Best for
Best for podcasters and teams recording remote interviews in studio quality.
- Freelancers
- Small and mid-sized
- Enterprise
AI Sound & Audio Comparison
Riverside vs. SpectraLayers
At a glance
At a glance
Best for
Best for post-production and music editors who need to pull a finished recording apart layer by layer.
- Small and mid-sized
- Enterprise
Cataleo does not name a winner. Both statements come from the vendors themselves.
Full Comparison
| Criterion | Riverside | SpectraLayers |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | lower value Free tier; Pro from $24 / month The $24 Pro tier is billed annually ($29 monthly). Grow, Webinar and Business tiers above. | From $89.99 one-time A perpetual licence rather than a subscription. SpectraLayers Elements 13 is $89.99 (EUR 89.99) and SpectraLayers Pro 13 $359.99 (EUR 359) in Steinberg's own shop; moving up from an earlier version costs less. |
| Free trial | Free tier, 2 hours of multitrack recording | 60-day trial with all features and no restrictions |
| Commercial use | Yes | Yes |
| Output | Recorded audio and video up to 4K, transcripts, clips | Repaired, unmixed and separated audio |
| Languages | Not stated | Program in English, German, French, Spanish, Japanese and Chinese; documentation in English |
| Hosting | Not stated | Desktop application for 64-bit Windows 10 and 11 and for macOS Sonoma, Sequoia and Tahoe |
| Made in | Not stated | Germany, Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH in Hamburg |
| What it does | Records remote audio and video locally in high quality, then edits it with AI | Spectral editing: unmixing a recording into layers and repairing them |
| Noise removal and repair | Yes, Magic Audio removes background noise | Yes, DeNoise, DeHum, DeClick, Voice Denoise, Voice DeReverb and DePlosive, plus Unmix Noisy Speech and Unmix Crowd Noise |
| Mastering and loudness | Magic Audio evens out loudness and volume levels and adjusts frequency bands as part of its one-click clean-up | Limited: Normalize and Gain in every edition, plus Ambience Match, Reverb Match and EQ Match in Pro |
| Where it runs | In the browser: records each participant locally for quality | Standalone desktop editor, plus an ARA plugin for hosts including Cubase, Nuendo, Pro Tools, Logic Pro and Reaper, or as an external editor |
| Also included | Text-based AI editor, unlimited transcription, Magic Clips and show notes, live streaming and podcast hosting | Unmix modules for song, drums, instrument, chorus, soundtrack, multiple voices, components, levels, mid/side and transcription; lasso, magic wand, frequency, harmonics and transient selection; clone stamp and transfer tools; VST3 effects and batch processing in Pro |
| API | Yes, on the Business tier | No developer API is documented; automation is batch processing, and that is in Pro only |
| Deployment | more entries Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based | On-premise |
| Support | more entries Email helpdesk, Chat, Chat, 24/7 | Community forum |
| Onboarding | more entries Documentation and knowledge base, Guided onboarding | Documentation and knowledge base |
| Company size | more entries Freelancers, Small and mid-sized, Enterprise | Small and mid-sized, Enterprise |
| Integrations | more entries YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify for Creators, HubSpot, Salesforce, Marketo, Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro | Cubase, Nuendo, Pro Tools, Logic Pro, Reaper |
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Row where the values differ The small markers point at the lower number, the longer list or the stated feature. They describe the data, they are not a verdict.
The short version
Key Differences
- Starting price Riverside Free tier; Pro from $24 / month SpectraLayers From $89.99 one-time
- Free trial Riverside Free tier, 2 hours of multitrack recording SpectraLayers 60-day trial with all features and no restrictions
- Deployment Riverside Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based SpectraLayers On-premise
- Company size Riverside Freelancers, Small and mid-sized, Enterprise SpectraLayers Small and mid-sized, Enterprise
- Support Riverside Email helpdesk, Chat, Chat, 24/7 SpectraLayers Community forum
Every line is one datapoint from the table above, picked automatically. Nothing here is written text.
The trade-offs
Strengths and Limitations
Riverside
Strengths
- Records each guest locally for high-quality audio and video
- AI editor, transcription and Magic Audio noise removal built in
- Up to 4K video and 48 kHz audio on paid tiers
Limitations
- Free tier includes only a one-time 2 hours of multitrack recording
- API access only on the Business tier
SpectraLayers
Strengths
- Every unmix and restoration module is in Pro, from song parts to crowd noise
- Runs as an ARA plugin inside a DAW as well as standalone
- Three editions, so the entry level is not the full price
Limitations
- A spectral, layer-based workflow to learn, not a one-tap cleanup
- Go and Elements are held to 2 channels, 96 kHz and 8 undo levels
- Desktop software rather than a service, so it runs over a file
Plans
Pricing
Riverside
- Free $0 2 hours of multitrack recording (one-time), with watermark.
- Pro $24 Per month, billed annually ($29 monthly). Up to 4K, unlimited text-based editing.
- Grow $34 Per month, billed annually ($39 monthly). Adds social scheduling and newsletter.
- Webinar $79 Per month, billed annually ($99 monthly). Adds webinar tools for up to 100 registrants.
- Business Not stated Custom pricing. Unlimited studios, API access and SSO.
SpectraLayers
- SpectraLayers Go Not stated Vocals-only unmix, one VST3 effect slot, 2 channels, up to 96 kHz and 8 undo levels. Steinberg's shop carries no separate price for it.
- SpectraLayers Elements 13 $89.99 One-time, perpetual licence. Unmix of song vocals plus DeNoise, DeHum and DeClick, 2 channels, up to 96 kHz and 8 undo levels. Updating from Elements 9 to 12 costs $34.99.
- SpectraLayers Pro 13 $359.99 One-time, perpetual licence. Every unmix and restoration module, batch processing, up to 8 channels, 384 kHz and 64 undo levels. Upgrading from Elements 9 to 12 costs $289.99.
What users say
Review Scores · opens after launch
Riverside
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.
SpectraLayers
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.
Where this comes from
Where this comes from
Riverside https://riverside.com · no check date recorded yet
SpectraLayers https://www.steinberg.net/spectralayers/ · checked against the official source on 2026-09-11
This table lists factual criteria taken from information the vendors publish themselves. For how we put it together, see the methodology.