Whether you’re a music producer, DJ, mashup artist, or just someone who loves to experiment with sound, having access to clean stems (individual audio elements like vocals, drums, bass, and instruments) from a song can unlock endless creative possibilities extract vocals from song. The good news? You don’t need expensive software or a studio budget to do it. In this post, we’ll show you how to extract stems from any song for free — quickly and easily.
🎼 What Are Stems?
Stems are the isolated parts of a song — like the vocals, drums, bassline, or instrumental backing — that make up the final mix. With stems, you can remix, sample, rearrange, or simply study how a song was constructed.
🚀 Best Free Tools to Extract Stems
Here are some of the most popular free online tools and software that let you separate stems from any audio file:
1. LALAL.AI (Free Tier)
- Website: lalal.ai
- Features: Vocal and instrumental separation, drums, piano, bass, and more.
- Pros: High-quality output, supports many stem types.
- Cons: Free version has limited processing minutes.
2. Moises.ai
- Website: moises.ai
- Features: Separate up to 5 stems: vocals, drums, bass, piano, and others.
- Pros: Includes pitch and tempo control, great for practice/remixes.
- Cons: Free plan limits file size and export formats.
3. Demucs (Open Source)
- GitHub: facebookresearch/demucs
- Features: High-quality stem separation using deep learning.
- Pros: Professional-level results, no usage limits.
- Cons: Requires Python and some setup knowledge.
4. Splitter.ai
- Website: splitter.ai
- Features: Two or five stem options (vocals, drums, bass, piano, etc.)
- Pros: No login required, simple drag-and-drop interface.
- Cons: Slightly lower audio quality compared to paid options.
🎛️ How to Extract Stems (Step-by-Step)
Let’s take Moises.ai as an example — it’s beginner-friendly and works directly in your browser:
- Go to moises.ai.
- Sign up for a free account.
- Upload an audio file (MP3, WAV, etc.).
- Choose the stem separation option you want.
- Let the AI process your track.
- Download your clean stems and start creating!
🔁 What You Can Do With Stems
- 🎙️ Make remixes or mashups
- 🥁 Practice vocals or instruments over the backing track
- 🎹 Learn production techniques by isolating elements
- 🎧 Create acapella or instrumental versions
- 🎬 Use clean stems in content creation or sound design
⚠️ Legal Tip
Extracting stems from copyrighted music is fine for personal or educational use, but if you plan to release or monetize your remix or project, make sure you have the proper rights or licenses. Always respect the original creators!
🎬 Final Thoughts
You don’t need to spend a dime to start working with stems. Whether you’re building your own remix, practicing your DJ transitions, or studying music production, these free tools can give you a pro-level advantage.
Have a favorite free tool or a tip to share? Drop it in the comments!