Game Development · head to head
FMOD vs PlayFab
The short version
- They diverge on capability: FMOD covers FMOD Studio, PlayFab covers Player authentication.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which FMOD and PlayFab actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Game Development).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in FMOD
- FMOD Studio
- Real-time mixing
- Adaptive music
- 3D audio
- Occlusion
- DSP effects
- Live update
- Profiling tools
Only in PlayFab
- Player authentication
- Data storage
- Analytics
- Multiplayer features
- Economy system
- Matchmaking
- Cloud saves
- Leaderboards
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
FMOD
- Game audionot PlayFab
- Adaptive musicnot PlayFab
- Sound effectsnot PlayFab
- VR audionot PlayFab
PlayFab
- Backend as a service for live games, covering accounts, leaderboards and player datanot FMOD
- Hosting dedicated multiplayer game servers on Azurenot FMOD
- LiveOps, in-game economy and player segmentation for game studiosnot FMOD
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
FMOD
Nothing recorded yet. See the FMOD review.
PlayFab
- A title in development mode can only have up to 1,000 lifetime player account creations
- Multiplayer server costs are billed per VM compute hour on Azure virtual machines and vary by region and VM family
- Network egress is charged per GB and varies by zone, at $0.05 in Zone 1, $0.08 in Zone 2 and $0.20 in Zone 3
- Pricing is consumption based across a set of separate meters rather than a flat plan
- The vendor states prices are subject to change and that actual costs depend on the PlayFab plan and usage
Pricing, plan by plan
FMOD
Free- IndieFree
- Full feature set
- Up to $200K budget
- All platforms
- Commercial$6000/project
- Full feature set
- Unlimited budget
- Priority support
PlayFab
Free- FreeFree
- 100K monthly active users
- Basic API
- Player authentication
- Professional$100/month
- Unlimited MAU
- Advanced features
- Priority support
Which should you pick?
Choose FMOD if
- You need fmod studio.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Consoles.
- You also want real-time mixing.
Choose PlayFab if
- You need player authentication.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Cross-platform.
- You also want data storage.
Questions people ask
- Is FMOD or PlayFab better?
- Neither clearly leads. FMOD starts at Free and PlayFab at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, FMOD or PlayFab?
- FMOD starts at Free and PlayFab at Free.
- Does FMOD or PlayFab run on more platforms?
- FMOD runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Consoles. PlayFab runs on Cross-platform.
- Can I use FMOD for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is FMOD best used for?
- FMOD is most often used for game audio, adaptive music, sound effects, vr audio. Of those, game audio and adaptive music are not what PlayFab is typically brought in for.
- What can FMOD do that PlayFab cannot?
- FMOD covers FMOD Studio, Real-time mixing, Adaptive music, 3D audio. PlayFab covers Player authentication, Data storage, Analytics, Multiplayer features.