VirtualDJ vs rekordbox

The two programs are sold on very different ladders. VirtualDJ has Home, PRO and Business tiers, with Home at EUR 4 a month and Business at EUR 105, and it bills audio, video and karaoke content as separate monthly extras. Rekordbox has a Free plan for one device plus Core, Creative and Professional, priced yearly from EUR 120 to EUR 360, and it limits how many devices share a library. Neither page we read covers controller support or club booths. In practice you are weighing rented content against synced devices.

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Both are reviewed in full in our DJ software ranking: VirtualDJ and rekordbox.

1. 01

   Home, PRO and Business against Core, Creative and Professional

   VirtualDJ lists three tiers in euros: Home at 4 a month or 47 a year, PRO at 19 a month or 213 a year, and Business at 105 a month or 1,072 a year. A VDJ Infinity licence is also listed, but without a price. Rekordbox lists Core at 12 a month or 120 a year, Creative at 18 or 180, and Professional at 36 or 360. VirtualDJ starts cheaper and reaches higher, while rekordbox's ladder is narrower and easier to read.

   Edge: VirtualDJ

2. 02

   Rented content versus Dropbox space

   VirtualDJ sells content on top of the tier: iDJPool audio at 10 a month, VJ-Pro video at 53 and Sunfly karaoke at 23. A PRO user who adds video pays 72 a month in total. Rekordbox sells storage instead. Its Cloud Option adds 1TB of Dropbox, making Creative 276 a year and Core 228, while Professional already includes 5TB. The pages we read show no streaming-service integration for either tool, so this round compares add-on bills only.

   Depends on the buyer

3. 03

   How many machines share your library

   Rekordbox states a device cap for library sync on each paid tier: eight for Professional, four for Creative and three for Core. That makes a multi-laptop or multi-player setup something you can plan around, though the caps are also a ceiling. The VirtualDJ page we read describes no library sync or device limit at all, so we cannot say how it handles several machines. On this evidence rekordbox is the only one that documents the feature.

   Edge: rekordbox

4. 04

   Trying it before you pay

   Rekordbox offers a Free plan at 0 a month, limited to one device, so a bedroom setup can test the software without paying anything. The plan page names no free trial of the paid tiers. VirtualDJ's buy page describes neither a free version nor a trial, which leaves a buyer committing to Home, at 4 a month or 47 a year, before hearing a single mix. A real free tier is the clearer advantage here.

   Edge: rekordbox

5. 05

   Controllers and the club booth

   The pages we read for both tools do not list supported controllers, mixers or club players, so a ranking on hardware would be a guess. The only hint is that rekordbox suits DJs who sync a library and play on AlphaTheta gear. Nothing equivalent appears for VirtualDJ on the pages we read. Before buying either, check the vendor's hardware list for the exact controller you own, because this round cannot be settled from the material we hold.

   Depends on the buyer

6. 06

   Renewals, cancelling and who is behind it

   Rekordbox states that a subscription renews automatically for another month unless it is cancelled in writing, and it names AlphaTheta Corporation of Yokohama, Japan, as distributor. VirtualDJ names Atomix Development in its footer, with no parent and no country stated. Paying annually gives VirtualDJ users one month free, a saving the page spells out. Rekordbox's written-cancellation rule is a real hurdle, while VirtualDJ's vendor country is simply unknown, so we give VirtualDJ a narrow edge.

   Edge: VirtualDJ

Will the video add-on double my VirtualDJ bill?

It adds a lot. VJ-Pro video costs 53 a month, so a PRO user on 19 a month pays 72 in total. Audio at 10 and karaoke at 23 are cheaper extras, and all three are priced on top of the tier.

Can I mix on rekordbox at home without paying?

Yes, to a point. The Free plan costs 0 a month and covers one device. The plan page names no free trial of the paid tiers, so Core at 120 a year is the first paid step.

Which one suits a few controllers and laptops at home?

Rekordbox documents library sync on three, four or eight devices depending on the tier. Core allows three at 120 a year. VirtualDJ's buy page shows no device limit, and it also gives no controller list, so check that yourself.

• VirtualDJ buy page: Home, PRO and Business prices per month and year, plus the unpriced Infinity licence.
• VirtualDJ buy page (content): iDJPool, VJ-Pro and Sunfly monthly content prices.
• VirtualDJ buy page (terms): one month free on annual billing, no free version or trial, Atomix Development in the footer.
• rekordbox plan page: Core, Creative and Professional yearly and monthly euro prices and Cloud Option totals.
• rekordbox plan page (devices): device caps of three, four and eight and the 5TB Dropbox on Professional.
• rekordbox plan page (terms): Free plan for one device, no named trial, monthly auto-renewal, AlphaTheta in Yokohama.