What is the best AI stem separator in 2026?

For a Complete package of audio parts, detected MIDI, draft notation and chords, our pick is Selekt at 0.5 credit. For free local separation choose UVR; for specialist model selection consider MVSEP. These are picks by features and terms, not a listening-test ranking.

Can I split a song into stems without installing software?

Yes. Selekt, LALAL.AI, Moises, MVSEP, Fadr and BandLab accept browser uploads. A browser interface can still send your audio to cloud servers; it does not mean processing stays on your computer.

Which stem separator has a piano stem?

Selekt Complete includes a detected piano lane; Fadr Plus and paid Moises options also offer piano extraction. Demucs has an experimental six-source model with a documented weak piano result. None can promise clean piano on every mix.

Can a stem splitter separate kick and snare?

Yes. Selekt Complete can return kick, snare, hi-hat, toms, ride and crash lanes from detected drum content. Fadr Plus also splits kick and snare, with other drums grouped. Very quiet hits and overlapping instruments can leave bleed or sparse outputs.

Should I pay for a stem separator?

Not necessarily. UVR and Demucs run locally without a hosted quota, while BandLab and Fadr have useful free splits. Paying can make sense for a specific export, an easier workflow, specialist parts or a production package that the free route does not provide.

Is uploading a song for stem separation private and legal?

Local UVR or Demucs processing avoids uploading audio to a separation service. Cloud services have their own retention and data terms. Being able to separate a recording does not grant rights to publish or sell its parts; check your permission and the source license.

Best AI Stem Separators in 2026: 8 Compared

Quick answer

Selekt is our number-one pick for a Complete production package because 0.5 credit (50¢ at the $5/5-credit rate) buys much more than a vocal split: up to 16 separation lanes, including piano, woodwinds, a no-woodwinds mix and individual drum-kit parts, plus available full-mix/per-part MIDI, drum MIDI, draft MusicXML, chord timeline/PDF/reference MIDI, key, scale, BPM, extracted drum hits and a ZIP with a Start Here guide. That combination of deliverables and price is why it ranks first for this job. Choose UVR for free local processing, MVSEP for model choice or Moises for practice.

All 16 available separation lanes:

Song and mix parts (9): Vocals · Instrumental (without vocals) · Drums · Bass · Guitar · Piano · Woodwinds · No-woodwinds mix · Other instruments.

Individual drum parts (7): Kick · Snare · Hi-hat · Toms · Ride cymbal · Crash cymbal · Cymbals.

These include alternative mixes and drum parts, so they overlap. Useful outputs depend on what is present in your recording.

No. 1 for the Complete production package: Selekt — 0.5 credit (50¢ at the smallest pack’s rate); smallest credit pack $5.
Free local separation: Ultimate Vocal Remover 5 — $0, with your own hardware.
Specialist models: MVSEP — 50 free separations a day, within its file limits.
Practising a song: Moises — five free uploads per month, with broader paid options.

Published by Selekt Audio, which is included in this comparison. Method: features, prices, license terms and limits read from the makers’ own published pages on November 13, 2026; Selekt features checked against its implementation. We did not perform a cross-product listening test. Recommendations reflect the stated job, price and workflow, not a measured universal quality ranking. Review cadence: quarterly; offers may change sooner. Unreadable checkout prices are marked unverified.

Start with your song

Choose a file here to open the real stem-separation workspace with it attached. Review the options before processing: Complete costs 0.5 credit; Complete + Copyright Screen costs 1 credit.

Drop a track here to split it — or click to browse

MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A, OGG — one track at a time, up to 200MB

Split several tracks →

At a glance — checked November 13, 2026
Tool	Price (USD / credits)	Free tier	Stems and deliverables	Runs where	Best for
1. Selekt Audio	0.5 credit (50¢ at the $5/5-credit rate); smallest purchase $5	Prepared demo; paid processing after confirmation	16 available lanes: vocals, instrumental, drums, bass, guitar, piano, woodwinds, no-woodwinds mix, other, kick, snare, hi-hat, toms, ride, crash, cymbals full-mix/per-part MIDI + drum MIDI draft MusicXML chord timeline + PDF + reference MIDI key, scale, BPM drum one-shots audio-search profile organized ZIP + Start Here guide	Browser controls; cloud processing	A Complete production package without a separation subscription
2. LALAL.AI	$90/year Lite ($7.50/month equivalent)	Starter: 10 minutes, 200 MB/file; no result downloads	Vocal/instrumental and specialist instrument splits	Web, desktop/mobile; Pro offers local desktop processing	Dedicated separation across devices
3. Moises	$0 Free; paid USD checkout price not verified	5 uploads per calendar month	Standard free parts; broader paid inventory, including piano/drum parts	Web and mobile	Practising, learning and playing along
4. MVSEP	$0 free; Premium from $3 / 60 credits	50 separations/day; 10 minutes and 100 MB/file	100+ model choices; outputs vary by model	Browser upload; cloud queue	Choosing specialist models
5. Ultimate Vocal Remover 5	$0, open source	No hosted quota; your hardware is the limit	MDX-Net, VR and Demucs models; model-dependent parts	Windows, macOS, Linux desktop	Free separation on your own computer
6. Demucs	$0, open source	No hosted quota; local computing required	4 stems; experimental 6-source model adds guitar and piano	Local Python / command line	Technical users wanting an inspectable engine
7. Fadr	$0 Basic; Plus $10/month or $100/year	4 main parts, MP3 downloads; 10-minute uploads	Plus: 18 types, including piano, kick and snare	Web; Plus plugins	Free MP3 stems with remix/MIDI tools
8. BandLab Splitter	$0 core; Pro $14.99/month after trial	Unlimited uploads; 100 MB and 15 minutes/file	4 free parts: vocals, drums, bass, other; paid additions	Web and mobile	Free splitting inside a music-making app

Everything in Selekt’s Complete stem-separation package

0.5 credit (50¢ at the $5-for-5-credits pack rate) includes the audio parts and the available production files below. The smallest one-time credit purchase is $5; larger packs can lower the effective cost per run.

All 16 available separation lanes

Nine song/instrument lanes plus seven drum-kit lanes. The instrumental, no-woodwinds mix and drum bus overlap other parts; they are useful alternative mixes, not 16 independent instruments to sum together.

Song, instruments and alternative mixes

Vocals
Instrumental (without vocals)
Drums
Bass
Guitar
Piano
Woodwinds
No-woodwinds mix
Other instruments

Individual drum-kit parts

Kick
Snare
Hi-hat
Toms
Ride cymbal
Crash cymbal
Cymbals

More than separated audio

Separated WAV audio: keep useful instrument and kit lanes individually or together in the Complete ZIP. Individual audio export/conversion options include MP3, FLAC, M4A and OGG.
Full-mix and per-part MIDI drafts: edit detected notes or try another instrument in your DAW. Expressive information such as velocity, pitch movement and piano sustain depends on the part and transcription mode.
Draft MusicXML: open generated notation in MuseScore, Sibelius or Dorico, correct it and develop your own score. It is a starting point, not verified or print-ready sheet music.
Drum MIDI and extracted one-shots: an editable estimated groove plus usable drum hits from the recording, when detected. A separate hit is not guaranteed for every kit piece.
Timed chord information: a chord timeline in JSON, a printable chord-guide PDF and reference block-chord MIDI when generated. Reference chords are not the original player’s voicings.
Key, scale and BPM estimates: practical harmony and tempo information, with analysis JSON for use outside Selekt. Expressive timing and uncertain harmony still need listening.
Audio-search profile: generated audio-profile data supports finding catalog recordings by sound; search and matching are follow-on actions, not a promise of musical compatibility.
A ZIP with a Start Here guide: available audio, notation, analysis and one-shots are organized together. The guide inventories the files, explains what to do next and identifies missing, empty or unreadable notation. Short readable note drafts are retained.
Keep creating: supported results can open in Stem Lab to revoice musical parts or Drum Kit to try another kit with the detected groove. These are connected tool actions rather than extra work run automatically.

Optional processing and output limits

Complete + Copyright Screen: 1 credit ($1 at that pack rate). Adds a whole-track known-recording screen and its PDF Screening Report. Coverage and any unscanned regions are disclosed; a screen is evidence, not permission or legal clearance. Optional denoise is selected separately in the workspace; review the selected job and price before it starts.

Up to 16 lanes means the available output types, not a guarantee that every recording contains all of them. Piano, woodwinds, quiet percussion and overlapping sounds can leave bleed, sparse files or artifacts. A file’s instrument label does not prove that instrument was present. Notes, chords, key and tempo are estimates to audition and edit. New processing results normally remain available for 48 hours, so download the files you want to keep.

Hear the prepared demo and review the separation options.

1Selekt Audio

Our number-one pick for the Complete production-package job: 0.5 credit (50¢ at the smallest pack’s rate) goes beyond separated audio to include the available note drafts, drum hits, harmony references and organized working files. That breadth of deliverables at this price is why Selekt leads this comparison for this use case. Complete + Copyright Screen costs 1 credit. This is a package-and-price choice, not a measured claim that every stem sounds cleaner than rivals.

What to watch for: Absent or quiet instruments may yield sparse files. Cloud jobs need an account and credits; notation needs checking.

Best for: A Complete production package without a separation subscription. Price: 0.5 credit (50¢ at the $5/5-credit rate); smallest purchase $5.

Source: Selekt details

2LALAL.AI

Paid Lite includes unlimited Relaxed Queue processing and 90 Fast Queue minutes each month. Several separation types consume minutes for each type, so compare the actual job rather than just song length.

What to watch for: Starter is a preview, not a free stem download. Annual-equivalent pricing is not month-to-month billing.

Best for: Dedicated separation across devices. Price: $90/year Lite ($7.50/month equivalent).

Source: www.lalal.ai

3Moises

Its current homepage advertises 27 stem types across its offering, not 27 free stems. The practice environment may be more useful than a bare export when you want to mute a part and learn the performance.

What to watch for: Paid features vary by tier. The billing page did not expose a public dollar quote during this check.

Best for: Practising, learning and playing along. Price: $0 Free; paid USD checkout price not verified.

Source: moises.ai (1) · help.moises.ai (2)

4MVSEP

Standard Premium models use one credit per minute; ensembles and some options cost more. Registered free users can obtain WAV/FLAC; unregistered output is MP3. Its own public quality checker can inform model selection.

What to watch for: Model choice and queues require more attention. A leaderboard score does not guarantee the result on your song.

Best for: Choosing specialist models. Price: $0 free; Premium from $3 / 60 credits.

Source: mvsep.com (1) · mvsep.com (2)

5Ultimate Vocal Remover 5

UVR 5 is the current available download. UVR 6 is announced, not the version assumed in this comparison. You get a local model-selection workflow without uploading your recording to a separation website.

What to watch for: You install the application/models and provide the processing hardware. Changing models can change the result.

Best for: Free separation on your own computer. Price: $0, open source.

Source: ultimatevocalremover.com

6Demucs

Demucs is a model project rather than a consumer upload site. Its six-source option is useful to try when you need piano or guitar in addition to vocals, drums, bass and other.

What to watch for: The project calls out weak piano quality in the experimental model. The original Meta repository is archived; setup is technical.

Best for: Technical users wanting an inspectable engine. Price: $0, open source.

Source: github.com

7Fadr

Basic separates vocals, melodies, drums and bass. Plus adds instrument/vocal parts, kick/snare/other drums, one-hour uploads and WAV downloads. It is another real piano/drum-part option, not just a vocal remover.

What to watch for: Basic does not include the 18-type inventory. Its kit split groups the other drums rather than naming each cymbal and tom.

Best for: Free MP3 stems with remix/MIDI tools. Price: $0 Basic; Plus $10/month or $100/year.

Source: fadr.com

8BandLab Splitter

The free four-part split is generous if that finishes your job. Web audio exports use WAV; mobile uses M4A. Official pages differ on the paid instrument count (six versus seven), so check the actual tier/platform.

What to watch for: Detailed kit-piece separation is not part of the documented free split.

Best for: Free splitting inside a music-making app. Price: $0 core; Pro $14.99/month after trial.

Source: www.bandlab.com (1) · help.bandlab.com (2)

Why do piano and individual drum parts need a separate comparison?

A single drums stem is useful for muting the drums, but it is not the same deliverable as separate kick, snare, hi-hat, toms and cymbals. Likewise, an “other” stem can contain piano without giving you an isolated piano file. Compare the named output lanes at the tier you will actually buy.

Selekt’s Complete package puts detected piano and kit pieces beside the main parts for 0.5 credit. That package is the reason we recommend it for this job. Other makers also offer specialist instrument separation; this is not an exclusivity claim. An instrument name on a file does not establish that instrument was present in the song.

Piano and individual drum separation explained · Hear the prepared stem demo

Which parts are hardest to recover cleanly?

We have not run a controlled cross-product listening test for this guide, so we cannot honestly name Selekt’s statistically weakest lane. Piano, quiet percussion, cymbal tails and instruments sharing the same frequencies can all be difficult in dense mixes. Listen for voices leaking into an instrument, missing attacks and watery sustained notes.

Demucs explicitly documents weaker piano quality in its experimental six-source model. MVSEP publishes a model leaderboard; that is a useful external reference, but it is maintained by MVSEP and is not a benchmark of Selekt’s full workflow. Audition your own recording before committing to a release.

Demucs model limitations · MVSEP’s published quality checker

How do I get from a song to useful files?

Start with audio you have permission to process. Use the highest-quality original you have, then compare the separated parts against it. A short audition is often enough to spot whether an important instrument survived.

Choose your song in the separation workspace and review the selected package and price.
Run Complete for 0.5 credit, or Complete + Copyright Screen for 1 credit. Nothing runs simply because you selected a file.
Listen to the returned parts and download what is useful. Treat detected MIDI, MusicXML and chord guides as starting points to check and edit.

Questions people ask

What is the best AI stem separator in 2026?: For a Complete package of audio parts, detected MIDI, draft notation and chords, our pick is Selekt at 0.5 credit. For free local separation choose UVR; for specialist model selection consider MVSEP. These are picks by features and terms, not a listening-test ranking.
Can I split a song into stems without installing software?: Yes. Selekt, LALAL.AI, Moises, MVSEP, Fadr and BandLab accept browser uploads. A browser interface can still send your audio to cloud servers; it does not mean processing stays on your computer.
Which stem separator has a piano stem?: Selekt Complete includes a detected piano lane; Fadr Plus and paid Moises options also offer piano extraction. Demucs has an experimental six-source model with a documented weak piano result. None can promise clean piano on every mix.
Can a stem splitter separate kick and snare?: Yes. Selekt Complete can return kick, snare, hi-hat, toms, ride and crash lanes from detected drum content. Fadr Plus also splits kick and snare, with other drums grouped. Very quiet hits and overlapping instruments can leave bleed or sparse outputs.
Should I pay for a stem separator?: Not necessarily. UVR and Demucs run locally without a hosted quota, while BandLab and Fadr have useful free splits. Paying can make sense for a specific export, an easier workflow, specialist parts or a production package that the free route does not provide.
Is uploading a song for stem separation private and legal?: Local UVR or Demucs processing avoids uploading audio to a separation service. Cloud services have their own retention and data terms. Being able to separate a recording does not grant rights to publish or sell its parts; check your permission and the source license.

Sources and review notes

Linked official pages support the adjacent facts. Selekt’s own listings are evidence of its stated deliverables, not independent endorsements. No paid competitor accounts or new processing jobs were purchased for this comparison.