How can I Get Free Sound Effects in 2021
Kate Brown
Sound effects are often the unsung heroes of our favorite movies, video games, apps, and even explainer videos.
They’re an aspect that we think we don’t notice, but when they are removed it becomes very apparent that they’re missing. Just imagine Horror music without the scary sounds as well as background music.
Even though the visuals, dialogue, and music would all still be there, without the sound effects those scenes just wouldn’t work.
They’d be anti-climatic and weird. And that’s why it is so important that you don’t forget about sound effects when creating content that contains audio!
Well, to make your project successful, all you need is the appropriate Free Sound Effects! There are many websites offering royalty-free sound effects which can be easily downloaded.
All of these sounds can be used both in commercial and personal projects. But, you must be careful as there are numerous sites having pirated content. Not to mention all the malware and viruses that come with it!
The Best Free Sound Effects Sites
There are so many sound effects sites out there that boast “the highest quality” or “the most cost-effective downloads”.
But the only way of really knowing which is best is to review them. So we’ve collated 5 of the best free sound effects sites and reviewed the pros, cons, functionality and more, to help you decide which is best for you.
1. Freesound
Although not the prettiest site, Freesound is easy to navigate and puts a real focus on the community of people who use the site.
It’s simple to search for any sound through the search bar, and users can view a wealth of information at a glance, including reviews, properties, download amounts, and the license:
The community feel of the site continues here too, with users able to follow each other and listen to similar sounds with just one click.
Pros
● All sounds are absolutely free
● Account set up is quick and easy
● Sound effects are of a high quality
Cons
● You cannot download without setting up an account
● Not all sounds are available for commercial use
● Limited search filters
Library Size
Almost 400,000 sound effects, with more, added every day.
Licensing
Sound effects can be listed under 3 different licenses. Here’s a quick summary of each:
1. Zero – free commercial and non-commercial use
2. Attribution – free commercial use, but attribution is required
3. Attribution Non-Commercial – free for non-commercial use, but attribution is required
2. Zapsplat
Zapsplat has a collection of 34,000 royalty-free sound effects You can make a request to post the sound effects that you need.
You do need to sign up for an account to download sound effects. To get sound effects for commercial use, you must include attribution.
Pros
● Social media feel
● Easy to use
● Donations are flexible
Cons
● Sign up required
● Not the greatest-looking site
Library Size
Approx. 34,000
Licensing
Attribution required for commercial use, but this can be removed for a small donation.
3. FindSounds
FindSounds is a quite different site. FindSounds doesn’t have a database of sound effects to download from.
It instead enables you to search for the required music and sound effects from the internet directly. You can either select the category provided on the website or type the name of the sound you are looking for.
4. SoundGator
SoundGator has a very small library of sound effects and, although there is a ‘recently added’ section and a prominent search bar on the home page, it is difficult to find specific sounds.
SoundGator provides some features of social media sites. You can make friends with other users and send messages.
However, SoundGator is unique in the fact that it includes voice clips as well as sound effects.
Pros
● You can communicate with other site users
● Voice clips are available
● All sounds are free for commercial use
Cons
● Small library
● The search bar is not very intuitive
● Registration is required
Library Size
Approx. 1,000
Licensing
Free for non-commercial and commercial use.
5. Soundbuttons.net
Soundbuttons.net is the best and top-rated website. Its database has a collection of almost 3 million sound effects.
All the sound effects are arranged in well-organized categories. There is a search bar that helps you find the result in a few seconds.
These categories are- Games, Movies, Memes, Sports, Television, Anime and Manga, Reactions, Viral, Politics, Soundeffects, Pranks, Music
You can use these sounds in both commercial and personal projects. All of these sound effects are completely free to download and use in your projects. There is a choice of the users to do registration or not.
Users can simply download the application from the Google Play Store as well as from the Apple Store. You may also visit the youtube link given below.
Here's a short video I found on Youtube it contains 5 short sound effects
Pros.
1. No sign-up required.
2. All the sound effects are absolutely free to download.
3. Can use these sound effects in their commercial projects
4. Large library of Sound effects
Cons
No Cons at all.
Library Size
About 3,000,000+ audio files
License
Free for Commercial and Non-Commercial use
Final Words
Well, this is all about How can you get free Sound effects. I hope, you will find this list interesting. What are you waiting for? Expand your scope of work and create your unique video with amazing sound effects from the above top 5 websites.