What users are saying about

Audacity vs GarageBand

Audacity
Top Rated
50 Ratings
GarageBand
11 Ratings

Audacity

Top Rated
50 Ratings
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Score 8.7 out of 100

Based on 50 reviews and ratings

GarageBand

11 Ratings
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Score 8.7 out of 100

Based on 11 reviews and ratings

Likelihood to Recommend

Audacity

Overall Audacity is a great program for audio editing in a wide range of uses. It is quick and easy to start using it for basic tasks but has the functions to do more advanced tasks with a little understanding of the interface. Audacity has many editing options available and a wide range of keyboard and mouse shortcuts so anyone using it professionally would be able to navigate it quickly and efficiently.It is available on the three main computer platforms, Windows, MacOS and Linux, and being open source software it has the source available for those that want to change it and make the product better. Audacity is a small download and small install meaning start up is quick, and running multiple instances is possible and doesn't hog machine resources.The only time I think it may not be suitable is for complete novices that may need a program with less options or features as the amount of options, switches, and sliders in Audacity could be confusing for them.

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Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Verified User
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GarageBand

  • So for an individual who likes to record music and add some cool tracks to it, nothing beats GarageBand. GarageBand is just so convenient to use, and the best thing is I can edit it on any device I am currently on. So If I am traveling, I can use my iPad or iPhone to edit the same track, which I was writing earlier. As long as you have the Apple ecosystem, you can be a "One man band."
  • However, when the scale increases to production-grade, this won't be an ideal place to go for it. Also, I believe many times the inbuilt tracks, and for that matter, the ones available online are also just a small subset of what you find in the other apps.

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Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Verified User
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Pros

Audacity

  • Audacity has a wide variety of controls and capabilities for editing, making it a very robust tool for audio editing.
  • Even though it's a robust tool, it is very easy to use to get many basic things done in audio editing. The learning curve is small.
  • Love that audacity is free! What else could you ask for? There really is no reason not to use it.

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Jarem Atkinson | TrustRadius Reviewer
Jarem Atkinson
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GarageBand

  • GarageBand is very intuitive
  • GarageBand is easy to learn

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Shawngela Pierce | TrustRadius Reviewer
Shawngela Pierce
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Cons

Audacity

  • Audacity has changed some icons recently for certain editing functions and that can be confusing for users and support
  • The interface isn't the worst I have seen but the UI isn't exactly enjoyable on Mac or PC
  • Some of the functionality can quickly feel overwhelming to a new user, pointing toward help documentation the first time an advanced tool is used would be appreciated

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Paul Weber | TrustRadius Reviewer
Paul Weber
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GarageBand

  • So many features one can get lost.
  • The learning curve is steep then mellows out.

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Ben Caplan | TrustRadius Reviewer
Ben Caplan
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Support Rating

Audacity

Audacity 7.9
Based on 17 answers
The best support comes from communities and blog posts, but there really is no authoritative answer for anything. You basically have to wing it. However, since there's no financial barrier to entry, everyone is creating their own help documents so you're bound to find a solution.

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Tamar Weinberg | TrustRadius Reviewer
Tamar Weinberg
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GarageBand

GarageBand 9.2
Based on 5 answers
I have never tried it. It's just simple, and you should be able to navigate most of it via self-exploration and Apple Help.

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Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Verified User
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Alternatives Considered

Audacity

Audacity doesn't have nearly all the functionality of GarageBand, but for a free program (and one that can be used on PC as well) it is incredibly well-designed for basic audio editing. You can't beat free, and it has excellent functionality for what it does. Even now I frequently go back to Audacity for quick and simple editing needs.

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Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Verified User
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GarageBand

I have used Adobe Audition before but found it to be hard to learn. Some of the features were very nice but too much for what I needed to justify the price. GarageBand is perfect for my needs and it came free with my Mac laptop. That is the best deal in town!

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Shawngela Pierce | TrustRadius Reviewer
Shawngela Pierce
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Return on Investment

Audacity

  • I have uploaded samples of our products to soundcloud.com which has been hugely instrumental in attracting customers to our website and convincing those customers to purchase because they are able to see and hear the quality of the product we provide. Providing samples also allows us to give customers a taste of the product without allowing illegal downloads or pirating of the products.

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Jennifer Stirling | TrustRadius Reviewer
Jennifer Stirling
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GarageBand

  • This has made podcasting much easier which means more episodes.
  • Due to the simplicity of recording podcasts, we have seen an increase in user traffic.

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Ben Caplan | TrustRadius Reviewer
Ben Caplan
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Pricing Details

Audacity

General

Free Trial
—
Free/Freemium Version
—
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—
Entry-level set up fee?
No

Audacity Editions & Modules

—
Additional Pricing Details
—

GarageBand

General

Free Trial
—
Free/Freemium Version
Yes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—
Entry-level set up fee?
No

GarageBand Editions & Modules

Edition
Garageband for MacFree
Logic Pro (GarageBand Premium)199.99
    Additional Pricing Details
    —

    Add comparison