Choosing a digital audio workstation is one of the toughest decisions to make for your studio. First off, there are so many great options to sort through that it’s hard to narrow down just one. On top of that, you’ll want to commit to whichever one you choose, learning it inside and out to be get the most benefit from it. You can try a bunch of different DAWs in the beginning, but you’ll definitely have to settle down with one eventually!
If you want to learn more about the best digital audio workstations available, and how to pick one that fits your needs, then keep reading! We’ll cover the basics of DAWs from what they do, how much they cost, and even which genres of music they’re best for. On top of that, you’ll find our picks for the best 11 DAWs on the market, the best free DAWs, and the single best software options for Windows and Mac operating systems.
This is everything you need to know about choosing a DAW in 2020!
What is a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW)?
A digital audio workstation, simply called a DAW, is software used to record, edit, mix, master, and produce audio. Whether you’re recording and mixing music, post-production audio, podcasts, voiceovers, or anything else you can think of, a DAW is where all of it comes together.
Digital audio workstations have made audio production convenient and accessible to everyone. As long as you have a computer, you can install a DAW and start making music instantly. In the days of tape and analogue recording, recording an album in your bedroom was unheard of. Tape machines and even the tape itself was wildly expensive, so artists had no choice but to record in professional studios.
Beyond just cost, recording to tape had other limitations as well. For a number of years, commercially available tape machines were limited to just 4 tracks. It wasn’t until 1966 when Abbey Road engineers Geoff Emerick and Ken Townshend started experimenting with multiple machines during the recording of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band to increase track count for overdubbing. Don’t forget that editing tape was an entirely manual process; you had to physically cut the tape with a razor to piece edits together.
Digital audio workstations have revolutionized the way music and audio recordings are made. With virtually unlimited track counts, lightning-quick, precise editing capabilities, plugins, and more, anyone can jump in and start recording and mixing. DAWs have brought the studio to your laptop!
Does your DAW really matter?
There’s some debate about whether which DAW you choose has much sonic impact on the work you’re doing. People have claimed to hear a difference in the summing engines between different DAWs—and while this might actually be the case, no one is going to listen to a finished record you made and go, “Hey, this sounds like it was mixed in Cubase!”
So, what does matter when it comes to your DAW? The first consideration is probably going to be cost. For the most part, DAWs are pretty much in the same ballpark in terms of price. After that, system requirements are another thing to be aware of so that you can maximize the software’s potential on your machine. Finding out your computer can’t run the software right before your first session would be discouraging, to say the least! And finally, your DAW matters for how you’re going to be using it the most.
How much does a Digital Audio Workstation cost?
DAWs range in price from being free all the way up to $2599 (Pro Tools Ultimate license)! Many also have tiered pricing, where the entry-level option will get you most of the software’s features, and the highest priced version is the complete set-up.
Pro Tools, for instance, offers subscriptions starting at $29.99/month for the regular version and $79.99/month for Ultimate. And if you’re a student or educator, you can get a pretty hefty discount on either Pro Tools subscriptions or perpetual licenses. A Pro Tools HD license with a verified education discount is just $299 compared to the regular full price of $599. Logic Pro X is a flat $199 for the whole package, and Ableton Live has versions of the software at $99, $449, and $749. Reaper is one of the most affordable DAWs at just $60 for the complete deal.
You can see that DAWs cater to every budget. Even the free version of Pro Tools, called First, can support up to 16 tracks for recording and mixing. Whether you shell out for the full software really depends on what you’re using it for; however, you should definitely consider investing in a paid version of your DAW if you plan to use it regularly or for any serious projects.
- SEE ALSO: Audio Interface for Mac
What are you using your DAW for?
This is a really important factor to consider before choosing a DAW. Many digital audio workstations are sort of all-rounders, meaning they’re good for a little bit of everything: recording, editing, mixing, mastering, and composition. Others lean toward composition or electronic music production, while some excel at workflow for tracking and mixing. You should seriously think about what you’ll be using your DAW for to help you decide what’s best for you.
If you’re an engineer, you’ll probably want a DAW that has an intuitive system for recording and mixing. If you’re a songwriter, you may want access to a bunch of virtual instruments and great MIDI editing capability. If you’re an electronic music producer, being able to sequence drums on the fly and manipulate loops/samples may be what you’re after.
You’ll want to consider a more specialized DAWs if your needs are slightly different than basic recording and mixing, and there are plenty of options out there for creatives looking to make music without any technical fuss that an engineer handles.
What genre will you be working on?
Believe it or not, genre plays a part in which DAW you’ll end up working with. As we mentioned above, you might be a hip-hop producer needing a DAW with great electronic music production ability. Maybe you work with mostly rock bands and need a DAW for multitrack recording and mixing. You might be a film composer or post-production engineer looking for a solid video engine to pair with audio recording and editing capability.
The good news is there’s something out there for everyone, regardless of what genre(s) you work with!
The Best DAWs on the Market
In no particular order, here are what Produce Like A Pro considers the best digital audio workstations in 2020:
- Logic Pro X
- Pro Tools
- Studio One 4
- Ableton Live 10
- Cubase 10.5
- FL Studio 20
- Bitwig Studio
- Reason
- Reaper
- Digital Performer
- Mixcraft
Apple Logic Pro X
One of the biggest advantages Logic Pro has over others is a massive built-in virtual instrument and audio loop library and excellent MIDI capabilities. If you lean more towards the creative side of music production rather than technical, Logic is a great choice. It has an intuitive, attractive interface as well, which is a factor when searching for your first DAW.
Logic is a great all-around DAW though it leans toward music production and songwriting. The included Drummer instrument for example, which automatically grooves along to your song, is designed to help write music efficiently.
If you’re a producer and songwriter running an Apple machine, consider Logic for your audio needs. Its cost is attractive as well, particularly for what you get in stock plugins and instruments.
What It Does Best: All-Around
What It Costs: $199
Learn More: Logic Pro X
Avid Pro Tools
Avid’s Pro Tools is an industry leader. You’d be hard pressed to find any comparison like this which doesn’t mention it. It excels at tracking, editing, and mixing, so it’s obvious why the DAW is considered a gold standard.
At first glance it looks a bit daunting, but then again so does any audio editor and mixer. Once you’ve spent a bit of time with Pro Tools, its power becomes evident. Where it falls short, in many people’s opinions, is in the MIDI sequencing and music production arenas. It just doesn’t cater to quickly building a song in the way some other DAWs do, and the included virtual instruments are limited.
If you’re going to be tracking live audio and mixing all the time, however, Pro Tools is one of the best out there.
What It Does Best: Tracking/Editing/Mixing
What It Costs: $29.99/monthly — $599
Learn More: Pro Tools
PreSonus Studio One 4
PreSonus Studio One 4 is another good all-around choice. It’s well balanced for recording and mixing, with some really cool features for music production too, offering a complete DAW experience. Sharing in Logic Pro X’s intuitiveness, Studio One keeps the artist in mind; not everyone wants to be an engineer, after all!
Features like “Arranger Track” and “Scratch Pad” allow users to make quick adjustments to arrangement or audition composition changes without committing to them. This makes Studio One great for composers working with dense arrangements. Additionally, Impact XT and SampleOne XT are new virtual instruments in version 4, intended for beat-making and loop-based composition. There’s a little bit of something for everyone in Studio One.
What It Does Best: All-Around
What It Costs: $99 — $399
Learn More: Studio One 4
Ableton Live 10
After its introduction in 2001, Ableton changed the expectation of what a standard DAW could be. Ever since, it’s gained massive popularity amongst electronic and hip hop producers.
Ableton really stands out in its MIDI sequencing. Some platforms are just plain clunky compared to Ableton’s workflow. Depending on which of the packages you choose from, the program comes with up to 70 GB worth of sounds, 13 software instruments, 41 audio effects, and 15 MIDI effects, making it a clear choice for EDM, hip hop, and other electronic-based music production.
What It Does Best: Electronic Music Production
What It Costs: $99 — $749
Learn More: Live 10
Steinberg Cubase Pro 10.5
Cubase, now in its 10th version, is the culmination of nearly three decades’ worth of Steinberg’s design and development expertise in music production. A cutting edge, highly capable DAW, Cubase is utilized by a everyone from hip hop producers to film composers, and anyone in between.
Cubase’s sound quality is touted as industry-leading, and its intuitive handling reduces the learning curve. If you’re after a fully capable, all-around DAW, look no further.
What It Does Best: All-Around
What It Costs: $99 — $559
Learn More: Cubase Pro 10.5
Image-Line FL Studio 20
FL is a standout choice for electronic and hip hop producers. Its workflow is one of the most unique out there, really lending itself to making beats quickly. Of course, it’s evolved over the years to be a capable audio editor and mixer, though it still shines primarily as a production tool.
If you’re interested in music making, you can’t go wrong here. FL Studio has come a long way from a four-channel drum machine to a full-fledged DAW. Also, it’s worth noting that FL Studio was previously Windows-only, though it has since opened up to Mac users as of FL Studio 20. For electronic music production, FL Studio is one of the best there is.
What It Does Best: Electronic Music Production
What It Costs: $99 — $899
Learn More: FL Studio 20
Bitwig Studio 3
Bitwig Studio is a somewhat lesser known DAW that’s actually a great piece of kit. Bitwig was developed by ex-Ableton engineers, so it shares in some of the workflow that’s made Live such a hit amongst electronic musicians. Overall, Bitwig Studio is a great DAW for music production or live performance sequencing. A quick overview of what Bitwig Studio is all about from the developers:
- A professional Digital Audio Workstation for Windows, macOS, and Linux
- Super-fast workflow for sound design, recording, live performance, and beyond
- A complete package with 80+ instruments and effects
- Enjoy over 10 GB (and counting) of world-class sound content from Bitwig and selected partners
- Out-of-the-box support for standard audio interfaces and controllers
- A unique and highly flexible modulation system for unbound creativity
- Excellent hardware integration
What It Does Best: Electronic Music Production
What It Costs: $199 — $299
Learn More: Bitwig Studio 3
Propellerhead Reason 11
Catering to electronic musicians who prefer the look of analogue equipment, the team at Propellerhead have made Reason one of the best music production DAWs out there. Reason comes with all the instruments and effects you need to start making music instantly, from the super complex to the incredibly simple.
Reason’s MIDI sequencing is excellent, so you can record your performances using one of the many included virtual instruments and edit till your heart’s content. It’s easy to get started with and as complex as you’d like it to be. Of course, Reason 11 comes as a standalone DAW, but it’s also a plugin called Reason Rack which you can integrate with any other DAW.
What It Does Best: Electronic Music Production
What It Costs: $99 — $599
Learn More: Reason 11
Cockos Reaper
Often unmentioned in the list of “major” software, Reaper is an inexpensive, fully-functioning DAW that’s gained a devout following over the years. Its efficient 64-bit internal audio processing engine supports media in almost format at any bit depth and sample rate.
Frankly speaking, anything your favorite DAW can do, Reaper can do too! Though it doesn’t come with any of its own virtual instruments, Reaper of course supports plugins and instruments in nearly every format.
Recording, mixing, MIDI’ing, automating, and what have you. It’s all there, and at a price that’s very hard to beat. Reaper is another great all-around audio editor and mixer.
What It Does Best: Tracking/Editing/Mixing
What It Costs: $60
Learn More: Reaper
MOTU Digital Performer 10
MOTU’s Digital Performer is one of the longest-lasting DAWs available. It all started in 1985 when Mark of the Unicorn released their first music sequencer for Mac computers called Performer. Today, DP 10 is a complete studio experience in a box, with advanced recording, editing, mixing, processing, and mastering capabilities. DP features a highly customizable user interface, so you can personalize its workflow to your needs.
What It Does Best: All-Around
What It Costs: $499
Learn More: Digital Performer 10
Acoustica Mixcraft Pro Studio 9
With Mixcraft Pro Studio, you can record an unlimited number of audio and virtual instrument tracks, edit, crop, and crossfade sounds effortlessly, add tons of effects and automation, and mix and master your project to WAV, MP3, and other formats. It also comes with a huge loop library of over 7,500 sounds, making it one of the best all-around DAWs for musicians. Melodyne Essentials also comes integrated with Mixcraft, so you can edit vocals intuitively.
Maybe one of Mixcraft’s biggest selling points is the fact that you can actually edit videos within the DAW as well. This sets it apart, as it’s not just an audio production environment!
What It Does Best: All-Around
What It Costs: $99 — $199
Learn More: Mixcraft Pro Studio 9
The Best FREE DAWs
Remember when we said DAWs vary in price from free all the way up to a few thousand dollars? Well, here are a few of the best free digital audio workstations—you can’t afford not to try them!
Tracktion 7
Tracktion 7 considers itself the “world’s best, fully-featured completed unlimited free DAW for all music creators.” That’s quite a statement, but T7 actually delivers! Tracktion has been nominated for a NAMM TEC Award as well as an award from Sound on Sound. In 2016, it won Computer Music‘s Freeware of the Year award.
T7 features unlimited numbers of audio and MIDI tracks, and a professional feature set letting you to compose, record, edit, and mix your music. It has very modest CPU requirements making T7 ideal for use on nearly any Mac, Windows, or Linux computer as well, so you don’t have to worry about accessibility or system requirements—at all.
Learn More: Tracktion 7
Cakewalk by BandLab
Cakewalk by BandLab is based on SONAR Platinum software originally developed by Cakewalk. In its time, SONAR Platinum was a $600 DAW, great for all-around recording, editing, mixing, and production. The only restriction with Cakewalk by BandLab is that its currently Windows-only. That being said, at a $600 value, it’s one of the best free DAWs out there.
Learn More: Cakewalk by BandLab
Garageband
If you have an Apple computer or mobile device, you also own Garageband. For free, it’s a surprisingly capable DAW (that is, if you already own an Apple computer!). A stripped-down version of the professional DAW Logic Pro X ($199), Garageband is the perfect place to tinker with tracking, MIDI, and mixing before taking the plunge with weightier software. Its intuitive design makes it easy for beginners to jump in and test the waters.
Learn More: Garageband
Audacity
One of the most popular open source programs for many years running has been Audacity. Currently on version 2.3.3, Audacity is compatible with Windows, OS X, and Linux operating systems, ensuring access for all users. If multitrack recording and editing seems like it’s for you, try it out with Audacity before dropping the dough on expensive software.
Learn More: Audacity
Best DAW for Windows
These days, virtually every major DAW is cross-platform compatible for Windows and Mac operating systems. A few mentioned earlier are even compatible with Linux! That’s great for users because you aren’t pigeonholed into buying a certain type of computer to record and mix music. Even FL Studio, which was Windows-exclusive for years, added Mac compatibility as of last year with FL Studio 20. Likewise, if you’ve been a longtime Windows user, you don’t have to worry about picking up a Mac machine just so you can run your favorite DAW—and vice versa!
Funny enough, though, what we’d consider the best DAW made exclusively for Windows is also one of the best free digital audio workstations we mentioned above.
Cakewalk by BandLab is the best Windows-only software in 2020!
Best DAW for Mac
Again, there are hardly any major top DAWs that are system exclusive these days. Even Digital Performer, which was developed for Apple computers in the mid-’80s and stayed Mac-exclusive for roughly three decades, implemented Windows compatibility in 2012 with version 8. There really aren’t any restrictions based on the kind of computer you prefer to use. The biggest thing you’ll want to worry about is hardware, like your processor and memory.
If you insist on running a Mac-only DAW, then Logic Pro X is going to be your best bet. It’s also one of the best all-around DAWs period, with an excellent virtual instrument and loop library for writing music, plus all of the great recording, editing, mixing, and mastering features of any of the top digital audio workstations on the market.