Overview

99Sounds is an independent sound-design label and repository offering sound collections and instrument plugins at no cost. It best suits music, video, game, and podcast creators who need royalty-free audio assets. The breadth of its catalog is compelling for free, but its license excludes redistribution and certain sound-based apps.

Founded in 2014 by Tomislav Zlatić, the label is based in Belgrade, Serbia. Its collections span cinematic effects, drum samples, field recordings, rain sounds, and loops, covering both designed effects and musical material.

Key features

Collections include WAV, MIDI, NKI, SFZ, and Serum preset formats, with MIDI and stems included. That variety can fit different sampling and instrument workflows, although permission to use sounds in a finished project does not permit reselling or passing along the audio files themselves.

Audio and plugins can be used royalty-free in personal and commercial music, video, game-development, podcast, and sound-design projects. Attribution to 99Sounds or the creator is not required. Users may not sell or redistribute downloaded audio, either independently or as a separate attachment to their work; sounds also cannot be used to make noise, white-noise, sleep-sound, or similar apps. That leaves broad room for ordinary creative production, but makes 99Sounds the wrong source for those app categories or any workflow that requires transferring the source files.

Free instrument plugins are offered in VST, VST3, and AU formats. Drumplayer includes twelve drum kits and eight slots, with stereo and multiple mono outputs, channel volume and pan controls, and a pitch-modulation LFO. Upright Piano uses four sampled notes per octave and six dynamic layers per note, plus adjustable envelope, tremolo, filter, and reverb controls. The instruments offer useful sound-shaping and routing options without a purchase, but the maker's compatibility statement excludes macOS Catalina, a material constraint for teams still using that operating system.

Pricing

The Free sounds and plugins plan costs 0.00 USD per free and includes free sound libraries and plugins under the site's royalty-free license. There is no free trial, paid tier, or seat or quota limit stated for this plan. It is a straightforward fit for individual creators and teams that can work within the license; the trade-off is that a free catalog is not a substitute for rights to redistribute the original audio.

Platforms

99Sounds is listed for macOS, Windows, and the web. Its virtual instruments are described as compatible with VST and AU hosts on 32-bit and 64-bit Windows and macOS, with Catalina excluded. The stated host support gives plugin users useful compatibility guidance, but the Catalina exception matters when standardizing a production stack.

The site's privacy policy says it collects email addresses and usage data, follows industry best practices, and does not access, handle, or store payment details sent to its payment processor. Product questions and collaboration inquiries can be directed through its contact form.

Who it's for

99Sounds fits creators looking for a varied no-cost source of effects, samples, and free instruments for music, video, games, podcasts, or sound design. Its no-attribution commercial-use terms suit projects that need usable audio without credit obligations. It is less suitable when a project redistributes source sounds, falls under the prohibited noise or sleep-app uses, or depends on an excluded plugin environment.

Pros and cons

Pro: Free libraries and plugins can be used in personal and commercial creative projects without attribution, which lowers the cost and credit overhead for eligible work.
Pro: A mix of sound categories, sample formats, MIDI, stems, and two instruments with meaningful controls supports more than a single narrow production task.
Con: Selling or redistributing downloaded audio is prohibited, including as a separate attachment, so source files cannot simply be passed on with a project.
Con: The license bars noise, white-noise, sleep-sound, and similar apps, while macOS Catalina is unsupported for the virtual instruments.

Alternatives

For a sample-library comparison, browse Music Sample Libraries; for effects-focused options, see Sound Effects Libraries.

BandLab Sounds is worth considering if you want mobile access on Android or iOS and a free tier capped at 20 claims per week; its BandLab Pro plan is 14.99 USD per month after a billed 3-day free trial and renews automatically.
Wave Alchemy may suit Windows or macOS users who want a free player with 4,000 samples and 200 presets; its Triaz Player disables sequencer editing, sound browsing, and loading your own samples.
Cinesamples offers a free Kontakt Player product, Create Series - Kalimba, for users seeking that specific instrument.
LANDR Samples is another paid option with a free plan, for readers weighing a different samples service.
Noiiz offers monthly plans with sound allowances, including Light at 7.99 USD per month for 100 MB of sounds per month and Regular at 12.99 USD per month for 300 MB per month, unlimited expansions, and Connect PRO.
UVI Soundbanks may be a better match for buyers seeking specialized instrument banks, including Emulation II+ at 149.00 EUR per once and Orchestral Suite 2 at 199.00 EUR per once.
WAVS offers a paid service with a free plan and trial for readers comparing a separate sample platform.
8Dio sells individual instrument products, including a one-time purchase example at 19.00 USD, for readers looking at paid instrument options.

Verdict

Choose 99Sounds if you need a varied, royalty-free catalog and free instruments for commercial creative projects without attribution costs. Its strongest case is breadth at no charge; look elsewhere if you must redistribute source audio, are building prohibited sound-based apps, or rely on macOS Catalina for the plugins.

	99Sounds	Soundrangers
Free plan	Yes	No
Free trial	No	No
Paid from	Free	—
Open source	No	No
Platforms	macOS, Web, Windows	Web
Free plan	Yes	—
Download model	—	per-asset
Commercial use	—	Yes
Perpetual usage	—	Yes
File formats	—	WAV
Broadcast use	—	Yes

99Sounds vs Soundrangers

99Sounds

Soundrangers