Plugin comparison
Specs, price and the Dubspot Score, side by side — with our verdict on which daw to buy.
Independent score / workflow fit / buying signal
Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you buy through them, Dubspot may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never affects our scores or what we recommend (read our policy).
Contenders
Steinberg Cubase 16 is a desktop DAW for composing, recording, mixing and scoring, sold as a perpetual license in Pro, Artist and Elements editions.
REAPER by Cockos is a complete digital audio workstation for recording, editing, mixing, and mastering, with a $60 discounted license and full free evaluation.
Editorial analysis
Cubase 16 and REAPER both target serious desktop production, but they sell different philosophies. Cubase is a deep, composition-first DAW with decades of MIDI and scoring tools. REAPER is a lightweight, unlimited, hyper-customizable DAW that undercuts every flagship on price. Producers compare them when they want pro results with or without a big brand ecosystem.
Decisive signal
Cubase is opinionated composition software: Expression Maps, advanced MIDI, Instrument Stacks, the Strum and Stretch tools, and a mature mixer aimed at songwriters and media composers. REAPER is infrastructure: razor edits, track lanes, FX containers, up to 128 channels per track, and a $60 license with no feature gates. Cubase buys you a finished creative environment; REAPER buys you raw capability you configure yourself.
Choose Cubase 16 if
Choose Cubase 16 if composition, MIDI sophistication, and a mature scoring/arrangement workflow matter more than the lowest price.
Open plugin file →Choose REAPER if
Choose REAPER if you want unlimited tracks and pro routing for $60 and you are comfortable building your own templates and tool chain.
Open plugin file →Buying verdict
Cubase 16 is the better out-of-box choice for scoring, traditional composition, and users who want Steinberg’s instrument/effects ecosystem. REAPER is the better value and the better blank canvas for engineers who live in routing, scripts, and custom workflows. Neither is “more professional”: Cubase is more guided, and REAPER is more open.
Technical matrix
| Signal | Cubase 16 | REAPER |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $99.99 to $599.99 | $60 / $225 |
| Dubspot Score | 8.8 | 9.0 |
| Formats | VST3, standalone, macOS, Windows | VST, VST3, AU, CLAP, LV2, standalone, macOS, Windows, Linux |
| Editions | Pro, Artist and Elements, plus Cubase AI and LE bundled with hardware | — |
| License | Perpetual license, no subscription; free 30-day trial | $60 discounted / $225 commercial; DRM-free |
| List prices | Pro $599.99, Artist $299.99, Elements $99.99 | — |
| Tracks | Unlimited in Pro and Artist; limited in Elements | — |
| Instruments and effects | Pro 12 and 98, Artist 12 and 75, Elements 7 and 45 | — |
| New in 16 | Instrument Stacks, Strum and Stretch, piano and guitar stems, Spectral AudioWarp, Ableton Link, 16 sends per track | — |
| System | 64-bit Windows 11 (25H2 or later) or Windows 10 (22H2 or later); macOS 15 Sequoia, 26 Tahoe or 27 Golden Gate; native on Apple silicon | — |
| Processor | 4 or more cores: Intel Core i5 (8th gen), AMD Ryzen 3000 or Windows on Arm; on Mac, Apple silicon or an Intel Core i5 from late 2018 or later | — |
| RAM / storage | 16 GB RAM minimum; 1.5 GB for the core install, 89 GB free with all content | — |
| Plugin support | VST3 instruments and effects | — |
| Type | — | Full multitrack DAW (audio, MIDI, video) |
| Current version | — | 7.x (e.g. 7.77 as of July 2026) |
| Evaluation | — | 60-day full-featured evaluation |
| Updates | — | New v7 license includes free updates through 8.99 |
| Plugin formats | — | VST, VST3, LV2, AU, CLAP, DX, JS |
| Platforms | — | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Notable v7 features | — | Track lanes, swipe comping, FX containers, up to 128 track channels |
Quick reference
Cubase is the stronger default for scoring thanks to Expression Maps, advanced MIDI tools, and a composition-centric design. REAPER can score with third-party tools, but Cubase’s built-in language for orchestral work is deeper.
REAPER is far cheaper: $60 personal license with free updates through the next major version. Cubase Pro 16 lists at $599.99, and each new major version is a paid update (€99 from Pro 15 to Pro 16 at Best Service).
Yes. Cubase is built around VST3 instruments and effects. REAPER supports VST, VST3, AU, CLAP, LV2, and more, which is often broader format support than Cubase.
See the full plugin database for more comparisons.