Freesound
A community library of half a million raw sound effects — the internet's attic of audio, free to dig through.
Huge community database of sound effects and samples under Creative Commons licenses. Free with per-file license rules.
- Pricing
- Free; each sound has its own Creative Commons license
- Platforms
- Web
- Category
- Audio & Music
- Last reviewed
- September 21, 2026
What is Freesound?
Freesound is a collaborative database of over half a million audio recordings: field recordings, foley, UI beeps, crowds, nature, weird experiments and raw samples — uploaded by a community of recordists and sound designers over twenty years. Where the YouTube Audio Library is curated and safe, Freesound is vast and raw: you will find a 40-second recording of a specific coffee machine, thunderstorms in Lisbon, and vintage synth one-shots that exist nowhere else.
The critical skill is reading licenses, which vary per file. CC0 (public domain) needs nothing — use it anywhere, monetize freely. CC-BY requires a credit line in your description. CC-BY-NC (non-commercial) should be avoided in monetized videos. The site labels every sound clearly and lets you filter by license, so the safe workflow takes seconds: search, filter to CC0 + CC-BY, download, credit when needed.
Quality varies wildly — preview everything and expect to trim and process recordings in Audacity. But for distinctive sound design that doesn't sound like every other channel's stock library, Freesound has no free competitor at its scale.
Key features
- 500,000+ community sound recordings and samples
- Per-file Creative Commons licensing, clearly labeled
- License filters (CC0, attribution, etc.) for safe searching
- Previews, download in original formats
- Community ratings, tags and collections
- API for automated access
Free plan & limits
Free to use within each file's license: CC0 needs nothing, CC-BY needs a credit, CC-BY-NC excludes monetized/commercial use. Always check the license line on the sound's page.
Who is it best for?
Sound design, distinctive SFX, ambience and samples — creators who want audio that doesn't sound like stock.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use Freesound audio in monetized videos?
Yes, if you respect the file's license: use CC0 freely, CC-BY with a description credit, and avoid CC-BY-NC for monetized content.
How do I credit properly?
Each CC-BY sound's page shows the required attribution (author, title, license link). Paste it in your video description — that satisfies the license.
Are the sounds high quality?
Mixed — many are professional field recordings, some are amateur. Always preview, and expect light cleanup (trim, normalize, EQ) in an editor like Audacity.