audio/MIDI, playing a virtual instrument, or dragging in Apple Loops; Smart Controls let you shape each sound with simple knobs and sliders. Once arranged and mixed, the song can be exported as an audio file or shared directly to other Apple apps and platforms.

## Profile

- **License**: Proprietary (verified 2026-07-11)
- **Pricing model**: Free (verified 2026-07-11)
- **Starts at**: ?
- **Platforms**: macOS, iOS
- **Status**: active (verified 2026-07-11)

## Ranked alternatives

| # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms |
|---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------|
| 1 | [Pro Tools](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/pro-tools.md) | 81 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS |
| 2 | [Studio One](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/studio-one.md) | 77 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| 3 | [Cakewalk](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/cakewalk.md) | 72 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS |
| 4 | [Ardour](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/ardour.md) | 68 | GPL-2.0 | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| 5 | [Cubase](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/cubase.md) | 68 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS |
| 6 | [Reaper](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/reaper.md) | 68 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| 7 | [Ableton Live](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/ableton-live.md) | 64 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS |
| 8 | [Logic Pro](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/logic-pro.md) | 63 | Proprietary | macOS, iOS |
| 9 | [Bitwig Studio](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/bitwig-studio.md) | 59 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| 10 | [FL Studio](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/fl-studio.md) | 41 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS |
| 11 | [LMMS](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/lmms.md) | 41 | GPL-2.0 | Windows, macOS, Linux |

Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/

## Feature comparison

Legend: Yes / No / Partial / ? (not verified).

| Digital audio workstations checklist | GarageBand | Pro Tools | Studio One | Cakewalk | Ardour | Cubase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free | Subscription | Subscription | Freemium | Donationware | One-time |
| Starts at | ? | $9.99/month | $19.99/month | $14.99/month (BandLab Pro membership) | $1 one-time (pay-what-you-want minimum) | ? |
| License | Proprietary | Proprietary | Proprietary | Proprietary | GPL-2.0 | Proprietary |
| Platforms | macOS, iOS | Windows, macOS | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS |
| MIDI editing | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Audio comping | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Included instruments & effects | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes |
| Third-party plugin support | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| One-time purchase option | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Free tier / lite version | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Linux support | No | No | Partial | No | Yes | No |
| Notation view | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Video scoring | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes | ? | Partial |

## Sources

Sources for GarageBand. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.

- **License**: Proprietary — <https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “Copyright © 2026 Apple Inc. All rights reserved.”
- **Pricing model**: Free — <https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “Free”
- **Platforms**: macOS, iOS — <https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “macOS Monterey or later required.”
- **Status**: active — <https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “This update includes stability improvements and bug fixes”
- **MIDI editing**: Yes — <https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/intro-to-the-piano-roll-editor-gbnd547cda7a/mac> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “The Piano Roll Editor shows the notes in a MIDI region as colored bars in a time grid.”
- **Audio comping**: No — <https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/choose-and-delete-takes-gbnd5fa82adf/mac> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “When you're recording, you can record multiple versions, or takes, in quick succession—both for audio and MIDI. Later, you can choose the take you want to use in the project.”
- **Included instruments & effects**: Yes — <https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “GarageBand is a fully equipped music creation studio right inside your Mac — with a complete sound library that includes instruments, presets for guitar and voice, and an incredible selection of sessi”
- **Third-party plugin support**: Yes — <https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/gbnde06a4e4d/mac> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “You can use Audio Units plug-ins and Audio Unit Extensions in your GarageBand projects to add new sounds and effects.”
- **One-time purchase option**: No — <https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “Free”
- **Free tier / lite version**: Yes — <https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “Free”
- **Linux support**: No — <https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “macOS Monterey or later required.”
- **Notation view**: Yes — <https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/intro-to-the-score-editor-gbndb4edee92/mac> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “The Score Editor displays regions on software instrument tracks as music notation, including notes, rests, key and time signature, and clef signs.”
- **Video scoring**: Yes — <https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/add-a-movie-to-your-project-gbnd8470e7ed/mac> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “You can view a movie file in your project while you create the soundtrack in GarageBand.”
- **Collaboration**: Yes — <https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband-iphone/share-songs-chs39284d66/ios> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “You can invite people to collaborate with you on songs stored in iCloud Drive.”

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Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/