14 Best Podcast Editing Software Options In 2026 (Free & Paid)

You have recorded your first episode (or your fiftieth) and now you are watching an enormous, messy audio file questioning what to edit it with.

The excellent news is there has by no means been extra selection. The unhealthy information is there has by no means been extra selection!

Some editors appear to be a recording studio from the 90s. Others allow you to delete a phrase from a transcript and it disappears from the audio. A couple of will clear up your sound, stage your voices, and spit out a completed episode with out you touching a single waveform.

I’ve cut up this listing up by the way you wish to work, so you possibly can skip straight to the part that matches you. Should you simply need my fast picks, they’re proper under.

Greatest Podcast Modifying Software program: Fast Picks

• Best for newbies: Alitu
• Greatest text-based editor: Descript
• Greatest in the event you file distant interviews: Riverside
• Greatest free possibility (Mac): GarageBand
• Greatest free possibility (Home windows & Linux): Audacity
• Greatest for skilled, story-driven reveals: Hindenburg PRO
• Greatest for Adobe customers: Adobe Audition
• Greatest for video podcasts: DaVinci Resolve
• Greatest “ending” instrument: Auphonic

Podcast Modifying Software program Comparability

Costs as of October 2026. Most corporations low cost annual plans, so I’ve listed these the place they’re the bottom worth.

Best Podcast Modifying Software program

These are constructed for podcasters first. You will not have to be taught what a compressor is, and most of them deal with the audio cleanup for you.

Alitu

Alitu is the instrument I level folks to once they inform me modifying is the rationale they have not launched but.

It is a “podcast maker” that runs proper in your browser, so there’s nothing to put in. You add your recording and Alitu cleans it up mechanically: background noise elimination, leveling, and the blending that makes your voice sound constant from begin to end.

You then construct the episode such as you’re stacking blocks. Intro music, your important section, an advert spot, your outro. Accomplished!

Here is what’s included:

• Automated noise elimination and audio cleanup
• Textual content-based modifying (delete phrases from the transcript to chop them from the audio)
• A library of royalty-free music and jingles
• Recording for solo reveals and distant calls, together with 1080p video
• Transcripts in 17 languages
• Free internet hosting as much as 1,000 downloads a month, plus a free podcast web site
• One-click publishing to Apple Podcasts

Should you’d relatively not edit in any respect, Alitu additionally has a done-for-you modifying service the place their workforce edits your episodes with a 4-day turnaround.

Worth: $38/month, or $32/month billed yearly. Accomplished-for-you modifying is $295/month (first month $1).

There is a 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back assure after that, so enroll right here and provides it a attempt!

Descript

Descript modified how lots of people edit podcasts. As a substitute of searching via a waveform, you edit a transcript like a Google Doc.

Delete a sentence and it is gone from the audio (and the video). Transfer a paragraph and the audio strikes with it. For interview reveals the place you are largely chopping tangents and “ums,” this can be a enormous time saver.

Edit Your Podcast Like A Doc

A couple of options I might level out:

• Filler phrase elimination: removes “um,” “uh,” and repeated phrases throughout an entire episode in a single click on
• Studio Sound: their AI voice enhancement that cuts room echo and background noise
• Underlord: an AI assistant that may do tough cuts, write present notes, pull clips, and extra
• Display and distant recording in-built

It additionally does video, so in the event you submit full episodes on YouTube it may be your one editor for every thing.

The trade-off is that Descript is much less exact than a standard editor when it’s good to fine-tune music beds or fades. And plans are primarily based on media hours and AI credit, so a weekly two-hour present can push you into the upper tier.

Worth:

• Free: 60 media minutes/month, 720p exports
• Hobbyist: $16/month billed yearly ($24 month-to-month), 10 media hours/month
• Creator: $24/month billed yearly ($35 month-to-month), 30 media hours/month, 4K exports
• Enterprise: $50/month billed yearly ($65 month-to-month)

Strive Descript free right here.

Riverside

Riverside began as a distant recording studio (see our greatest podcast interview software program submit for extra on that facet of it), and its editor has gotten ok to face by itself as an editor.

It information every particular person domestically, so that you get separate high-quality tracks even when somebody’s web drops for a second. Then you possibly can edit proper there utilizing the transcript, with no downloading and re-uploading recordsdata between apps.

Document & Edit In The Identical Place

What stands out:

• Textual content-based modifying on each paid plan
• Magic Audio to scrub up and stage every speaker
• Magic Clips that pull brief, vertical movies for social media
• AI present notes and an AI modifying agent for tough cuts
• Constructed-in podcast internet hosting and publishing

Should you file interviews with distant friends, this retains the entire workflow in a single place.

Worth: Free plan with 2 hours of multitrack recording (watermarked). Professional is $24/month billed yearly ($29 month-to-month). Develop is $34/month billed yearly ($39 month-to-month).

Try Riverside right here.

Async (Previously Podcastle)

Podcastle rebranded as Async, and it is now an AI-heavy creator studio for audio and video.

You may file, edit by transcript, and clear up your audio with their “Magic Mud” enhancement. It additionally has an enormous set of AI extras like text-to-speech voices, auto subtitles, and background elimination for video.

It is a respectable price range various to Descript, although the free plan is fairly restricted (1 hour of uploads, 720p exports, and 10 lifetime AI credit).

Worth: Free plan out there. Paid plans begin round $11.99/month they usually promote as much as 40% off with yearly billing.

Free Podcast Modifying Software program

Should you’re simply getting began (or on a decent price range), you possibly can edit a great-sounding podcast totally free. These two have been round without end for a motive.

GarageBand

GarageBand is free on each Mac, and it is what I stroll via in my how you can begin a podcast tutorial.

You get separate tracks to your voice, friends, music, and advert spots. You may fade issues out and in, transfer them round, and add plug-ins like compression and EQ to every monitor.

My largest tip is to arrange a template as soon as. Put your intro and outro music in place, add your vocal results, and reserve it. Then each new episode begins with “File > Save As” and also you’re midway performed.

There is no transcript modifying and no AI cleanup, so pair it with Auphonic or Adobe Podcast in case your recordings need assistance.

Worth: Free (Mac, iPhone, and iPad solely).

Audacity

Audacity is the go-to free editor for Home windows and Linux (it really works on Mac too). It is open supply and has been downloaded over 100 million instances.

Audacity 4 got here out with a a lot cleaner interface than the outdated model, plus workspaces so you possibly can disguise the instruments you do not use. Should you tried it years in the past and hated the way it appeared, it is price one other look.

It handles all of the fundamentals: chopping, multitrack modifying, noise discount, compression, normalization, and exporting to MP3. There’s an enormous library of free plug-ins, and you’ll again up tasks to audio.com to share with a co-host or editor.

The educational curve is a bit steeper than GarageBand, however there are literally thousands of tutorials on YouTube for just about each job.

Worth: Free (Mac, Home windows, and Linux).

Skilled Podcast Modifying Software program

These are conventional DAWs (digital audio workstations). They take longer to be taught, however you may have full management over each element of your sound.

Adobe Audition

Adobe Audition is likely one of the hottest professional editors for podcasts. It is constructed for spoken audio as a lot as music, which makes it an awesome match.

It has two modes. The waveform editor is for detailed work on a single file (like cleansing up a loud recording), and the multitrack editor is the place you construct your episode with music, friends, and advertisements.

Some options podcasters love:

• Important Sound panel: tag a clip as “Dialogue” and get easy sliders for loudness, readability, and noise
• Spectral frequency show: “see” and take away appears like a cough or a cellphone buzz
• Match Loudness: hit podcast loudness requirements in a number of clicks
• Remix: mechanically stretch or shorten a music monitor to suit your intro

Should you already pay for Inventive Cloud, you in all probability have it. And it really works properly with Premiere Professional in the event you additionally edit video episodes.

Worth: $22.99/month on an annual plan, or included with Inventive Cloud Professional.

Strive Adobe Audition right here.

Hindenburg PRO

Hindenburg was made for radio journalists, and it reveals. It is constructed across the spoken phrase, not music, which makes it probably the most podcast-friendly editors on the market.

Whenever you import audio, it mechanically units ranges for you. The clipboard characteristic permits you to hold interview clips, atmosphere, and music organized off to the facet till you want them. And it exports at broadcast-ready loudness, so that you needn’t mess with LUFS settings.

Hindenburg PRO Clipboard & Transcript Modifying

Newer variations added transcription in 99 languages (together with offline transcription) and transcript-based modifying, which is nice for narrative reveals the place you are working from a script.

Should you make story-driven or documentary-style podcasts, that is the one I might take a look at first.

Worth: Subscription plans begin at about $12/month (Normal, Plus, and Premium tiers, with extra transcription hours on the upper plans). There is a free trial.

REAPER

REAPER is a full skilled DAW that prices a fraction of the massive names. It is quick, light-weight, and runs on just about any pc.

It might probably do every thing Audition or Professional Instruments can do, and a variety of skilled podcast editors use it daily. Out of the field it is not arrange for podcasting, however you possibly can customise nearly every thing, and there are free podcast templates and scripts made by the group.

REAPER With Ripple Modifying Turned On

One characteristic to activate instantly is ripple modifying. Whenever you lower a piece, every thing after it slides over to shut the hole, which is precisely what you need when modifying conversations.

Worth: $60 for a private license (or companies making beneath $20,000/12 months), $225 business. The 60-day trial is absolutely practical.

Logic Professional

Logic Professional is GarageBand’s huge brother. Should you’ve outgrown GarageBand, it is the pure subsequent step as a result of the structure will really feel acquainted and it opens your GarageBand tasks.

You get significantly better plug-ins, extra exact modifying, and higher mixing instruments. It is constructed primarily for music, so there’s some stuff you may by no means contact, however the vocal processing is great.

Logic Professional Podcast Session

Worth: $199.99 one-time, or as a part of Apple’s Creator Studio subscription ($12.99/month or $129/12 months) with a 30-day free trial. Mac solely.

DaVinci Resolve

An increasing number of podcasts are video podcasts now, particularly on YouTube. If that is you, DaVinci Resolve is price a glance as a result of the free model is extremely succesful.

It is often known as a video editor, nevertheless it has a full audio modifying suite in-built referred to as Fairlight. That features AI Voice Isolation (removes background noise), a Dialogue Leveler, and text-based modifying so you possibly can lower by transcript.

DaVinci Resolve Fairlight Audio Web page

It is a variety of software program, and it wants a reasonably highly effective pc. However if you would like one program for each your video and audio and not using a subscription, that is it.

Worth: Free. DaVinci Resolve Studio (with extra AI options) is $295 one-time.

Audio Cleanup & Ending Instruments

These aren’t full editors, however I might suggest at the least one in every of them it doesn’t matter what you edit with. They repair issues which might be laborious (or inconceivable) to repair by hand.

Auphonic

Auphonic is the final step in my modifying course of. You add your completed episode and it handles leveling, loudness normalization (LUFS), filtering, and noise discount mechanically.

Auphonic Manufacturing Settings

It is particularly good at fixing quantity variations between hosts. If one particular person is loud and the opposite is quiet, Auphonic evens them out with out you driving the faders.

It might probably additionally add your ID3 tags, generate transcripts and present notes, and publish straight to your host.

Worth: 2 hours of audio per 30 days free. Paid plans are primarily based on hours processed, with month-to-month credit or one-time credit that by no means expire.

Adobe Podcast (Improve Speech)

Adobe Podcast has a instrument referred to as Improve Speech that is sort of magic. Add a recording made on a laptop computer mic in an echoey kitchen, and it comes again sounding prefer it was recorded in a studio.

It is not good. Pushed too laborious it could possibly sound somewhat robotic, so I might reserve it for rescuing unhealthy recordings. Adobe Podcast additionally has a browser-based studio for recording and modifying by transcript.

Worth: Free plan handles recordsdata as much as half-hour and 1 hour of enhancement per day. Premium (included with Adobe Firefly Professional) raises that to 2-hour recordsdata and 4 hours a day, provides video recordsdata, and allows you to alter the energy.

iZotope RX

iZotope RX is what audio engineers use to repair issues different instruments cannot. Mouth clicks, plosives, hum, clipping, reverb, a canine barking within the background. RX can normally repair it.

RX 12 added higher Dialogue Isolate and Breath Management modules. It really works as a standalone app and as plug-ins inside Audition, REAPER, Logic, and most different editors.

Worth: RX 12 Parts is $99, Normal is $399, and Superior is $1,399. Most podcasters shall be superb with Parts, and it goes on sale usually.

How To Select Podcast Modifying Software program

There is not one “greatest” editor for everybody. Here is how I might give it some thought:

How a lot time do you wish to spend modifying? If the reply is “as little as potential,” go together with Alitu, Descript, or Riverside. They do a variety of the be just right for you.

Do you edit by ear or by studying? Should you largely lower tangents and errors in conversations, text-based modifying (Descript, Riverside, Alitu, Hindenburg) is way sooner. Should you’re mixing music, sound results, and plenty of layers, a standard editor offers you extra management.

Is your present audio-only or video? For video podcasts, take a look at Descript, Riverside, or DaVinci Resolve. GarageBand, Audacity, and Audition are audio solely.

What’s your price range? You can also make an awesome podcast with GarageBand or Audacity plus Auphonic’s free plan. As soon as modifying begins consuming up your weekends, that is when a paid instrument pays for itself.

Which pc do you utilize? GarageBand and Logic are Mac solely. Every part else on this listing works on Home windows too (or proper in your browser).

Widespread Podcast Modifying Questions

What’s the greatest free podcast modifying software program?

GarageBand when you have a Mac, and Audacity in the event you’re on Home windows or Linux. DaVinci Resolve can be free and is the very best free selection for video podcasts.

What’s the best podcast modifying software program for newbies?

Alitu. It handles audio cleanup mechanically and also you construct episodes by dragging segments into place. Descript is a detailed second if you would like to edit utilizing a transcript.

What modifying software program do most podcasters use?

There is no single reply, however Audacity, GarageBand, Adobe Audition, and Descript are a number of the most generally used. {Many professional} editors use REAPER or Professional Instruments.

Can AI edit my podcast for me?

Partly. Instruments like Descript, Riverside, and Alitu can take away filler phrases, clear up audio, lower silences, and make a tough lower. You may nonetheless wish to pay attention via earlier than publishing, since AI would not know which tangent was the humorous one.

Do I want separate software program for recording and modifying?

Not anymore. Many of the instruments above can file too. Try our greatest podcast recording software program submit if recording is your important concern, and our greatest podcast interview software program submit for distant friends.

How lengthy does it take to edit a podcast?

It depends upon your present, however a standard rule of thumb is 2 to 4 hours of modifying per hour of audio with a standard editor. Textual content-based and AI instruments can lower that manner down.

Ultimate Suggestions

Should you’re model new and wish to get your first episode out this week, begin with Alitu. Should you’d relatively edit by transcript otherwise you additionally want video, go together with Descript.

In order for you free, use GarageBand on a Mac or Audacity on a PC, and run your closing file via Auphonic.

And in the event you’re able to go professional, Adobe Audition, Hindenburg, and REAPER will all serve you effectively for years.

One of the best editor is the one you may really open each week, so do not overthink it. Choose one, edit an episode, and change later if it is not working for you.

As soon as your episode is edited, you may want someplace to place it. Try our listing of the very best podcast internet hosting platforms subsequent, and in case your audio nonetheless is not the place you need it, it may be time to improve your podcast microphone.