AI Music Generators Compared: Songs, Scores and Rights

Most comparisons of AI music generators rank tools by how good the audio sounds. That is the least useful question, because the tool that produces the nicest demo is often not the tool you can actually use. What matters is the work you are trying to finish: a sung pop song, a 25-second instrumental loop, a film score you can edit, or a bank of sound effects.

The question this guide answers is narrower: what kind of audio do you need, what can you export, what does the plan cost, and what rights do you actually receive? Everything below was checked against vendor pages on October 19–20, 2026. Prices move quickly, so verify before you buy.

Start with the job, not the tool

AI music tools split into groups that do genuinely different work. Mixing them up is why so much advice about this category is unreliable.

• Full songs with vocals. Text-to-song models such as Suno and ElevenLabs Music write lyrics, sing them and produce a finished mix. Udio also generates vocals but currently prevents downloads.
• Instrumental background music. Stable Audio, Soundraw and Mubert generate music without vocals, sized for video, podcasts and apps.
• Composition and scoring. AIVA targets arrangers and sketch composers who want MIDI and editable parts rather than a finished master.
• Text-to-song with heavy in-app editing. TemPolor (now marketed as Tunee) offers lyrics, structure and stem tools inside the browser.
• Sound design and effects. Stable Audio generates isolated sound effects, not just music.

A background-music generator is the wrong purchase if you need lyrics. A full-song generator is the wrong purchase if you only need a loop, and its per-track download caps will frustrate you. Decide the category first, then compare within it.

What each tool actually does

Suno

Suno is a text-to-song generator. You describe a style and optionally paste lyrics; it returns a mixed track with vocals. The current pricing page lists three tiers: Free at $0, Pro at $10 per month or $8 per month billed yearly, and Premier at $30 per month or $24 per month billed yearly (checked October 19, 2026).

The limits matter more than the marketing. Free has no monthly song downloads, no commercial rights and access to the free model only. Pro adds 2,500 credits, 20 song downloads a month, commercial rights, two stem-separation types and uploads up to 8 minutes. Premier raises this to 10,000 credits, 60 downloads a month, three stem types, 30-minute uploads and access to Suno Studio with MIDI. Credits do not carry over between billing periods.

ElevenLabs Music

ElevenLabs Music generates completed songs with vocals and supports inpainting, so you can regenerate a section without rebuilding the track. Its music terms were last updated October 9, 2026 and state that commercial rights depend on your subscription tier.

Music runs on ElevenLabs credits shared with its other products. The published plans are Free at $0 (10,000 credits), Starter at $6 a month, Creator at $22 a month, Pro at $99 and up to Business at $990 (checked October 19, 2026). Commercial use begins on Starter, but the music terms permit online and offline commercial use "except film, TV, radio, and Studio Games", which requires an enterprise agreement. That exclusion is the main thing to check before planning a long-form project.

Udio

Udio still generates full songs with vocals, but its own help documentation confirms that audio, video and stem downloads have been disabled on every plan since late October 2025, following its settlement with Universal Music Group. A 48-hour recovery window closed in November 2025.

That changes what the tool is for. You can generate and play tracks inside Udio, but you cannot export a file to edit or distribute. For 2026, treat Udio as a listening and ideation tool rather than a production source. It remains covered here because it is still one of the two names people compare first, and the download limitation is the single most important fact about it.

Stable Audio

Stable Audio 3.0 is Stability AI's instrumental and sound-effects generator. It does not produce intelligible vocals. It makes tracks from one second up to roughly six minutes and supports multi-track generation inside a DAW plugin.

Plans run Free at $0 with 50 credits, Solo at $12, Session at $30, Producer at $90 and Studio at $199 per month, each with a monthly credit allowance (checked October 19, 2026). Stability's knowledge base assigns you rights in the output and states that commercial use is permitted even on the free plan, subject to its terms. Paid tracks keep their licence after cancellation. The company does not publish a per-generation credit cost, so you cannot convert credits into an exact track count.

AIVA

AIVA is aimed at composers rather than songwriters. It generates in over 250 styles and exports MP3 and MIDI, with WAV added on the top plan, so you can take the parts into a DAW and rearrange them.

Its licensing is unusually direct. Free tracks have their copyright held by AIVA and cannot be monetised, with credit required. The Standard plan (€11 per month billed annually, plus VAT) allows monetisation limited to YouTube, Twitch, TikTok and Instagram. The Pro plan (€33 per month billed annually, plus VAT) gives you the copyright and unlimited monetisation, with 300 downloads a month and high-quality WAV (checked October 19, 2026).

Soundraw

Soundraw generates royalty-free instrumentals for creators. Its pricing page lists Creator at $5.99 per month with unlimited MP3 downloads, Artist Starter at $10.49, Artist Pro at $12.59 (adds WAV and stems), and Artist Unlimited at $17.49 with unlimited downloads in every format. Enterprise is quoted on request. All paid plans permit commercial use and distribution with no download cap on Creator and Artist Unlimited (checked October 19, 2026).

Mubert

Mubert produces continuous instrumental music and emphasises long tracks and API access. These are monthly figures with an annual discount shown alongside. The pricing page lists a free Ambassador plan with 25 tracks a month, fixed duration, MP3 and five downloads, with no commercial use. Creator at $14 per month (or $11.69 billed annually) is still labelled non-commercial. Pro at $39 per month (or $32.49 billed annually) is the entry point for commercial use, and Business at $199 per month adds API-scale generation (checked October 19, 2026).

Mubert's own disclaimer is worth reading: tracks cannot be sold, published to streaming services, registered with Content ID, or redistributed as standalone music. That rules Mubert out for anyone planning to distribute a track as a release.

TemPolor (now Tunee)

TemPolor is a browser-based generator with lyrics, structure and stem tools in one interface, and is now branded Tunee. It advertises custom scoring, a MIDI arranger, a music extender and a stem splitter.

Public plan prices are not reliably published on the page a visitor sees first: pricing was not verified. What is documented is the workflow claim: tracks registered to a YouTube channel stay claim-free after cancellation, while future uploads stop being cleared unless you resubscribe. It also notes that purely AI-generated music does not qualify for US copyright protection unless you contribute substantial human creativity.

Mureka

Mureka is a Suno-style song generator positioning itself on commercial freedom. Its subscription page advertises full commercial rights and unlimited downloads on paid plans, and its top tier adds 12-stem splitting, MIDI and WAV exports and a studio editor.

Feature claims are stated by the vendor, and the exact per-plan prices are rendered client-side and were not verified from the pricing page. Treat Mureka as a fast-moving option to check directly rather than one to budget from a summary.

Comparison table

Facts below reflect vendor pages on October 19–20, 2026. "Not publicly stated" means the provider does not document it clearly.

Product	Category	Vocals	Max duration	Free allowance	Entry paid	Downloads	Stems / MIDI	Commercial use
Suno	Full songs	Yes	Up to 8 min upload on Pro	50 credits/day, no monthly downloads	Pro $10/mo ($8 yearly)	20/mo on Pro, 60 on Premier	2–3 stem types; MIDI on Premier	Pro and up
ElevenLabs Music	Full songs	Yes	Not publicly stated per track	10k shared credits/mo	Starter $6/mo	Governed by shared credits	Inpainting only	From Starter; excludes film/TV/radio/games
Udio	Full songs	Yes	~130 sec per generation	3 songs of 130 sec/day	Standard $10/mo	None since Oct 2025	None available	Prohibited; downloads disabled
Stable Audio	Instrumental, SFX	No	About 6 min	50 credits/mo	Solo $12/mo	Credit-based, no stated cap	Multi-track generation	Yes, every plan
AIVA	Composition	No	Up to 5 min 30 sec	3 downloads/mo, no monetisation	Standard €11/mo annual	15–300/mo by plan	MIDI on all plans	Pro for full rights
Soundraw	Instrumental	No	Not publicly stated	Not publicly stated	Creator $5.99/mo	Unlimited MP3 on Creator	Stems on Artist Pro+	Yes, paid plans
Mubert	Instrumental, API	No	Up to 25 min	5 downloads/mo, non-commercial	Creator $14/mo (non-commercial)	Unlimited on paid plans	Edit steps on Creator+	Pro $39/mo and up
TemPolor / Tunee	Songs + editing	Limited	Not publicly stated	Trial credits	Pricing not verified	Not publicly stated	Stem splitter, MIDI arranger	Claimed on paid plans
Mureka	Full songs	Yes	Not publicly stated	Free trial	Vendor-stated, not verified	Vendor states unlimited	12 stems, MIDI on top tier	Vendor states full rights

What you can export, and what that costs

The cheapest subscription is rarely the cheapest usable output. Three examples make the point.

Suno Pro costs $10 a month and includes 20 song downloads. If every generation produced something you would publish, that is roughly $0.50 per exported song. In practice many attempts are unusable, so the real figure is higher, and the monthly download cap is the binding limit. The assumption here is that you use all 20 downloads; if you use five, the cost is $2 each.

Stable Audio Solo costs $12 a month for 660 credits. Stability states this is about 165 full-mix generations up to six minutes, with no published download cap, which works out near $0.07 per generation. That is only defensible because Stability publishes an approximate generation count; most providers do not.

AIVA Pro costs €33 a month billed annually for 300 downloads, about €0.11 per download. AIVA publishes both numbers, so the calculation holds.

Where a provider does not document its download allowance, a cost-per-track figure is not defensible and is left out. That is why no number appears for ElevenLabs Music, TemPolor or Mureka.

Royalty-free is not copyright-free

These two phrases get used as if they mean the same thing. They do not.

Royalty-free describes a licence. You usually pay once and owe no ongoing royalties to the provider, but the work can still be someone's copyright. A royalty-free track can be fully protected and still licensed to you.

Copyright-free is looser. It is often used to mean "no copyright applies", which is a legal claim, not a marketing label. Treat it as unreliable unless the specific licence text supports it.

Neither phrase answers the question that actually matters: what does your plan permit? A platform licence may allow a track in a monetised video while forbidding it on streaming services (Mubert) or excluding games (ElevenLabs self-serve). Read the licence for the plan you are on, not the one on the homepage.

Copyrightability is a separate question

Whether a platform lets you use a track commercially and whether that track can be copyrighted are different issues.

In the United States, the Copyright Office's report Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, Part 2: Copyrightability (January 2025) concludes that AI outputs can be protected only where a human author determined sufficient expressive elements. Prompts alone do not meet that bar. Creative selection, arrangement or modification of the output can. That is a US position; other countries differ, and none of this is legal advice.

The practical consequence: a track you generate from a single prompt and export unchanged may be usable under the platform licence yet not protectable as your copyright. If exclusive ownership matters, plan for meaningful human contribution, or choose a tool such as AIVA Pro whose terms assign you the copyright.

The legal picture in 2026, stated carefully

Music labels first sued Suno and Udio for copyright infringement in June 2024. The current position is mixed, and it is easy to overstate.

• Universal Music Group settled with Udio and licensed its catalogue in October 2025, which is when Udio disabled downloads. Warner Music Group settled with Udio in November 2025.
• Warner Music Group settled with Suno in November 2025 and announced licensed models for 2026, with downloads moved to paid tiers under monthly caps.
• Sony Music and Universal Music Group remain in active litigation against Suno. In September 2026 they filed a new complaint in the US District Court for Massachusetts concerning a newer Suno model.
• Sony Music's case against Udio is unresolved.

A settlement is not a court ruling that AI training is or is not infringement. These outcomes resolved specific disputes; they did not decide the underlying legal question, and further claims against both companies remain open. Verified October 20, 2026.

Frequently asked

What is the difference between royalty-free and copyright-free music?

Royalty-free is a licensing term. It usually means you pay once and owe no ongoing royalties to the provider, but someone can still hold copyright in the work. Copyright-free is looser language and should not be treated as a legal description. Check the specific licence text before you rely on either label.

Can I use AI-generated music commercially?

Only if the platform's current terms allow it and you are on an eligible plan. Suno, ElevenLabs Music, Stable Audio, AIVA, Soundraw, Mubert and Mureka all tie commercial rights to a paid tier. A free plan that lets you generate or preview a track does not necessarily let you publish or monetise it.

Does a paid plan make every use legal?

No. A platform licence covers the platform's own output, not the rest of your project. It does not guarantee the track is non-infringing, that it is eligible for Content ID, or that it is safe for film, television or games. ElevenLabs, for example, excludes film, TV, radio and studio game use from its self-serve plans.

Which AI music generators can create songs with vocals?

Suno and ElevenLabs Music generate full songs with sung vocals and lyrics. Udio can generate vocals but has disabled downloads since October 2025, so its tracks cannot leave the platform. Stable Audio, Soundraw, Mubert and AIVA focus on instrumentals.

Which tools focus on instrumental background music?

Stable Audio, Soundraw, Mubert and AIVA are built around instrumentals and scoring rather than vocal pop songs. Stable Audio and Mubert both document the longest single-track durations in this group.

Can AI-generated music receive copyright protection?

In the United States, only where a human author determined the expressive elements. The Copyright Office states that prompts alone do not supply that control, while creative selection, arrangement or modification can. This is a separate question from whether a platform allows commercial use.

How should I compare AI music generators fairly?

Use the same brief on the tools that claim to do the same job, then compare the exported file rather than the preview. Check the duration, the download allowance, the export format and the licence on the plan you are paying for. A tool that only previews audio is not a substitute for one that lets you export it.

What should I check before monetising a generated track?

Confirm the licence on your exact plan, whether downloads are enabled, whether stems or MIDI are included, whether the provider requires attribution, and whether your intended use such as film, TV or games is excluded. Re-check the terms after any model or plan change.

How to choose, briefly

If you need a sung song you can publish, Suno is the most straightforward option in 2026 because it still allows downloads on paid plans. ElevenLabs Music is the alternative if you value inpainting and can live with its film and game exclusion.

If you need instrumental background music with no download cap, look at Stable Audio for sound design and variable-length pieces, and Soundraw for unlimited MP3 exports at a low entry price.

If you need a score you can edit as MIDI and potentially own, AIVA is the clearest fit, with the caveat that full copyright sits on its Pro plan.

If you only need to generate and listen, Udio still works, but its blocked exports make it unsuitable as a production source.

If you are building an app or a continuous stream, Mubert's API is designed for that, within its no-redistribution rules.

For anything where ownership, film, television or content-ID eligibility matters, the deciding factor is the licence, and that deserves a legal review rather than a product comparison.

A note on how this was produced

This guide was written from vendor documentation, pricing pages, licence terms, the US Copyright Office report, and reporting on the label litigation, all checked on October 19–20, 2026. No paid subscriptions were purchased and no first-hand audio tests were run, so no audio-quality or speed claims appear here. Any attribute that could not be confirmed from an official source is marked as not verified in the table rather than estimated.

To check an output yourself, run the same brief through the tools that claim to do the same job, then compare the exported files for duration, artefacts in the fade and tail, and how much editing they still need. Preview playback is not evidence; the file you can download is.

For related reading, see our vocal-removal guide for splitting already-recorded tracks into stems, or browse the AI tools directory for other audio and video tools.