Skip to content

Side-by-side comparison · Video & Audio

Async vs Google Flow Music vs Screen Studio

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Async

4.2

From $0

Google Flow Music

4.3

From $0

Best overall

Screen Studio

4.4

From $9/mo

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

Pick it if: Podcasters and small teams who want recording, editing, clips and hosting in one place.

Best value

Pick it if: Creators and small businesses who want custom songs, jingles or background music, and hobbyists who just want to make music.

Best overallEasiest to use

Pick it if: Founders, course creators and marketers on a Mac who record product demos, tutorials and walkthroughs.

Screen Studio scores highest overall, but Google Flow Music gives you more for your money. Which one is right comes down to what you value most.

Overview

AttributeAsyncGoogle Flow MusicScreen Studio
In one lineRecord, edit and publish podcasts and videos, with AI that edits when you ask.Google's AI music studio: chat to make full songs, edit them, and make a music video.Mac screen recorder that adds smooth zooms and cursor moves to make polished demos.
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemiumPaid
Starting price$0$0$9/mo
Free plan Yes Yes No
Works with Claude Code No No No

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeAsyncGoogle Flow MusicScreen Studio
Overall rating4.24.34.4Winner
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.5
4.5
5.0
FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together.
4.5
4.5
4.0
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
4.0
4.0
5.0
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.0
4.5
3.5
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
4.0
4.0
4.5

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeAsyncGoogle Flow MusicScreen Studio
Access & platform
Free plan Yes Yes No
Mobile app Yes Yes No
Desktop app No No Yes
Browser extension No No No
API access– No No
Teams & business
Team workspace Yes No No
Enterprise plan or SSO Yes No No
Connects to other apps Yes No No
Open source or self-hosted No No No
AI abilities
Works with your files Yes Yes No
Understands images–––
Makes images Yes Yes No
Makes video Yes Yes No
Writes code No Yes No
Runs agents or automations Yes No No
Learns your brand or style Yes––
Works in many languages Yes Yes No
Capabilities score11/ 177/ 171/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeAsyncGoogle Flow MusicScreen Studio
Plans

Free

$0

Trying the editor.

Free

$0

Trying it and making the odd song.

YearlyOur pick

$9/mo, billed $108 a year

Anyone making demos regularly.

Essentials

$11.99/mo billed yearly

Solo podcasters getting started.

StarterOur pick

$6/mo

Creators who need music every week.

Monthly

$29/mo

A one-off launch or project.

ProOur pick

$23.99/mo billed yearly

Creators publishing weekly.

Plus

$18/mo

Heavy users and music videos.

Teams

$49.99 per creator/mo billed yearly

Small teams producing a lot.

Member

$48/mo

Musicians who live in it.

Business

Custom

Larger organisations.

Which plan to pickPro suits most weekly podcasts, because Essentials' 4 recording hours a month runs out fast with guests. Yearly billing saves about 40% on the monthly price.Start on Free, since the daily credits go a long way for background music. Starter is cheap enough to take once you're making music every week. Yearly billing saves about 25%.Pay yearly if you'll record more than a couple of months, since it works out about a third of the monthly price. For a single launch video, one month is enough. Students and teachers get 40% off.

Key features

AttributeAsyncGoogle Flow MusicScreen Studio
Standout features
  • Remote recording studio
  • Edit by transcript
  • Magic Dust
  • Chat-based editing
  • Clips and publishing
  • AI generation
  • Producer chat
  • Section-by-section editing
  • Music videos
  • Stems and remixing
  • Spaces
  • Automatic zoom
  • Smooth cursor
  • Backgrounds and layouts
  • 4K exports and GIFs
  • Shareable links and transcripts
  • Private by design

Pros and cons

AttributeAsyncGoogle Flow MusicScreen Studio
Pros
  • Records, edits, cleans and publishes in one app
  • Transcript editing is easy for beginners
  • Magic Dust audio clean-up works well
  • Cheaper than Riverside plus Descript
  • Full songs with natural vocals from a short chat
  • Generous free tier and a low $6 entry plan
  • Edit parts of a song without starting over
  • Music videos and stem splitting in the same app
  • Polished results with almost no editing
  • Very easy to use
  • Recordings stay on your Mac
  • Every feature in every plan
Cons
  • The rebrand and new AI features mean the app is still changing
  • Recording hours are capped on every plan
  • Overlaps Riverside and Descript, which each do their part better
  • Credits for AI generation go quickly with video models
  • Commercial use terms are less clear than Suno's paid plans
  • Adults only, and the mobile app is iPhone only for now
  • Like every AI music tool, songs can sound generic without good prompts
  • No public API to automate it
  • Mac only, with no Windows version planned
  • Now a subscription; one-off licences are no longer sold
  • Monthly price is steep for occasional use
  • Not built for team messaging like Loom

Who each one is for

AttributeAsyncGoogle Flow MusicScreen Studio
Best for
  • Recording remote podcast interviews
  • Editing episodes by editing the transcript
  • Cleaning up audio in one click
  • Hosting and publishing a podcast
  • Custom background music for videos
  • Jingles and short brand songs
  • Turning lyrics into a finished track
  • Making a music video for a song
  • Product demo videos for a website or launch
  • Tutorials and course lessons
  • Social clips showing an app in action
  • Website walkthroughs for clients
You'll find it used by
  • Podcasters
  • Content creators
  • Small teams
  • Educators
  • Content creators
  • Musicians
  • Small businesses
  • Hobbyists
  • Founders
  • Course creators
  • Marketers
  • Designers

Questions people ask

Which is better, Async, Google Flow Music or Screen Studio?

Screen Studio scores highest overall in our ratings (Async 4.2/5, Google Flow Music 4.3/5 and Screen Studio 4.4/5). Async is best for recording remote podcast interviews and editing episodes by editing the transcript. Google Flow Music is best for custom background music for videos and jingles and short brand songs. Screen Studio is best for product demo videos for a website or launch and tutorials and course lessons.

Which is cheaper, Async, Google Flow Music or Screen Studio?

Async: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $0. Google Flow Music: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $0. Screen Studio: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $9/mo.

Which is easier to use, Async, Google Flow Music or Screen Studio?

Screen Studio rates highest for ease of use in our scores. Founders, course creators and marketers on a Mac who record product demos, tutorials and walkthroughs.

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

Swap in another tool

More tools from Video & Audio in the library.