VidiKit (21-in-1 Toolkit) >
Q:"What is the best free audio recording software?"
From casual voice memos to professional productions, audio recording software unlocks endless possibilities – capture online lectures, create narrations, document concerts, save streaming music, or make voice memos with ease. Remarkably, in the current market, you can discover free audio recording software that ideally breaks down barriers to quality audio creation, offering advanced features without cost. After extensive evaluation of available options, we present 11 standout free audio recorders that deliver exceptional performance across different recording scenarios and skill levels.
- Part 1. Best Audio Recording Software for Novices (All-in-one Recording Toolkit)
- Part 2. 11 Best Audio Recording Software FREE to Use
- Part 3. FAQs about Audio Recording
Part 1. Best Audio Recording Software for Novices
Joyoshare VidiKit is a versatile multimedia solution that combines professional audio recording with comprehensive screen capture capabilities. The intelligent audio processing preserves studio-quality sound. Its advanced editing tools even allow for trimming, ID3 tagging, and audio enhancement. Beyond its core function of recording high-quality audio from streaming platforms like YouTube, Spotify, and SoundCloud in different formats, this powerful toolkit also features screen recording for tutorials, gameplay capture for gamers, selective window recording for productivity, and webcam recording for content creators.
- Supports a huge array of formats such as MP3, AAC, AC3, AIFF, and ALAC
- Customizes quality, codec, sample rate and bitrate
- Supports different channels such as stereo, mono, 5.1 surround sounds
- Powerful to auto-delete silence, equalize, trim, and apply sound effects
- Unlimited input audio sources, like in-game music, detected system sound and more
Part 2. 11 Best Audio Recording Software FREE to Use
Are you looking for free software for recording audio? In this part, we will demonstrate 11 best tools, from beginner-friendly tools to professional studios. Perfect for podcasters, musicians, and content creators, these solutions deliver crisp recordings of vocals, instruments, and system audio. Let's explore your best free options.
1. GarageBand
GarageBand is Apple's free audio recording app for macOS and iOS, offering professional-grade music creation tools. It supports multi-track recording, virtual instruments, and audio effects, making it perfect for podcasts, music production, and basic voice recording. While optimized for Apple devices, its intuitive interface and zero cost make it ideal for beginners and hobbyists.
- 😄Pros
- Free with Apple devices
- Stunning audio editing features
- Seamless iOS/macOS integration
- High-quality built-in virtual instruments/effects
- ☹Cons
- Apple ecosystem exclusive
- Steeper learning curve for advanced features
2. Apowersoft Free Online Audio Recorder
As the name suggests, Apowersoft Free Online Audio Recorder is a decent free online audio recorder. It has all that is required to get the work done with perfection. With the advanced features and the sound production, it captures audios quickly and simply. The best part is that it is free to use and there is no need to download for later software installation. You just need a launcher to activate it.
- 😄Pros
- No recording limitations associated
- The recorder can be customized to meet your needs
- ☹Cons
- A browser plugin is required
- The speed is not as fast as it should be
3. Audacity
If you are looking for a program that is full of features then Audacity is for you. The program is developed by a group of volunteers, which means that it will always remain free. This highly customizable program makes it easy for the users to overcome the issues that the others present. This free audio recorder has provided countless people with an opportunity to get the best and the most amazing sound recording features that many paid programs lack.
- 😄Pros
- Huge plugin support is available
- Detailed frequency analysis is also possible with it
- ☹Cons
- The program is not for beginners
4. QuickTime Player
QuickTime Player is Apple's native multimedia software pre-installed on all Macs. While primarily a media player, its free audio recording feature supports microphone input. When combined with third-party virtual audio drivers (like Soundflower), it can capture system sounds. The lightweight tool offers basic trimming and format conversion, making it ideal for quick recordings without complex editing needs.
- 😄Pros
- Native macOS integration
- Simple interface for basic recording
- Support direct microphone input
- ☹Cons
- Only work for Mac
- Lack of direct system audio capture
- Limited audio editing features
5. Ocenaudio
The EQ effects additions have been made easy with this program. Among some best free audio recording software, Ocenaudio provides special privileges to users as the interface is easy to understand and the structure of this program is minimalist. The controls and the configurations are easy to understand and adding effects is not as hard as some other programs make it. The best part is that the program has every possible audio-related tool to take your recordings to the next level.
- 😄Pros
- The program provides cross-platform support
- The real-time effects addition is possible
- ☹Cons
- The delicate edition cannot be made
- The large file editing is not efficient
6. Wavosaur
Wavosaur can be used to edit the audio awesomely. It records, cuts, copies, pastes, crops and trims audios to generate music loops. Then, it allows you to process your files with possible options, like mute, fade in/out, invert, normalize, insert silence, zoom in/out and more. There are additional advanced features that professionals may like, such as vocal removal, crossfade loop, DS offset removing, VST processing, etc.
- 😄Pros
- It is available for both 32 and 64 bit systems
- The quick start guide comes with every download
- ☹Cons
- The program is flash-based and slows the processing
7. Sound Forge
Sound Forge is the oldest program that is on the market. It has been providing users with awesome services. The MAGIX is the power that runs this program and it has been on the top of the list of many online reviewers. The mixing and the effect addition to the recordings have never been as easy as it is with this program. From the support to the overall management of the program it is the best on the market.
- 😄Pros
- The digitization of the sound has been made easy by this program
- The processing has been made easy with one-click functions
- ☹Cons
- Only available for 64 bit systems
- The GUI of the program is not user friendly
8. Ardour
The true tape-style transport recording is the main tool that is associated with this program. It can be regarded as the best free audio recorder. The program has many plugins that can be integrated to make sure that you get the best outcome with perfection. It also means that you get the overall management of the tools that will take your recording to the next level. Ardour is a complete Swiss Army knife for all your digital track recording needs.
- 😄Pros
- There is no limit to the tracks that can be added
- Any kind of track can be integrated with perfection
- ☹Cons
- The extraction of audio from a video file is not easy
- It is not for novice users
9. Ashampoo Audio Recorder Free
Ashampoo Audio Recorder Free has good performance in recording audio. It's a free audio recorder as it claims and has the capability to capture audio from whatever you can hear, including the sound card and microphone. It easily records audios with sample rate up to 48kHz and saves as MP3, OGG, FLAC, WAV, WMA, APE and OPUS. There is a managable media library it offers to store all finished recordings. Also, it allows you to preview files using the inbuilt player and rename audios as you want. Or furtherly trim them to get smaller pieces extracted.
- 😄Pros
- Free to capture audios in different formats
- Options to trim, rename and quick search file in media library
- ☹Cons
- Lack of editing tools to enhance audios
10. LMMS
LMMS is a free audio recording software that works for Windows, Linux and Mac. It is a professional tool with powerful editors, like Piano Roll Editor, Beat+Bassline Editor, for musicians, composers and singers to create beats and melodies. Remarkably, there are built-in spectrum analyzer and visualization for you to fine tune whatever you make. It's also popular with users for its importing support of Hydrogen project files and MIDI files.
- 😄Pros
- Create audio files for free on different platforms
- Support mixing effects
- Come with dedicated musical instruments
- ☹Cons
- Clunky UI
11. Free Sound Recorder
Free Sound Recorder is definitely a free audio recorder as its name shows. It's easy-to-use with a snappy interface. With the assistance of this software, you're allowed to capture streaming music, VoIP phone calls, online conferences, audio broadcasts, microphone voice, and the like. The files can be saved in MP3, OGG, WAV and WMA, making it available to change parameters in the way you want. What's better, you can apply its audio editor to adjust volume, cut recordings, add effects such as fade-in/fade-out, normalize, etc.
- 😄Pros
- Record internal and external audios free on computer
- With audio editing tools to enhance recordings
- Schedule recording at a specified time
- ☹Cons
- Output format is limited
Part 3. FAQs about Audio Recording
Q1: Does Windows have a built-in audio recorder?
A: Yes, Windows includes "Voice Recorder" (previously called Sound Recorder), accessible via Start Menu. However, it only records microphone input, not system audio.
Q2: Can I record internal audio on Mac?
A: Yes, but not natively. While macOS doesn't include built-in system audio recording, you can install a virtual audio driver, such as Soundflower or BlackHole, to record internal audio on Mac with QuickTime Player. Or you can download a third-party tool, such as Joyoshare VidiKit, Audacity, etc.
Q3: Can you record audio without consent?
A: Laws vary by location, but generally it's illegal for private conversations without consent (two-party consent states). Public events/lectures may allow audio recording. You might as well check local regulations and platform terms of service.
Conclusion:
The best 11 free audio recording software introduced above can come in handy when you need to capture and create recordings. All of them are free to use without payment. What you should be careful about is learning main features and testing software in advance. Some only have the ability to record sounds while others can help make post-processing and editing tasks. Sure, if you have a low budget, you can give Joyoshare VidiKit a try, whose audio recorder is mighty!
