Whether you’re a professional music producer or just a beginner, beat-making software is an essential tool for creating new sounds. As technology advances, new and more advanced beat-making tools are introduced over time.
With these beat makers, you can easily create your own quality beat tracks with minimal effort, even if you’re a beginner. Now, there is a wide variety of beat-making software available to choose from.
But! It can be challenging to choose the right beat-making software since some are expensive and some have complex interfaces and controls.
The good news is that there are many free beat-making software available as well, with easy-to-use interfaces and simple controls. You can easily take a start from one of these tools to produce your own quality beats.
Table of Contents
7 Best Beat-Making Software For Free
Out of so many DAWs (Digital Audio Workstation) tools, I have compiled a list of the top 7 best beat-making software for free:
- Magix Music Maker
- LMMS
- FL Studio
- Waveform Free
- MuseScore
- Serato Studio
- GarageBand
Let’s explore these best free music production software individually along with their features.
1. Magix Music Maker
Availability: Only Windows OS
Price: Free version plus paid version is also available
Magix Music Maker is our top pick in this list. This amazing tool allows you to create, edit, and produce music and audio tracks without much effort since it offers a wide range of features. Using its multitrack editor, you can edit audio tracks in a few clicks.
If you’re a beginner, you can start with this digital audio workstation (DAW) because it’s completely free software as well as offers various tools for composing, recording, and mixing music.
Furthermore, this free beat-making software provides many drum samples and a sound library with a variety of loops and samples.
Developers are enhancing the tool over time so your music can sound to listeners as dynamic as possible. With its powerful Beatbox, you can create and customize drum and percussion beats for your music tracks.
Features:
- Offers numerous virtual instruments and sounds
- Powerful mixing tools such as equalization and compression
- Enhanced beatbox with up to 32 steps
- It’s completely free, a blessing for music lovers
Download: Magix Music Maker for Windows
2. LMMS (Linux MultiMedia Studio)
Compatibility: Linux, Windows, and macOS
Price: Free
Linux Multimedia Studio (LMMS) is an open-source and free beat-making software that is available for multiple platforms. With this user-friendly digital audio workstation, you can create music of high quality.
LMMS provides its users simple and easy-to-use interface. Also, you can compose, mix, and automate your music in a few clicks. You’ll find various tools including audio effects, drum kits, and a built-in sample library for music production.
You can produce and arrange your music using many virtual instruments and sounds using the sequencer and arranger integrated into this awesome DAW tool.
As it’s an open-source DAW, many community-developed plugins and extensions are available to extend its power. So, you can download them by connecting to a high GHz WiFi connection.
Whether you’re an experienced music producer or a beginner, I recommend this free software.
Features:
- Offers full-featured Sequencer to arrange and edit your musical ideas
- Several powerful Synthesizers are included
- Packed up with a bunch of enhanced music production tools
- User-friendly and easy-to-use interface
- Completely free to use
Download: LMMS for Windows | Linux | macOS
3. FL Studio
Compatibility: Windows & macOS
Price: Free for a limited time, paid versions available
FL Studio is one of the best free beat-making tools right now in the market. This DAW software provides more advanced features to produce and edit your music. This tool is used by many professional DJs and producers.
It has a user-friendly interface and a drag-and-drop layout that makes it easy for beginners. There are many plugins available that are specifically designed for FL Studio to expand your sound.
There are also a number of built-in high-quality effects available that you can choose from to create music exactly how you like it.
Furthermore, FL Studio comes with an extensive collection of samples, presets, and loops. You can export your project in many formats like MP3, WAV, FLAC, MIDI, etc. You can customize the theme according to your liking.
All in all, there’s everything included for you to create professional music according to your style.
Features:
- Offers a wide range of plugins
- Thousands of presets are available to choose from
- Provides numerous built-in high-quality effects
- Easy to use and customizable interface
Download: FL Studio for Windows | macOS
4) Waveform Free
Compatibility: Linux, Windows, and macOS
Price: Free version, paid version is also available
A Waveform is another free, yet powerful, music creation software to record, edit and produce audio files (tracks). Whether you are a podcaster, singer, electronic producer, or simple music creator, Waveform is the best solution for you to create drum beats.
This software also has 15 different improved audio effects, such as natural reverb, stereo delay, single-band EQ, three-band EQ, and an eight-band EQ, which can be used to enhance the quality of your music.
Its refreshed interface provides a feeling like you’re working in a professional studio since you can customize it in many ways according to your liking.
Moreover, developers have added the 6 most commonly requested utility tools including AB switch, spectrum analyzer, Mid/Side splitter, and more. Its new browser offers the most demanded features like tags, favorites, smart lists, etc.
Features:
- Offers 15 different audio effects
- Expandable over the time
- Redesigned, fresh, and simple interface
- It’s completely free to use
Download: Waveform for Windows | macOS | Linux
5) MuseScore
Compatibility: Linux, Windows, and macOS
Price: Free
Like LMMS, MuseScore is also an open-source tool for producing beats. One of the key features of this fantastic software is its user-friendly UI, which enables users to easily input music notation using their mouse or a MIDI keyboard.
There are a number of formatting options available, including lyrics, custom noteheads, slurs, beams, and the ability to customize the layout of the score to suit users’ preferences.
Not only can you create new music notions but MuseScore allows users to import and export a variety of file types, including MusicXML, MIDI, and PDF.
You can use this free music-making software without any limitations or restrictions. MuseScore is one the best free beat-making software right now.
Features:
- There’s a large library of free scores and resources
- Ability to input via MIDI Controller
- Import and export files via MusicXML and MIDI
- It’s free beat maker software and open source as well
Download: MuseScore for Windows | macOS | Linux
6) Serato Studio
Compatibility: Windows & macOS
Price: Free version and paid plans are also available
Serato Studio is the next free, fastest, and most intuitive DAW for making beats. This professional tool is developed by Serato, a company known for its popular DJ software.
This tool is designed specifically for creating modern, high-quality personalized music beats. Its advanced sampling technology allows you to flip, cut, and rearrange your new unique sound in just a few simple steps.
Serato Studio enables you to quickly produce a song by creating loops, or scenes, which can then be arranged later on in the Song View. This ability to easily drag and drop loops into the Song View makes the arrangement process simple and efficient.
To make your beats sound good, this tool also offers a variety of music genres, including hip-hop. You can use this amazing tool to create musical tunes and set them on your smartphone.
Simply put, you’ll find every feature that you can expect from any DAW like VST plugins support, recording, MIDI file support, FX, full mixer view, and a lot more.
Features:
- Offers VST and AU plugin support
- Advanced and powerful sampling technology
- Bunch of free sound packs
- Automate your task to save time and effort
Download: Serato Studio for Windows | macOS
7) GarageBand
Compatibility: only macOS
Price: Free
GarageBand is a digital audio workstation and music creation software developed by Apple Inc. for macOS and other iOS devices. You can produce and share music and other recordings easily without paying a penny.
This software is packed up with all the necessary music creation tools like a sound library, various presets, and an extensive collection of pre-made musical loops to make your beat-making process easy and quick.
Even beginners can easily produce music and audio recordings with this free beat-making software because of its user-friendly interface. You can even use your native instruments as well to produce better beats.
You can share your created song or music with others via social media platforms in a few clicks. Moreover, you can set your music as a ringtone or notification sound for different apps, or send it as a voice message to others.
You can use the Garageband music maker app on your iPhone and iPad as well since it’s available on the app store as well.
Features:
- Provides a bunch of pre-made loops and samples
- It features many beat‑making drummers and percussionists
- Contains built‑in lessons for piano and guitar, making it suitable for beginners
- Easy-to-use interface
- Use it free of cost
Download: GarageBand for macOS
How to Pick The Right Beat-Making Software?
Now, I’ve listed 7 free, powerful, and top-notch beat-making tools to help you speed up and simplify your music creation. But! How do you know which DAW is right for you? You’ll waste time and effort if you don’t choose the right beat-making software which will lead to failure.
There’s no fit-for-all answer to this question since it depends on various factors like your system compatibility, interest, experience, software features, interface, and for which purpose you want to utilize it.
However, I can help you choose the right one by discussing some common factors:
Hardware Compatibility: It is important that the software you choose is fully compatible with your computer’s operating system and hardware. Since some tools are specially designed for Windows OS, you cannot use them on macOS or Linux, and vice versa.
Your Experience: If you’re an experienced or professional music producer, I don’t recommend you go with a simple DAW that only has basic features and tools. And, if you’re just getting started, choose a DAW that’s free and easy to use for a better first-hand experience.
Features: Every beat-producing tool comes with unique features that are not available in other tools. For creating professional music, especially for movies, select software with a large collection of libraries, sound effects, loops, and more. You should choose the tool based on what type of project you intend to use it for
Price: Although the applications I listed above are free but once you start producing a large number of beats, you’ll need to upgrade your plan in order to remove limitations and access more resources to take your project to next level. So, consider your budget as well when selecting beat-making software, so that you won’t have to face budget issues when upgrading in the future.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Software is Best for Making Beats?
Strictly speaking, there is no exact answer that fits all. It depends on what type of project you want to use it for and your preferences as well. However, if you’re a mac user, I recommend using the Garageband tool for making beats. For windows, you can use LMMS as it’s free and open-source with a large collection of plugins.
What is the Easiest Beat Maker Software?
Garageband is one of the easiest beat-maker tools for macOS users. It has a simple interface with hundreds of built-in loops and sounds. Also, it’s completely free. However, LMMS and MuseScore are favorites and easy to use for Windows operating system.
What Beat Making Software do Professionals Rappers Use?
FL Studio is one of the most widely used beat-making software by professional rappers as it offers a wide range of features to make the music more creative and premium. Also, many professional DJs use Serato Studio because of its extensive range of powerful tools.
What is the Best Free Beat Making Software for Beginners?
If you’re just getting started producing music beats, LMMS (Linux MultiMedia Studio) is the best free beat-making software for beginners since it’s available on all platforms, is open-source, and provides a user-friendly interface making it easy for beginners to create their own beats.
Wrapping Up
It’s not necessary to use every beat-making tool, described above, in order to become an expert. Just pick one which suits you best and master it. As you continue to create beats, you will become more proficient over time.
If you’re a beginner and a Mac user, you won’t find any other helpful tool than Garageband. But if you’re a beginner but don’t own Mac then, go with LMMS beat-making software.
For this list of the best beat-making software for free along with their features, a great deal of research and time is spent so you can start creating your own music beats with minimal effort.
These 7 tools are not only the best music production software, but there are also many other tools available such as Studio One, Pro Tools, MPC beats, Hammerhead Rhythm Station, and more.
There are some unique features that distinguish one tool from another. You can choose any of the above-listed tools and start using them to produce your first amazing beat(s).
If you found this list of beat-creating tools helpful, share it with others so that they can also get benefit from it.
