Pro Tools
Pro Tools is a digital audio workstation that records, edits and mixes audio for music, film and television. Professional studios use it for multitrack recording, MIDI composition and audio post production.
#4 in Video & Audio ToolsAudio EditorsFree plan
Who it's for
Best for
Film and TV post-production editors mixing at high sample rates
Music producers and engineers recording and comping multitrack sessions
Not for
Hobbyists who want a one-off purchase instead of a monthly plan
Linux users who need audio software to run natively
Free plan$0
Artist$8.25/moBilled annually
Studio$24.92/moBilled annually
Ultimate$49.92/moBilled annually
Features
Playlist comping
Record vocals, instruments or dialogue and keep every take organised in playlists, then comp the best moments into one polished track.
MIDI and virtual instruments
Build songs with MIDI tools, virtual instruments, samples and flexible arrangement features built for modern music production.
Clip-level editing
Cut, trim, fade and balance levels directly on the clip with context-aware tools that adapt to the editing task, before reaching the mixer.
Immersive mixing and video
Immersive mixing is available on the Studio and Ultimate plans, and Ultimate adds 64 video tracks with full audio post workflows.
Free Intro version
Pro Tools Intro is free forever and suits more casual creative work, with no purchase needed to download it.
What users say
Pros
- Sessions run at 32-bit float 192 kHz, with source material processed down to 48 kHz for film work.
- AAX utility plugins for phase check, M/S width and clean gain trim sit right in the mix chain.
- Basic built-in plugins tune a set of bagpipes convincingly during post production.
Cons
- Auto-renewal charged a full year again days after a fresh renewal, and the refund did not arrive quickly.
- Monthly subscription pricing makes simple recording work expensive next to a one-off DAW purchase.
- Sessions fail to open when the playback device has changed since the last launch.
- The Ctrl+E shortcut for slicing a clip makes it easy to accidentally close the session window while editing.
- Audio work still needs Windows or macOS because no Linux build exists.
A selection of the review sources we used:
Summarized from public user reviews and community discussions. View details
Global Traffic Rank
Pro Tools lives on a page of a larger website, so its own traffic cannot be measured. It is ranked on user reviews only.
Alternatives
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Pro192 kHz film sessions, AAX mix-chain plugins, tuning pluginsDrummer, plugin bundle, editable event model, fast takesPodcast and radio editing, spectral repair, voiceover recordingFast loop-to-song workflow, strong routing, deep MIDI, rich Suite
Better forCleaning up spoken-word recordings for podcasts and radio with built-in spectral repair and waveform editing.Sketching ideas from loops in Session view, performing live on stage, and buying via rent-to-own.
Weaker atFull music production, virtual instruments, MIDI arrangement, and heavy multitrack mixing.Editing multi-mic live drum recordings and handling film and TV audio post-production workflows.