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.
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.
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.
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.
Where GarageBand stands out
Verified capabilities most alternatives don't have.
Why people leave GarageBand
Dashed reasons are sourced facts; the rest are opinions. Vendors can dispute.
Sign in to add a reason — new reasons go through moderation before appearing.
Ranked alternatives
Ordered by Alt Score. Click any score to see the breakdown.
Feature comparison
Rows come from the Digital audio workstations checklist (14 rows). Human-verified cells only. ? means the value has not been verified.
| Digital audio workstations checklist | GarageBand | Pro Tools | Studio One | Cakewalk | Ardour | Cubase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | ||||||
| Starts at | ||||||
| License | ||||||
| Platforms | ||||||
| MIDI editing | ||||||
| Audio comping | ||||||
| Included instruments & effects | ||||||
| Third-party plugin support | ||||||
| One-time purchase option | ||||||
| Free tier / lite version | ||||||
| Linux support | ||||||
| Notation view | ||||||
| Video scoring | ||||||
| Collaboration |
Every fact and feature listed for GarageBand is verified against its own pages. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.
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License Proprietary verified 2026-07-11
Copyright © 2026 Apple Inc. All rights reserved.
https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/ -
Pricing model Free verified 2026-07-11
Free
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785 -
Platforms macOS, iOS verified 2026-07-11
macOS Monterey or later required.
https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/ -
Status active verified 2026-07-11
This update includes stability improvements and bug fixes
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785 -
MIDI editing Yes verified 2026-07-11
The Piano Roll Editor shows the notes in a MIDI region as colored bars in a time grid.
https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/intro-to-the-piano-roll-editor-gbnd547cda7a/mac -
Audio comping No verified 2026-07-11
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.
https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/choose-and-delete-takes-gbnd5fa82adf/mac -
Included instruments & effects Yes verified 2026-07-11
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
https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/ -
Third-party plugin support Yes verified 2026-07-11
You can use Audio Units plug-ins and Audio Unit Extensions in your GarageBand projects to add new sounds and effects.
https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/gbnde06a4e4d/mac -
One-time purchase option No verified 2026-07-11
Free
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785 -
Free tier / lite version Yes verified 2026-07-11
Free
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/garageband/id408709785 -
Linux support No verified 2026-07-11
macOS Monterey or later required.
https://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/ -
Notation view Yes verified 2026-07-11
The Score Editor displays regions on software instrument tracks as music notation, including notes, rests, key and time signature, and clef signs.
https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/intro-to-the-score-editor-gbndb4edee92/mac -
Video scoring Yes verified 2026-07-11
You can view a movie file in your project while you create the soundtrack in GarageBand.
https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband/add-a-movie-to-your-project-gbnd8470e7ed/mac -
Collaboration Yes verified 2026-07-11
You can invite people to collaborate with you on songs stored in iCloud Drive.
https://support.apple.com/guide/garageband-iphone/share-songs-chs39284d66/ios
FAQ
Yes. Cakewalk and LMMS have a free tier or are fully free. Free-tier limits in the comparison table are verified and dated.
Ardour and LMMS — every license claim links its source.