Serato DJ Lite is free and covers learning to mix, with Practice Mode, streaming and Stems; Serato DJ Pro adds set recording, eight cue points instead of four, Quantize, saved loops, Beat Jump, Slicer, Stems FX, MIDI mapping and CDJ support. Upgrade when you need one of those, and before you pay for a Pro licence or subscription, check whether your controller already unlocks Pro free.
Which one you need
- Learning at home: Serato DJ Lite. It is free, runs on a laptop alone in Practice Mode, streams from five services and includes Stems. Serato's Lite page says it comes with essential DJ tools and works with more than 50 controllers.
- Recording sets, more cues, or a second MIDI controller: Serato DJ Pro. These are Pro-only, along with Quantize, saved loops and the Beat Jump and Slicer pad modes.
- CDJs or a club mixer: Serato DJ Pro or Serato DJ Suite. Lite doesn't support either. CDJs in HID mode need a Pro licence or subscription; control vinyl or control CDs (DVS) and club mixers that Serato lists as a paid upgrade need Serato DJ Suite.
- Your controller already unlocks Pro: nothing to buy. Plugging it in runs Serato DJ Pro with no licence. The controllers that do are listed below.
Serato DJ Lite and Serato DJ Pro compared
| Serato DJ Lite | Serato DJ Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free, no licence or subscription | Licence or subscription, or free with hardware that unlocks it |
| Practice Mode (laptop only) | Yes | Yes |
| Streaming | Apple Music, Beatport, SoundCloud, Spotify, Tidal | The same five |
| Stems | Vocals, melody, bass and drums | The same, plus Stems FX |
| Cue points per track | 4 | 8 |
| Sampler | 4 slots | 8 slots in each of 4 banks |
| Sync | Matches BPM and snaps the two closest transients | Adds Smart Sync, which follows beatgrids |
| Quantize and saved loops | No | Yes |
| Beat Jump and Slicer pad modes | No | Yes |
| Effects | 6 FX presets and 2 channel FX | 20+ Pro FX and 4 channel FX |
| Recording a set | No | Yes, on hardware with a recording function |
| MIDI mapping | No | Yes |
| Multiple waveform views | No | Vertical, horizontal, extended, stack and library |
| CDJs and club mixers | Not supported | CDJs in HID mode; DVS and club mixers need Suite |
Sources: Serato's Lite page and Pro page, including their FAQs, and the Lite and Pro manuals on Lite cue points, Pro cue points, the Lite sampler, Pro sample banks, Lite sync, Smart Sync, Quantize, Pro effects, MIDI and display modes.
A few details matter in practice:
- Recording in Pro needs hardware with a recording function, and it doesn't record music played from a streaming service or in Practice Mode, per the Pro page.
- Quantize snaps cue points and loop points to the beatgrid as you set and trigger them, so they stay in time. Smart Sync relies on the same beatgrids, so it needs them to be accurate; see what a beatgrid is.
- MIDI mapping lets a secondary MIDI controller, such as a keyboard or a unit of pads, sliders and knobs, trigger Serato DJ Pro functions; see MIDI mapping.
- Key analysis and smart crates are where Serato's own pages disagree. The Pro page lists both as Pro additions, but the Lite manual describes an Analyze Key setting and, from Lite 4.0, smart crates in Lite. If you want either one, update Lite and look for it before paying for Pro.
- Effect counts differ too. The Pro page's Lite vs Pro answer gives Pro 20+ Pro FX, while the same page lists 50+ built-in FX, the number the expansions page gives for the paid Serato FX expansion. The pricing page shows Pro with standard Serato FX and Suite with advanced Serato FX.
What the expansions add
Expansions add features on top of Serato DJ Pro. Serato's pricing page sells them together as Serato DJ Suite, which is Serato DJ Pro plus every expansion, Serato DJ for iOS and the Serato Studio production software. Some hardware includes one or more of them. From Serato's expansions page:
- Serato DVS. Plays Serato DJ Pro from turntables, CDJs or media players using Serato NoiseMap control vinyl or control CDs. Some mixers and controllers unlock it free, including the Pioneer DJ DJM-S11 and Rane Seventy. On others, including the DDJ-REV7, DDJ-FLX10, Mixon 8 Pro, Rane FOUR and Rane One MKII, DVS needs a Serato DJ Suite licence or subscription, per Serato's DVS hardware list. The guide to digital vinyl systems explains the setup.
- Pitch 'n Time DJ. Serato's time-stretching and key-shifting algorithm, for changing a track's tempo or key without losing audio quality. It adds Key Shift, Key Sync and the Pitch Play pad mode, for changing a track's key or matching two tracks' keys. See mixing in key.
- Serato DJ Club Kit. Serato DJ Pro with Serato DVS, for plugging into the DVS-supported mixers used in clubs without a separate audio interface. It was sold as its own bundle and is now part of Serato DJ Suite.
- Serato FX. More than 50 effects, with presets you can name and save.
- Serato Flip. Records cue point and censor moves as edits you replay live, up to six per track.
- Serato Video. Mixes video files with effects and transitions, records sets with HD video, and plays MP3+G karaoke files.
- Serato Play. DJing on a laptop alone with on-screen EQs, filters, crossfader and FX, plus recording. Without it, Practice Mode is the free, basic laptop-only option.
Stems is not an expansion. Separating vocals, melody, bass and drums is built into both Lite and Pro; Pro adds Stems FX such as echo and braker on individual stems (Serato's Stems manual). Some controllers have dedicated Stems controls, listed below. On supported Lite controllers, a setting called Replace Sampler with Stems turns the sampler pads into stem pads, the Lite manual says. See using stems.
How Serato DJ Pro is licensed
- Serato DJ Lite is free, with no licence or subscription.
- Serato DJ Pro is bought outright as a licence or paid for as a monthly subscription, per Serato's pricing page. Serato DJ Suite, which adds every expansion, Serato DJ for iOS and Serato Studio, comes the same two ways. Prices change, so check that page.
- A free trial. First-time Serato DJ Pro users can try Serato DJ Suite free for 14 days, per the Lite page, starting it with a supported Lite controller or Club Kit mixer connected (Serato's trial steps). That shows how your controller behaves in Pro before you pay.
- Your Lite controller works with Pro. Every Lite controller can be upgraded. One Pro licence covers all your Lite controllers and stays valid if you change to different Lite hardware, per Serato's hardware licensing guide.
- Hardware that unlocks Pro needs no licence when it is connected. Using Pro with any other hardware, such as a Lite controller, still needs a licence or subscription, the Pro page says.
- Club mixers that Serato lists as a paid upgrade need Serato DJ Suite, not just Pro, per Serato's purchase guide.
If you are buying a controller anyway, compare a Lite controller plus a Pro licence with a controller that unlocks Pro.
Serato DJ for iOS
Serato also makes Serato DJ for iOS, a separate app for iPhone and iPad. From Serato's iOS page:
- The free version has the essential tools and Stems, streams from the same five services, and works with selected hardware or with no controller at all.
- The paid version comes with Serato DJ Suite or as an outright purchase of the iOS app. It adds Stems FX, recording (not with streaming tracks) and the full range of supported hardware.
- Laptop only: Serato Video, Serato Flip, custom MIDI mapping and Ableton Link. CDJs in HID mode aren't supported, and there is no Android version.
- Moving your library: iOS Transfer copies tracks and crates from Serato DJ Pro or Lite on a laptop, with their cue points and beatgrids.
Serato's hardware pages say the Lite controllers listed below, and the DDJ-REV7, DDJ-FLX10, DDJ-FLX6, Mixon 8 Pro and Rane One MKII, work with it in free mode; the DJM-S11 and Rane Seventy need a Serato DJ Suite licence.
Controllers that unlock Serato DJ Pro free
Serato's hardware pages say each of these unlocks Serato DJ Pro free when plugged in:
- Pioneer DJ DDJ-REV7. Two channels in a battle layout, with motorised platters and pads for the Stems and Scratch Bank pad modes. DVS is a paid upgrade (Serato).
- Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX10. Four channels, with colour-coded stem buttons that can apply FX to individual stems. DVS is a paid upgrade (Serato).
- Reloop Mixon 8 Pro. Four channels, with displays in the jog wheels and four FX paddles. DVS is a paid upgrade (Serato).
- Rane FOUR. Four channels, with dedicated Stem controls and a Stem-Split feature that puts one track across two channels. DVS is a paid upgrade (Serato).
- Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6. Four channels in a club layout, with Jog Cutter and Merge FX (Serato).
- Rane One MKII. Motorised platters, hardware FX, and controls for Stems and Stems FX. DVS is a paid upgrade (Serato).
- Pioneer DJ DJM-S11 and Rane Seventy. Two-channel battle mixers for turntables that unlock both Serato DJ Pro and Serato DVS (Serato on the DJM-S11, and the Seventy).
These unlock only Serato DJ Lite, so Pro is a paid upgrade on them: the Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX4, Pioneer DJ DDJ-REV1, Numark Mixtrack Platinum FX, Numark NS4FX, Reloop Ready and Hercules DJControl Inpulse 500.
Serato's hardware list changes as controllers come and go, so check a controller's page there before buying. For which one to buy, the best Serato controllers are picked by situation, with what reviews and owners say about each.
How this comparison is made
Every feature, licence and hardware detail on this page comes from Serato's own product pages, pricing page, manuals and hardware pages, read on 9 November 2026 and linked where they are used. Serato moves features between editions as it releases new versions, so its Lite and Pro pages have the current list. We haven't tested the software for this page. The methodology explains how the site works.
