When it comes to audio editing tools, the good news for podcasters is that there are plenty of options to choose from. The downside to the amount of choice, though, is that picking the best one for your podcasting needs takes a lot of research.
Two popular software programs for recording and editing podcasts are Audacity and Camtasia.
If you’re struggling to choose between Camtasia and Audacity, keep reading this article for a comparison of the two editing tools and a conclusion regarding which one you should rely on for producing your podcasts from now on.
What Is Audacity?
Audacity is one of the most popular audio recording software, partly because it’s one of the only software for recording audio that is free to use, works across different platforms, and still provides quality audio recording.
Using Audacity, you can record audio up to 32-bit or 384kHz. Dithering is built into the recording software to reduce distortion, providing clear and high-quality audio despite the fact that Audacity is free to download.
When it comes to editing your recorded audio, Audacity is fairly no-frills, but that doesn’t mean you don’t get any options with which to elevate the quality and appeal of your audio.
For example, your free download of Audacity includes audio editing functions such as the ability to trim your recording (removing parts you don’t want included in the published version) and refine pieces of dialogue to make them clearer and easier to follow.
You can even add sound effects at appropriate moments for emphasis.
You can use Audacity across a variety of platforms, meaning that it’s widely compatible and allows you to be flexible with your recording.
Because Audacity is compatible with macOS, Windows, and Linux and isn’t restrictive in terms of what kinds of system builds it can work with, you basically don’t need to worry about your ability to use Audacity unless your PC was built more than about 15 years ago.
Using Audacity is a simple and beginner-friendly process. To start basic recording, just connect your microphone (if you’re just using your PC’s built-in microphone, you can skip this step) and press the record button.
If you have already recorded your audio and just want to use Audacity for editing, open the file and drag it into the main window of the audio editor user interface.
Editing with Audacity is also quite simple because all the editing options and effects are easily accessible and can be dragged into your audio at the click of a button.
The only thing to bear in mind while you’re editing is that the majority of Audacity’s edits are destructive. That means that once you’ve edited or trimmed your audio, you can’t undo what you have done unless you use the ‘undo’ function.
Basically, if you make a change and decide you want to undo it after you’ve done more work, you’ll need to get rid of all the edits you’ve done in the meantime, which can be frustrating and time-consuming.
What Is Camtasia?
Camtasia by TechSmith may be equally as popular as Audacity, but it’s actually quite different in terms of what the software provides.
While Camtasia does record audio, it’s primarily a video editor. This makes it an ideal choice for podcasters who like to do video recording instead of (or in addition to) an audio-only version.
Camtasia is a great tool to do some pretty advanced video editing, ranging from basic color adjustments to green screen editing and interactive features.
Moreover, Camtasia provides a screen capture function and lets you add animations to the existing video footage, helping you to produce a truly professional-looking video.
For the purposes of recording podcasts, Camtasia has a cool feature that allows you to separate your audio from the video.
So, if you’re planning to upload your podcast to an audio streaming platform such as Spotify or Apple Podcasts (see also ‘Overcast Vs Apple Podcast‘) but still want the video version to upload to other platforms, you can do it with Camtasia.
When it comes to editing any audio that you’ve separated from the video, Camtasia provides some basic options.
You can cut parts out or trim the audio file, and do noise reduction if you have any background noise you’d like to remove, you can do that, too. You can also level the volume, adjust the speed, and include fades to make for a more pleasant listening experience.
Unlike Audacity, Camtasia is not free to use. While you can take advantage of a 7-day free trial, which is great, you’ll need to pay over $200 for a yearly subscription, although your subscription will renew for a more affordable $50 at the end of the first year.
Camtasia Vs Audacity
Audacity and Camtasia both have their benefits, but it should be easy for you to choose the one that suits you best because they both have such different features.
Firstly, if you’re only interested in recording and editing audio and are looking for a budget-friendly option, then it’s a no-brainer: you should choose Audacity because it’s free to use and focuses entirely on audio recording and editing.
On the other hand, if you need to record and edit video versions of your podcast, you will need to invest in Camtasia or a similar software because you can’t edit videos in Audacity.
You can, however, separate your video from your audio, so you can still edit and publish audio-only versions of anything you record with Camtasia.
With that being said, bear in mind that Camtasia is not the most affordable editing software out there, and if editing for quality and adding things like sound effects really matters to you, it might be worth using Audacity alongside Camtasia to touch up your separated audio files further.
Final Thoughts On Audio Recording Editing Tools
We hope that we have helped you to choose between Audacity and Camtasia.
It can be tough choosing between two highly-rated forms of editing software, but the fact that Camtasia can work with video while Audacity is only an audio editor software should make the decision easier for you.
You should also bear in mind the significant difference in price points as well as the limitations of Camtasia’s audio editing features when making your choice.
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