Crate turns the folders of samples you already own into a fast, sample-store-style browser. Search, filter by instrument, key and BPM, audition, and drag straight into your DAW.
Works offlineYour files never leave your MacNo subscription
Everything you need to find the right sound
Built for producers with thousands of packs spread over folders and drives.
🔎
Search like a sample store
Type “warm rhodes” or “808 F#” and get results in milliseconds, even across hundreds of thousands of sounds.
🏷️
Tags from your file names
Crate reads instrument, category, BPM, key, genre and loop/one-shot from names and folders — no manual tagging.
🎚️
Filters that narrow as you go
Pick Drums and the instrument, key and tempo menus show only what's left — with counts.
📦
Packs with artwork
Browse by pack like a store, see what you added recently, open a pack and audition everything in it.
🖱️
Drag into any DAW
Drop a sound straight into Ableton Live, Logic Pro, FL Studio, Bitwig, REAPER or any app that takes audio files.
💽
External & network drives
Libraries on unplugged drives stay in Crate and come back when you reconnect. NAS shares are re-checked automatically.
🧹
Find duplicate samples
Crate spots byte-identical copies across all your folders and lets you clean them up safely (to the Trash, never deleted for good).
🪶
Light and quiet
A ~10 MB app. Built-in analysis runs on the energy-saving cores and pauses while you're exporting or rendering.
Browse packs like a store
Every pack gets its own page with artwork, stats and filters. Recently added shows what came in this week, so new packs don't get lost.
Pack pages with cover art
Recently added, grouped by date
Search inside a pack
Filters that actually narrow things down
Combine instrument, category, genre, key, BPM and loop/one-shot. Each menu updates to show only what's left, with live counts. Best match mixes packs so results stay varied.
Best match and Random ordering
Click any tag on a sound to explore
↓ from search jumps to the first result
Clean up duplicates safely
Downloaded the same pack twice? Crate finds byte-identical copies across every folder and drive, shows where they are and how much space you'd free.
Checked byte by byte, not by name
Moves copies to the Trash — never deletes for good
Collections follow the copy you keep
How it works
Add your folders
On this Mac, external drives or a NAS. Nothing is moved or copied.
Crate tags everything
From file and folder names first; it listens only where names don't say enough.
Search, audition, drag
Find the sound, hear it instantly, drop it into your session.
Download Crate for free
Enter your email and the download starts right away.
Crate is free. Your email is used to send you the download link and, only if you tick the box, occasional news. No spam, no sharing.
Your download is starting…
Didn't start? Click here. Then follow the two steps below — you only do this once.
Drag Crate into Applications from the window that opens.
Open it once from System Settings: double-click Crate, click “Done”, then go to System Settings → Privacy & Security and click “Open Anyway”. Full guide with pictures.
macOS 14 Sonoma or laterApple Silicon and IntelFree, no account
Frequently asked questions
Is Crate really free?
Yes. Crate is free to download and use, with no account, no subscription and no ads. If it saves you time, you can support it with a coffee.
Does Crate upload my samples anywhere?
No. Crate works entirely on your Mac. Your files are never uploaded, moved or renamed. The only connections it makes are a daily check for updates (which you can turn off) and, if you use the Splice app, loading cover images of packs you downloaded with it.
Which DAWs does it work with?
Any app that accepts audio files by drag and drop: Ableton Live, Logic Pro, FL Studio, Bitwig Studio, REAPER, Studio One, Cubase, Pro Tools and others.
Does it work with Splice, Loopmasters or my own folders?
Yes. Point Crate at any folder of WAV, AIFF, FLAC, MP3 or OGG files — sample-store downloads, sample CDs, your own recordings. Well-named packs get the richest tags.
How does Crate tag my samples?
First from file and folder names (instrument, BPM, key, genre, loop or one-shot). Only when a name doesn't say enough does it listen to the sound — to tell loops from one-shots, estimate the tempo of loops and suggest a category. Everything runs on your Mac.
Why does macOS ask me to confirm when I open it?
Crate is a free app that isn't signed with a paid Apple developer certificate, so the first time macOS asks you to allow it. It takes a minute and only once — see the install guide.
Does it run on Intel Macs?
Yes. Crate runs on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs with macOS 14 Sonoma or later.
How big can my library be?
Crate was tested with more than 230,000 sounds across several drives. Searching and filtering stay instant; a big first scan takes a few minutes in the background.
Will it delete anything?
Only if you ask: from the Duplicates page you can move a copy to the Trash after Crate checks, byte by byte, that an identical copy stays. Finder can always put it back.
Crate
