Ableton Live 12 vs Cubase 15
Specs, price and the Dubspot Score, side by side — with our verdict on which daw to buy.
Ableton Live 12 and Cubase 15 are two of the most-searched DAW rivals for a reason: both are full professional environments that dominate different corners of music-making. Live owns electronic performance and clip workflows; Cubase owns linear composition and MIDI craft. The comparison is less “which is better” than “which job is yours.”
The key difference
Live’s Session View treats music as launchable clips — ideal for jamming, beat sketching, and live sets. Cubase treats music as a linear arrangement with deep MIDI, Expression Maps, and scoring-oriented tools. Live is fastest from idea to loop; Cubase is strongest from sketch to fully arranged, mixed composition.
Choose Live 12 if clips, electronic production, live performance, or Max for Live sound design define your process.
Choose Cubase 15 if you write songs or scores, need deep MIDI/Expression Maps, and prefer a linear arrangement DAW without a subscription.
Which should you buy?
Live 12 wins for electronic production and performance. Cubase 15 wins for composers, songwriters, and anyone living in traditional arrangement and MIDI detail. Score both highly; pick the workflow you will use every day.
Specs compared
| Ableton Live 12 | Cubase 15 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | — | $99–$580 |
| Dubspot Score | 9.2 | 8.8 |
| Formats | VST2, VST3, Audio Unit v2 (AU), Audio Unit v3 (AUv3) | VST3, standalone, macOS, Windows |
| Editions | Three: Intro, Standard, Suite | Pro, Artist, Elements (plus AI/LE OEM tiers) |
| Plugin format support | VST2, VST3, and Audio Unit v2 and v3 | — |
| Audio & MIDI tracks | Intro: 16; Standard & Suite: Unlimited | — |
| Scenes | Intro: 16; Standard & Suite: Unlimited | — |
| Software instruments | Intro: 8; Standard: 12; Suite: 21 | — |
| Audio effects | Intro: 27; Standard: 36; Suite: 59 | — |
| Sound library size | Intro: 5+ GB; Standard: 38+ GB; Suite: 71+ GB | — |
| Max for Live | Included in Suite edition only | — |
| License | — | Perpetual download license (no subscription) |
| Pro street price | — | About $579.99 USD full version |
| Key 15 features | — | Melodic Pattern Sequencer, AI-powered stem separation, Expression Maps updates, Omnivocal beta improvements |
| System | — | Windows 10 22H2+ / Windows 11 24H2+; macOS Sonoma / Sequoia / Tahoe |
| RAM / storage | — | 8 GB RAM minimum; ~84 GB free storage recommended |
| Plugin support | — | VST3 instruments and effects (plus Steinberg ecosystem) |
Ableton Live 12 vs Cubase 15: FAQ
Is Cubase or Ableton better for beginners?
It depends on genre. Electronic beginners often start faster in Live’s Session View. Songwriters and classical/media composers often feel more at home in Cubase’s linear timeline and MIDI tools.
Which DAW is better for live performance?
Ableton Live 12 is the industry standard for clip-based live performance. Cubase can be used live but is not designed around that workflow.
Do Cubase and Live use subscriptions?
No. Both sell perpetual licenses (Live in Intro/Standard/Suite tiers; Cubase in Elements/Artist/Pro). Major upgrades are optional paid updates, not monthly fees.
See the full plugin database for more comparisons.