Software · head to head
FL Studio vs REAPER
FL Studio
Software
Digital audio workstation sold with free updates to your edition for life
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
REAPER
Software
Full digital audio workstation with a 60 day evaluation and a USD 60 personal licence
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: FL Studio fruity Edition has no audio recording at all, so recording a vocal or an instrument requires Producer Edition or higher; REAPER the USD 60 discounted licence requires that yearly gross revenue does not exceed USD 20,000, above which the commercial licence at USD 225 applies
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which FL Studio and REAPER actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (one-time), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
FL Studio
- Music production
- Beat makingnot REAPER
- Audio recording
- Electronic musicnot REAPER
- Sound designnot REAPER
REAPER
- Music production
- Audio recording
- Audio editingnot FL Studio
- Post productionnot FL Studio
- Podcast editingnot FL Studio
Both are used for music production, audio recording, on those jobs the choice comes down to price and fit rather than capability.
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
FL Studio
- Fruity Edition has no audio recording at all, so recording a vocal or an instrument requires Producer Edition or higher
- Edison and Newtime, the audio editing tools, are listed from Producer Edition upward and are absent from Fruity
- Bundled effects run from 53 in Fruity to 71 in All Plugins Edition, so the cheapest edition is missing 18 of them
- Bundled instruments run from 23 in Fruity to 39 in All Plugins Edition
- Sold as a paid licence with no free tier, listed from USD 99
REAPER
- The USD 60 discounted licence requires that yearly gross revenue does not exceed USD 20,000, above which the commercial licence at USD 225 applies
- The commercial licence at USD 225 is nearly four times the discounted one for identical software, since the price is set by who is using it rather than by what it does
- The evaluation lasts 60 days, after which continued use requires a purchased licence
- Sold as a paid licence with no free tier beyond the evaluation period
Pricing, plan by plan
FL Studio
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the FL Studio review.
REAPER
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the REAPER review.
Which should you pick?
Questions people ask
- Is FL Studio or REAPER better?
- Neither clearly leads. FL Studio starts at On request and REAPER at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, FL Studio or REAPER?
- FL Studio starts at On request and REAPER at On request.
- Does FL Studio or REAPER run on more platforms?
- FL Studio runs on Windows, macOS. REAPER runs on Windows, macOS, Linux.
- What is FL Studio best used for?
- FL Studio is most often used for music production, beat making, audio recording, electronic music. Of those, beat making and electronic music are not what REAPER is typically brought in for.