Yes, Audacity is free. It's a free, open source audio editor and recorder for Windows, macOS and Linux, released under the GNU General Public License. There's no premium version of Audacity itself, though the official site also promotes optional plugins and cloud storage.
If you're starting a podcast, recording voiceovers or cleaning up audio for a video, Audacity is often the first tool people recommend. It's been around since 2000 and the Audacity team says it's had more than 100 million downloads since then.
What you get with Audacity for free
- Recording and editing on Windows, macOS and Linux.
- Import, export and convert between all the major audio formats, including WAV, MP3, FLAC and Ogg.
- Plugin support, including VST3 and Nyquist plugins from third parties.
- Spectrogram view and analysis tools to see what's going on in your audio.
- AI plugins: the Audacity team says OpenVINO AI plugins for music separation, noise suppression, transcription and more are now available on macOS as well as Windows.
- Audacity 4: the latest release adds an updated interface, Workspaces and productivity improvements.
Why Audacity is free
Audacity is open source. Its licence file says Audacity is released under the GNU General Public License version 3, with many source files under version 2 or later, and its documentation under a Creative Commons Attribution licence. In plain English, that means anyone can download, use, study and share it, and the source code is published so you can even build it yourself.
The download detail worth knowing
Here's the bit that confuses people. The Audacity website says MuseHub is the official distributor of Audacity, and the main download buttons install it through MuseHub. Right next to them, though, there's a Download without MuseHub option.
Audacity is free either way. The difference is whether you also get MuseHub on your computer, which is where the plugins promoted on the Audacity homepage come from. If you just want the audio editor, choose the option without MuseHub.
- Go to audacityteam.org and open the Download page.
- Choose your system: Windows, macOS or Linux.
- Pick the download without MuseHub if you only want Audacity.
- Install it, then open the app and check your microphone is selected.
- Record a short test and play it back before your real session.
What's optional around Audacity
| Item | Part of free Audacity? | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Audacity app | Yes | The audio editor and recorder |
| Offline manual and FFmpeg library | Yes | Extra downloads from the official site |
| MuseHub | Optional | The distributor that installs Audacity and plugins |
| Plugins promoted on the homepage | Optional | Add-ons such as voice clean-up and mix effects |
| Audio.com | Optional | Online companion for sharing, collaboration and versioned backups |
Audio.com is described as the online companion to Audacity. It lets you collaborate on projects, make versioned backups and share or publish your work, but you don't need it to record and edit.
Extra free downloads on the official site
The Audacity download page also offers a few extras, all free. There's an offline manual, so you can look things up without an internet connection, and the FFmpeg library, which adds import and export support for more file formats. There's also the source code, if you'd like to build Audacity yourself, and an archive of older versions with every release since 3.0.0.
That archive is useful if a new version changes something you rely on. Audacity 4 brought an updated interface and Workspaces, and if you're halfway through a project, it's fine to stay on the version you know until you've finished.
Getting good results in Audacity
Audacity is powerful, but the interface can feel old-fashioned at first. Start with three things: record at a steady distance from your microphone, use noise reduction carefully, and normalise the volume before you export. If you're setting up a podcast, my round-up of podcast recording software compares it with other tools, and if Audacity isn't clicking for you, here are the best Audacity alternatives.
A simple editing routine for beginners
- Record a few seconds of silence at the start so you've got a clean sample of the room noise.
- Cut out long pauses, false starts and coughs first.
- Apply noise reduction lightly, then listen back on headphones.
- Even out the volume so quiet and loud parts sit closer together.
- Export as MP3 for podcasts and social, or WAV if someone else will edit it next.
Save your project file as well as the exported audio, so you can go back and change things later without starting again.
Who Audacity suits
Audacity suits podcasters, coaches recording audio courses, video creators tidying up voiceovers and anyone who needs to cut, clean and export audio without signing up for anything. It runs on almost any computer and works offline.
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It suits you less if you want a polished, all-in-one podcast studio with remote guest recording built in. Audacity is an editor and recorder, not a remote interview platform.
My verdict: Audacity is free, open source and still one of the best ways to start editing audio. Download it from the official site, choose the version without MuseHub if you only want the editor, and ignore the add-ons until you know you need them.
Frequently asked questions
Is Audacity free?
Yes. Audacity is a free, open source audio editor and recorder for Windows, macOS and Linux, released under the GNU General Public License.
Is there a premium version of Audacity?
No. Audacity itself is free. The official site also promotes optional plugins through MuseHub and the Audio.com online companion, but you don't need them to record and edit.
Do you need to install MuseHub to get Audacity?
No. The Audacity download page offers a Download without MuseHub option next to the main download buttons.
What operating systems does Audacity run on?
Audacity runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. The download page offers Windows installers, a macOS universal build and Linux AppImages.
Is Audacity open source?
Yes. Audacity's licence file says it's released under the GNU General Public License version 3, with many source files under version 2 or later.
Can I get older versions of Audacity?
Yes. The official download page links to older versions of Audacity, covering every release since 3.0.0.
Can Audacity remove background noise?
Yes. Audacity has noise reduction tools, and the Audacity team says OpenVINO AI plugins add noise suppression, music separation and transcription.
