Top Ten Most Popular DAWs in 2024
by The Press Desk
Avid Pro Tools Studio
Pros: Widely recognised as one of the best DAWs when it comes to recording, editing and mixing. Still for the most part the ‘industry standard’, which facilitates easy session exchange between studios and professionals.
Cons: A bit slow to include new features and not the flashiest DAW in terms of innovation.
Apple Logic Pro 11
Pros: The best DAW when it comes to bundled content, with an ever-growing array of excellent plug-ins, samples and virtual instruments that will likely be more than enough for casual users.
Cons: Audio editing is still not as flexible as others. Mac only.
Steinberg Cubase Pro 14
Pros: Arguably the most well-rounded DAW out there in terms of content and features, it might be a notch below Apple's flagship Logic Pro in terms of content but it has the benefit of working on both Mac and Windows systems.
Cons: Relatively expensive.
Cockos Reaper 7
Pros: A highly capable and immensely flexible DAW with deep customization, Reaper is your best pick if you want total control. It’s also extremely affordable and basically a no-brainer for the cost-savvy studio.
Cons: The deep ‘tweakability’ might be a bit too "nerdy" for some and there’s a good chance of getting lost amongst all those settings and options.
Ableton Live 12 Suite
Pros: Streamlined for composition and live performance like no other DAW, Live heralded a new era for electronic music production. It can be even more effective when used with special Live-friendly controllers which are optimised for the software’s array of performance features.
Cons: A very idiosyncratic piece of software whose unique workflow may or may not appeal to some, and those hardware controllers feel somewhat necessary to get the best out of it.
PreSonus Studio One 7
Pros: Another solid contender that has been climbing the ranks over the past few years, Studio One is now almost ten years old and has improved greatly on all areas since its introduction.
Cons: Hardly any, although it might not match the level of included content that Cubase and Logic Pro give you for the cost of admission.
Bitwig Studio 5
Pros: Bitwig Studio has all the features of a complete DAW and also great solutions for live performing, currently on its 4.4 version the software has made huge improvements by adding new features and enhancing its workflow.
Cons: No ARA 2 support.
Image Line FL Studio All Plugins Edition
Pros: A favourite amongst electronic music producers and beatmakers, FL Studio has added many features and improvements over the years and it’s now a very complete package.
Cons: Not the most well-rounded for working with genres other than electronic music.
Reason Studios Reason 13
Pros: After being merged with its sister audio-capturing DAW 'Record' a few years ago, Reason is now a fully-fledged DAW that can tackle anything from composition to recording and mixing, which looks like a lot of fun with its 'SSL-esque' mixer.
Cons: Basically none since VST support was implemented on a recent version!
MOTU Digital Performer 11
Pros: "DP" is a solid all-round DAW, more packed with features than ever before on its ninth iteration, but it has been especially widely praised over the years for its efficiency on scoring and MIDI work in general. A favourite of film composers indeed.
Cons: None, now that it also supports Windows.
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