Audacity

Audacity is a free, open-source, multi-track audio editor and recorder available for Windows, macOS, and Linux. It is used for recording live audio, capturing computer playback, converting tapes and records into digital formats, and editing a wide range of audio file types including WAV, AIFF, FLAC, MP3, and Ogg Vorbis. Additional formats such as AC3, M4A/AAC, WMA, and Opus are supported through optional libraries.

The software serves musicians, podcasters, audio hobbyists, and anyone needing to quickly edit or export sound. Core capabilities include cutting, copying, splicing, and mixing audio tracks, along with numerous built-in effects for adjusting speed, pitch, and tempo. Users can also extend functionality by writing custom plug-in effects using Nyquist or installing third-party VST3 plugins.

Audacity is developed and maintained by a global community of volunteers and distributed under the GNU General Public License, making its source code freely available for anyone to study, modify, or redistribute. The application is distributed through its official website and MuseHub, which also bundles supplementary creative resources. Recent development has focused on Audacity 4, which introduces an updated interface, customizable workspaces, per-track metering, direct sample editing, and improved productivity tools while retaining the software's original free and open-source model.