FreeCAD
Focus: 3d modeling, cad and engineering. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.6 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit
Desktop App
LMMS
Free cross-platform software for making music.
Rating
4.4 / 5
Pricing
Free
Difficulty
Intermediate
Works on
macOS, Windows, Linux
Built with love by Shushant Lakhyani. Building bestproductivityresources.com
What is LMMS?
LMMS is a free, open-source digital audio workstation for composing, arranging and mixing music. It has a song editor, a beat and pattern editor, a piano roll, a mixer with effects and more than 15 built-in synthesizers, and it supports VST2, LADSPA, LV2 and SoundFont2 plugins plus MIDI import and export.
Third-party open-source projects. We are not affiliated with their authors; repositories are provided as-is by their maintainers. Review each project's license, code and security before installing. See our Disclaimer.
Pros: what LMMS does well
- Complete music studio at no cost
- Piano roll, beat editor and mixer included
- Works with common plugin formats
Cons: where it falls short
- Takes time to learn music production
- Not aimed at recording live audio
Who LMMS is for
Beginners and hobbyists who want to write and mix their own music for free.
Who can skip it
Professionals who rely on a commercial studio setup.
LMMS alternatives
Not sold on LMMS? These do a similar job, and each card says what it has in common.
OpenSCAD
Focus: 3d modeling, cad and 3d printing. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.5 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.5Visit
Jellyfin
Focus: media server, streaming and self-hosted. Shares open source and github with LMMS. A web app, not a desktop app. Rated 4.7 (LMMS: 4.4).
Web AppFreeCross-Platform
4.7Visit
Atuin
Focus: shell history, terminal and command line. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.7 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Linux
4.7Visit
btop
Focus: system monitor, terminal and processes. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Adds Offline. Rated 4.7 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Linux
4.7Visit
fd
Focus: file search, command line and developer tool. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Adds Offline. Rated 4.7 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.7Visit
Free alternatives to LMMS
Want to spend nothing? These free picks cover similar ground.
mpv
Focus: video player, media and subtitles. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Adds Offline. Rated 4.7 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.7Visit
MuseScore Studio
Focus: music notation, sheet music and composition. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.7 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.7Visit
restic
Focus: backup, encryption and snapshots. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.7 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.7Visit
BorgBackup
Focus: backup, encryption and deduplication. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.6 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit
Ditto
Focus: clipboard manager, snippets and windows. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.6 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreeWindows
4.6Visit
Etcher
Focus: usb, sd card and disk image. Shares open source and github with LMMS. Rated 4.6 (LMMS: 4.4).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit
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