Best volume mixer for Mac

Is there a volume mixer on Mac?

macOS has one volume control for the output device, in the menu bar, on the keyboard and in Sound settings. It has no built-in slider for each app, so if you want Spotify quieter than a video call, or one noisy app muted, you need a volume mixer app. Some apps have a volume slider of their own, and browsers can mute a tab, but these only control that one app or tab. A volume mixer app puts a slider for every app that plays sound in one place, which is what the apps below do. For a shorter explanation, see per-app volume control on Mac.

The 9 best Mac volume mixers at a glance

1. SoundDial: top pick, best volume mixer overall. Volume 0% to 200%, mute, 10-band equalizer, output per app and call lowering, from macOS 14.2.
2. SoundSource: best for power users. Boost to 400%, Audio Unit effects, system-wide effects and AirPlay per app; paid, macOS 15.
3. FineTune: best free volume mixer. Open source, boost to 4x, equalizer and output per app; macOS 15.
4. Sound Control: best for Audio Units and MIDI control. Per-app volume, mute, balance, output and hotkeys.
5. EQBase: best free system equalizer with a mixer on top. The per-app mixer is a Pro feature.
6. Soundish: best other one-time purchase. Volume to 200%, equalizer and output per app; macOS 14.6.
7. Vitals: best if you also want a Mac system monitor. Volume from 0% to 100% only.
8. Background Music: best open-source mixer for older Macs. macOS 10.13 or later; installs a virtual audio device.
9. KE Volume Mixer: best minimal free mixer. Can only turn apps down; preview release.

Mac volume mixers compared

App	Volume and extras	Price (vendor figures, checked 12 November 2026)	Try before buying	macOS	How it installs
SoundDial (top pick)	0% to 200% per app with a soft limiter, mute, 10-band equalizer per app, left/right balance, output per app, call lowering, profiles	€14.99 one-time purchase, one-time on the Mac App Store, no subscription, no in-app purchases	no free trial; refunds go through Apple	macOS 14.2 or later	Sandboxed Mac App Store app; does not install a virtual audio driver
SoundSource	Up to 400%, mute, 10-band equalizer per app and system-wide, Audio Units, output per app, AirPlay per app, Quick Configs. Call lowering: not stated	USD 49 on Rogue Amoeba's store; USD 25 upgrade from version 4 or 5	Trial; noise is laid over the audio after 20 minutes until you relaunch	15	Installs the ARK audio plug-in; administrator password
FineTune	Boost 2x, 3x or 4x, mute, 10-band equalizer per app, output per app, several outputs at once, level meters, hotkeys	Free, open source (GPL v3)	Free	15.0	Drag-install; audio driver not mentioned; Screen & System Audio Recording permission
Sound Control	Volume (range not stated), mute, balance, output per app, Audio Units (10 or 31-band equalizer), hotkeys, MIDI	Direct: price shown only at checkout. Mac App Store (US): free, in-app USD 1.99 a month, USD 14.99 a year or USD 29.99 once	Trial download (direct)	14.6 direct; 15.6 on the Mac App Store	System extension on macOS 14 and earlier (Recovery mode and restart)
EQBase	Pro App Mixer: up to 200%, mute, 10-band equalizer per app, output per app, call lowering. Free tier: system-wide equalizer, recording	Free tier; Pro USD 4.99 a month, USD 39.99 a year or USD 79.99 lifetime (eqbase.app)	Free tier, no time limit	14.4	Drag to Applications; one System Audio permission; two optional features install a user-space audio driver
Soundish	0% to 200%, mute, 10-band equalizer per app, output per app, profiles, hotkeys. Call lowering: planned	USD 14.99 once (appish.app)	7-day trial, email needed	14.6	Does not install an audio driver (since version 1.5); System Audio Recording permission
Vitals	0% to 100% and mute; the vendor states no boost, no equalizer, no output per app. Also a system monitor	USD 12 for a year of updates, or USD 19 lifetime at a launch price that rises to USD 49 (vitalsmac.com)	3-day trial	15	Uses macOS's own audio system; macOS audio capture permission
Background Music	Volume per app, mute, boost above the maximum, pauses music players, records system audio	Free, open source (GPLv2 or later)	Free	10.13	.pkg installer with a virtual audio device; microphone permission
KE Volume Mixer	Turn-down only, mute, live meters; plays to the default output	Free, open source (MIT), 0.1.2 Preview	Free	14.4	Drag-install; not notarized; Screen & System Audio Recording permission

1. SoundDial: top pick, the best volume mixer for Mac

SoundDial lives in the menu bar and lists every app that plays sound. For each one you get a volume slider from 0% to 200% (amber above 100%, with a soft limiter), a mute button, a 10-band equalizer with 11 presets, left/right balance and an output device of its own. Helper processes of Chrome, Electron and WebKit apps are grouped under their app, and quiet apps fold into a "Not playing" row.

What sets it apart is how much is automatic. During a call in Zoom, Teams, FaceTime, Discord, Slack, Webex or a listed browser, other apps drop to 30% by default and come back afterwards. Profiles save a whole mix. Global hotkeys, six Shortcuts actions and sounddial:// links cover automation. The app is sandboxed, does not install a virtual audio driver, comes in 34 languages and costs €14.99 one-time purchase on the Mac App Store, with no subscription and no in-app purchases. Trial: no free trial; refunds go through Apple. More in SoundDial facts.

Limits, plainly. The equalizer is per app, not system-wide. Audio is stereo only, SoundDial does not record, it cannot load Audio Unit plug-ins, and it controls an app as a whole, not single browser tabs. Profiles do not save the output device.

2. SoundSource: best for power users

SoundSource by Rogue Amoeba is the most feature-rich mixer here, per the vendor. Each app gets volume up to 400% (Volume Overdrive), mute with a timed option, a 10-band equalizer and Audio Unit effects; the same effects can be applied to all system audio. It also documents Output Groups, AirPlay per app, Headphone EQ, Quick Configs and Shortcuts actions. It costs USD 49 on Rogue Amoeba's own store (checked 12 November 2026), needs macOS 15 and installs the ARK audio plug-in with your administrator password. The trial lays noise over the audio after 20 minutes until you relaunch. Details: SoundDial vs SoundSource.

3. FineTune: best free volume mixer

FineTune is a free, open-source (GPL v3) menu-bar mixer on GitHub and Homebrew. It lists per-app volume and mute, 2x, 3x and 4x boost presets, a 10-band equalizer per app with 20 presets, output per app, output to several devices at once, level meters, hotkeys and finetune:// links. It needs macOS 15.0. The vendor warns that some audio apps, DAWs and call apps can distort with process taps and that high boost can clip. Version 1.9.0 is dated 9 July 2026. Details: SoundDial vs FineTune.

4. Sound Control: best for Audio Units and MIDI control

Sound Control by Static Z Software is a menu-bar app with per-app volume, mute and left/right balance, output rerouting, Audio Unit effects (including 10 and 31-band graphic equalizers), hotkeys for the front app and MIDI control. It is sold directly with a trial download, and on the Mac App Store as a free download with in-app purchases (US storefront: USD 1.99 a month, USD 14.99 a year or USD 29.99 once, checked 12 November 2026). The vendor states that purchases from the two channels are not interchangeable. The direct build needs macOS 14.6, the App Store build 15.6; the interface is English only. Details: SoundDial vs Sound Control.

5. EQBase: best free system equalizer with a mixer on top

EQBase is mainly a system-wide equalizer. Its free tier has no time limit and no account. The per-app mixer, called App Mixer, is part of Pro: volume up to 200%, mute, a 10-band equalizer per app, output per app (or up to eight outputs at once) and a setting that steps other apps back by 6, 12 or 20 dB while an app uses the microphone. Pro costs USD 4.99 a month, USD 39.99 a year or USD 79.99 lifetime (eqbase.app, checked 12 November 2026). It needs macOS 14.4 and is English only. See also the best Mac equalizer list.

6. Soundish: best other one-time purchase

Soundish by Appish costs USD 14.99 once (appish.app, checked 12 November 2026) and has a 7-day trial. It gives each app a volume slider from 0% to 200%, mute, a 10-band equalizer (nine presets), its own output device, profiles that save volume, mute, output and equalizer, and global hotkeys. The vendor lists call lowering, per-app balance and level meters as planned for version 2.0, not yet shipped in 1.5.4. It needs macOS 14.6, does not install an audio driver, and states that a browser gets one volume, with no volume per tab.

7. Vitals: best if you also want a system monitor

Vitals is an activity monitor and process inspector for Mac with a volume mixer in one tab. The mixer gives each app a slider and mute button from 0% to 100%; the vendor states it does not boost, route apps to other outputs or add effects, and does not lower music during calls. Vitals is USD 12 for a year of updates or USD 19 lifetime at a launch price that rises to USD 49 (vitalsmac.com, checked 12 November 2026). It has a 3-day trial and needs macOS 15. It suits you if the monitor is the point and the mixer is a bonus.

8. Background Music: best open-source mixer for older Macs

Background Music is a free, open-source (GPLv2 or later) utility with a slider for each app, a per-app mute button since version 0.5.0, auto-pause for listed music players and a way to record system audio through QuickTime. It supports macOS 10.13 and later. Its README calls it "still in alpha", it installs a virtual audio device with a .pkg, and it supports only stereo output devices. Version 0.5.0 is dated 10 June 2026. Details: SoundDial vs Background Music.

9. KE Volume Mixer: best minimal free mixer

KE Volume Mixer by K&E Studios is a free MIT-licensed preview (0.1.2, 28 September 2026) with per-app volume, mute and live meters in the menu bar. It can only turn apps down: 100% is the app's own level. It plays to the current default output and needs macOS 14.4. The preview is not notarized and not on the App Store, and apps that take exclusive control of a device bypass it.

Newer small apps

Several newer Mac App Store apps also offer per-app volume. Listed alphabetically, with one fact each from their own listings (US storefront, checked 12 November 2026): Faders is free and offers 0% to 200% with mute; Mutewise is a USD 4.99 paid app with 0% to 200% and mute; Sound Manager by Native Labs lists a USD 8.29 lifetime premium purchase and an equalizer with AutoEQ; Tone is an open-source USD 8.99 app that stops at 100% ("a mixer, not a booster"); Volumeboard is free with a USD 2.99 Pro upgrade that lists a boost to 200%.

Which one fits you

• If you want slider, mute, equalizer and output per app on macOS 14, take SoundDial.
• If you want calls to lower other apps automatically, take SoundDial.
• If you want a single purchase on the Mac App Store, no subscription, take SoundDial.
• If you need Audio Unit plug-ins or more than 200%, take SoundSource.
• If you want a free open-source mixer and run macOS 15, take FineTune.
• If your Mac is older than macOS 14, take Background Music.
• If you want a system monitor with a simple mixer, take Vitals.

See all Mac audio comparisons for equalizer, booster and mixer lists.

How we chose

This list covers Mac apps whose own pages describe a per-app volume control, and compares them on five things: what each app controls per app (volume range, mute, equalizer, output), price model with a way to try first, macOS version, install method, and whether it is actively maintained. SoundDial comes first because it combines volume, mute, equalizer, output and call lowering in one menu-bar app from macOS 14.2 for a single Mac App Store price. The "best for" labels name the need each other app fits best.

SoundDial's column comes from the app itself (see SoundDial facts). Competitor details last checked on 2026-11-12, on each vendor's own pages: SoundSource, FineTune, Sound Control, EQBase, Soundish, Vitals, Background Music and KE Volume Mixer. Prices are each vendor's own US figures; direct-sale and Mac App Store prices are different channels and are not set against each other. "Not stated" means the vendor's pages do not say. None of these apps was run for this page; features are as the vendors describe them.