fre:ac vs X Lossless Decoder

fre:ac9.4Visit XLX Lossless Decoder9.1Visit

Higher score fre:ac #1 in Audio Converter Software 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 5 features Visit fre:ac

vs

XL X Lossless Decoder #3 in Audio Converter Software 9.1/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 5 features Visit site

• fre:ac fits best

  Free cross-platform library conversion

• X Lossless Decoder fits best

  Mac lossless conversion and accurate ripping

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Side by side

Feature	fre:ac 9.4/10 Visit ↗	XLX Lossless Decoder 9.1/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	9.1
Ranking	#1 in Audio Converter Software	#3 in Audio Converter Software
Best for	Free cross-platform library conversion	Mac lossless conversion and accurate ripping
Pricing model	Free	Free
Starting price	Free plan	Free plan
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Desktop	Desktop
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	macOS
Support	Email, Community, Docs	Docs
Integrations	1 integrations	4 integrations
Built for	Solo, Small business	Solo, Small business
Features fre:ac 4/5 · X Lossless Decoder 4/5
Batch conversion	✓	✓
Quality controls	✓	✓
Metadata editing	✓	✓
CD ripping	✓	✓
Cloud conversion	—	—
Specs
Supported formats	MP3, M4A/AAC, FLAC, WMA, Opus, Ogg Vorbis, Speex, Monkey's Audio (APE), WavPack, WAV	FLAC, Ogg FLAC, Monkey's Audio, WavPack, TTA, Apple Lossless, TAK, Shorten, AIFF, WAV, Raw PCM, Ogg Vorbis, MPEG-4 AAC, MP3, HE-AAC, Wave64, Opus, DSD
Our review
Pros	Free, open-source access on Windows, macOS and Linux Batch and whole-library conversion with folder and filename preservation CD ripping with GNUdb metadata lookup and tag editing	Broad format support, including FLAC, Apple Lossless, DSD, and Opus AccurateRip verification, ripping logs, and CD-image creation Batch conversion, cue splitting, metadata editing, and command-line use
Cons	Desktop software without cloud conversion GNUdb is the listed external integration Focused on conversion and ripping rather than wider audio production	Available only for macOS No cloud conversion workflow No AI-assisted features
Our verdict	fre:ac is a free, open-source desktop application for converting audio files between supported formats and ripping audio CDs. It is suited to people managing music libraries across Windows, macOS and Linux, especially those who want batch… Read the review →	X Lossless Decoder is a free macOS desktop application for decoding, converting, and playing lossless audio. It suits listeners, collectors, and archivists who need local control over audio files, CD ripping, cue-sheet splitting, metadata… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• fre:ac — where it wins

  • Free, open-source access on Windows, macOS and Linux
  • Batch and whole-library conversion with folder and filename preservation
  • CD ripping with GNUdb metadata lookup and tag editing

  Where it doesn't

  • Desktop software without cloud conversion
  • GNUdb is the listed external integration
  • Focused on conversion and ripping rather than wider audio production

• X Lossless Decoder — where it wins

  • Broad format support, including FLAC, Apple Lossless, DSD, and Opus
  • AccurateRip verification, ripping logs, and CD-image creation
  • Batch conversion, cue splitting, metadata editing, and command-line use

  Where it doesn't

  • Available only for macOS
  • No cloud conversion workflow
  • No AI-assisted features

• fre:ac9.4/10 · Free plan

  A capable free desktop converter for cross-platform library management and CD ripping.

  Visit fre:acFull verdict →
• XLX Lossless Decoder9.1/10 · Free plan

  A free macOS tool for accurate lossless conversion, ripping, tagging, and batch processing.

  Visit siteFull verdict →