Music · pricing
Dorico pricing
Dorico publishes 3 tiers. Below is each one, what it adds over the tier beneath it, and where the ladder stops being worth climbing for most people.
As of 1 September 2026, Dorico pricing is on request across 3 published tiers. Figures are the vendor's list prices as recorded on this page's last check; the vendor's site is the final word.
- Entry price
- On request
- Model
- One-time purchase
- Tiers
- 3
- Free tier
- Not on record
Dorico plans, side by side
Every published tier in ascending order of price, with the number of features each one lists. An absence here means the record does not itemise it, not that the tier lacks it.
| Plan | Price | Features listed | Step up from the tier below |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dorico for iPad (subscription) | $3.99/month | 1 | Entry tier |
| Dorico Elements | $99.99/month | 2 | +$96/month, 2 more features |
| Dorico Pro | On request | 2 | Priced on request |
What each tier adds
The set difference between each tier's feature list and the one beneath it. Where a tier lists nothing new, the vendor has either stopped repeating the inherited list or the tier raises limits rather than adding capability, the record does not distinguish the two, so this page does not either.
Dorico for iPad (subscription)
$3.99/monthThe entry tier. It covers also available as $39.99/year or a $119.99 lifetime unlock.
Dorico Elements
$99.99/monthOver Dorico for iPad (subscription), this tier adds:
- Perpetual licence, macOS and Windows
- Minor updates included within the major version
Dorico Pro
On requestOver Dorico Elements, this tier adds:
- Full engraving, playback and ensemble feature set
What the product covers
The full Dorico feature record, grouped as the catalogue groups it. This is the product as a whole; the record does not map every feature onto a specific tier.
Other
- Engraving engine
- Multiple simultaneous layouts
- Playback templates
- Percussion and tablature support
- iPad app with sync
- Choir and ensemble tools
People bring Dorico in for a composer or publisher who wants professional notation software without committing to an ongoing subscription on desktop, a film or tv composer needing precise playback templates mapped to sample libraries via vst, a choral or orchestral arranger needing dedicated divisi and part-assignment tools, an ipad-first user choosing between the low-cost subscription and a one-time lifetime unlock depending on how long they expect to use the app. If that is not the job you are buying for, the alternatives to Dorico are worth a look before you commit to a tier.
How that compares in Music
Too few music tools in this directory publish a starting price to quote a meaningful median, so the table below is a like-for-like list rather than a ranking.
| Tool | Entry price | Model | Rated | Head to head |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dorico (this page) | On request | One-time purchase | - | |
| rekordbox | Free | Per user per year | - | vs Dorico |
| DistroKid | On request | One-time purchase | - | vs Dorico |
| Pro Tools | Free | Per user per year | - | vs Dorico |
| Serato DJ | Free | Per user per month | - | vs Dorico |
| GarageBand | Free | Open source, no licence fee | - | vs Dorico |
| Traktor Pro | Free | One-time purchase | - | vs Dorico |
Ratings are aggregated from third-party sources and imported with each catalogue entry, they are not reviews hosted on Softwr. How each figure is used is set out on the Dorico badges page.
Before you pay for Dorico
Three things this page cannot tell you, and all three change the bill. The record carries a price and a billing period but not the unit - per-seat and flat-rate pricing are indistinguishable in this data, so a five-person team may be looking at five times the figure above. It carries no annual rate, so any discount for paying yearly is not something this page can quote. And it carries no trial length.
What it can tell you is the shape of the ladder: 3 tiers between $3.99/month and On request, with the jump itemised above. With no free tier on record, the cheapest way to answer the rest is to compare Dorico against the tools that do have one before committing.
Dorico runs on macos, windows, ios, and is published by Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH of Hamburg, Germany. The full record is on the Dorico review, and the rest of the category is under best music tools.
Dorico pricing questions
- How much does Dorico cost?
- Dorico publishes 3 tiers, from $3.99/month for Dorico for iPad (subscription) up to On request for Dorico Pro. The cheapest paid tier is $3.99/month.
- Does Dorico have a free plan?
- Not on the record we hold: Dorico is listed as One-time purchase. Whether a free trial is offered is not something this record captures, so check the vendor's site.
- What is the difference between Dorico for iPad (subscription) and Dorico Elements on Dorico?
- Dorico Elements costs $99.99/month against $3.99/month, and adds perpetual licence, macos and windows, minor updates included within the major version.
- Is the Dorico Pro plan on Dorico worth it?
- That depends entirely on whether you need what it adds, which on the published record is full engraving, playback and ensemble feature set. It costs On request against $3.99/month for Dorico for iPad (subscription). Softwr has not used either tier, so this page can tell you what changes, not whether it is worth the difference to you.
- Which music tools can I use without paying?
- 7 of the 8 music tools listed alongside Dorico have a free tier: rekordbox, Pro Tools, Serato DJ, GarageBand, Traktor Pro.
- What am I actually paying for with Dorico?
- The record lists 6 features across 1 area: other. In practice it is brought in for a composer or publisher who wants professional notation software without committing to an ongoing subscription on desktop, a film or tv composer needing precise playback templates mapped to sample libraries via vst, a choral or orchestral arranger needing dedicated divisi and part-assignment tools.
- Does Dorico charge per user?
- The record carries a price and a billing period for each of its 3 tiers, but not the unit that price is charged in. Per-seat and flat-rate billing look identical in this data, so check the vendor's page before budgeting for a team.
- Are these Dorico prices current?
- They are what the catalogue entry holds, refreshed when the entry is. Vendors change pricing without notice and nobody at Softwr re-verifies each tier by hand, so treat this as a structured summary and the vendor's own pricing page as the authority.
- What should I compare Dorico against before paying?
- The closest music tools in this directory are rekordbox, DistroKid, Pro Tools, Serato DJ. Each has a side-by-side comparison with Dorico covering price, platforms and features.