Compressor plugins for mixing, mastering and music production

Plugin Alliance offers a range of digital compressor plugins and analog-modeled compressors that emulate the sound of classic hardware. Get the best compressor plugins for dynamic range control, tone shaping, adding glue to your mixes, parallel compression, and audio design, from iconic analog-sounding compressors to the latest and most innovative compressor plugins.

Compressors

- ~~$399~~$79.99
- AMEK
- Mastering Compressor
- ★★★★★
- A precise emulation of one of the most coveted modern stereo compressors. Featuring True RMS detector circuits and crest factor control, it's like having three complementary compressors in one.
- - M/S Inside
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
  - Sale
  - TMT inside
- ~~$329~~$79.99
- Shadow Hills
- Mastering Compressor Class A
- ★★★★★
- This Limited Class A RED Edition is the pinnacle of the Shadow Hills Sound, perfect for mastering, complete with TMT under the hood!
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Hidden Gems
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
  - Sale
  - TMT inside
- ~~$149~~$69.99
- Kiive Audio
- XTComp
- FET compressor plugin with British mode that adds colorful analog-style compression to drums, guitars, basses, and vocals.
- - Creative FX
  - Hardware Emulations
  - M/S Inside
  - NEW!
  - Sale
- ~~$299~~$79.99
- Bettermaker
- Bus Compressor
- ★★★★★
- Use the Bettermaker Bus Compressor plugin to apply warm and punchy bus compression. It includes a THD knob, sidechain filter, and Peak/RMS detection modes.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - NEW!
  - Sale
- ~~$299~~$69.99
- Shadow Hills
- Mastering Compressor
- ★★★★★
- Classic Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor from 2011. Iconic with its green LEDs. Great for drum busses, oozing personality & smooth mojo
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
  - Sale
- ~~$249~~$69.99
- Mixland
- Vac Attack
- ★★★★★
- A warm harmonically-rich optical limiter for compression with tube saturation that’s great on vocals, drums, basses, and your stereo bus.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Hidden Gems
  - Sale
- $249
- NEOLD
- U2A
- ★★★★★
- A homage to what is rightfully considered the ultimate opto compressor of all time, based on sophisticated analog modeling with a couple of nifty tweaks.
- - Hardware Emulations
- ~~$249~~$59.99
- Purple Audio
- MC77
- ★★★★★
- Purple Audio’s impeccable recreation of the classic 1176 FET compressor provides an authentic squeeze with modern updates.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - M/S Inside
  - Made by BX
  - Sale
  - TMT inside
- ~~$299~~$59.99
- SPL
- IRON
- ★★★★★
- Iron is a modern “Vari-Mu” tube compressor, built for mastering and bus compression, with a beautifully musical sound and incredible options for color.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - M/S Inside
  - Made by BX
  - Sale
  - TMT inside
- ~~$249~~$49.99
- elysia
- alpha compressor
- ★★★★★
- The alpha compressor plugin is a faithful software reincarnation of elysia’s legendary $11,000+ analog M/S mastering compressor.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - M/S Inside
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
  - Sale
- ~~$299~~$59.99
- Brainworx
- bx_townhouse Buss Compressor
- ★★★★★
- Plugin of the iconic 1978 Townhouse Buss Compressor: A custom build from SSL parts that delivers iconic compression with extra character and warmth.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Hidden Gems
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
  - Sale
- $249
- NEOLD
- V76U73
- ★★★★★
- An emulation of the Telefunken V76 preamp and U73 compressor of the 1950s.
- - Hardware Emulations
- $249
- NEOLD
- U17
- ★★★★★
- A new take on a legendary sophisticated hybrid design - compress with vintage style!
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Mastering
- $299
- ACME Audio
- Opticom XLA-3
- ★★★★★
- ACME’s vivid Opto Compressor, full of Mojo and Harmonic Coloration!
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Hidden Gems
  - Made by BX
- $149
- Vertigo
- VSC-2
- ★★★★★
- Brainworx take on the Quad Compressor that built its stellar reputation with the four custom hand-built, discrete “1979” VCAs used in its design. The tone of the best VCAs of the 70s and 80s with a modern mastering pathway.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
- $199
- ProAudioDSP
- DSM V3
- ★★★★★
- Pro Audio DSP DSM V3 is a unique, spectral multiband processor. Capture the characteristics of any source, and apply it to any other sound. Incredible Mastering Tool!
- - Creative FX
  - Hidden Gems
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
- $299
- Mäag Audio
- Magnum-K
- ★★★★★
- MAGNUM-K is a dual Compressor + Limiter ft. the famous AIR BAND®! Made by Brainworx and injected with patented TMT (Tolerance Modeling Technology).
- - Hardware Emulations
  - M/S Inside
  - Made by BX
  - TMT inside
- $199
- elysia
- mpressor
- ★★★★★
- With ground-breaking features like a gain reduction limiter and negative ratios, the mpressor redefines what a compressor can do.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Made by BX
- $299
- Lindell Audio
- MBC
- ★★★★★
- Legendary bus compression now with multiple bands for signal processing. For mixing engineers looking to add aggressive character to their mixes, subgroups and select individual tracks.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Hidden Gems
- $149
- Lindell Audio
- 254E
- ★★★★★
- The Classic English Analog Limiter, inspired by the legendary NEVE® 2254E™. The sound of Rock n’ Roll for the Master Buss, Drums, Guitar groups and more.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - Mastering
- $199
- Brainworx
- bx_opto
- ★★★★★
- Brainworx bx_opto is an optical compressor VST plugin with warm, open, and dynamic tones based on various light-dependent circuits.
- - Guitar & Bass
  - Hardware Emulations
  - Made by BX
- $199
- Millennia
- TCL-2
- ★★★★★
- Faithful emulation of this purist-design, $3500 Hardware Opto-Compressor.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - M/S Inside
  - Made by BX
  - Mastering
- $149
- Lindell Audio
- 354E
- ★★★★★
- A multi-band model of the most famous vintage diode bridge compressor, the Neve 2254E.
- - Hardware Emulations
  - M/S Inside
- ~~$99~~$29.99
- Unfiltered Audio
- Zip
- ★★★★★
- The Lamborghini of creative compression sounds. Process your audio based on quietness or darkness? Yes, and more!
- - Creative FX
  - Hidden Gems
  - Mastering
  - Sale
- $29
- Lindell Audio
- 7X-500
- ★★★★★
- A FET feedback compressor/limiter emulation with a classic 1176 tone. Use it to brighten dull mixes and add energy to lifeless recordings.
- - Hardware Emulations
- $49
- Brainworx
- bx_opto Pedal
- ★★★★☆
- A simple-to-use version of Brainworx’s Optical Compression Tone Monster. Great on guitars, vocals and even drums.
- - Guitar & Bass
  - Hardware Emulations
  - Made by BX

More compressor plugins

- ~~$299~~$89.99
- ADPTR AUDIO
- SCULPT
- ★★★★★
- The future of dynamic and tonal control. Thoroughly and cleanly reshape your sound in ways that other processors simply cannot.
- - Hidden Gems
  - Mastering
  - Sale
- ~~$224~~$124.99
- Three-Body Technology
- Cenozoix Compressor
- ★★★★★
- The TBT Cenozoix Compressor plugin provides the sound of 12 classic compressors, distortion-free compression, and anti-derivative antialiasing (ADAA).
- - Hardware Emulations
  - NEW!
  - Sale

The best selection of compressor plugins in pro audio

An analog-modeled compressor like the Purple Audio MC77 can sound responsive and gritty, making it a good fit for applying peak compression to drums. On the other hand, a VST compressor plugin such as the NEOLD U2A, with a relatively slow non-linear release time, delivers a warm and open sound that’s perfect for vocals. Discover the rich and gruff tones of the Brainworx bx_townhouse Buss Compressor for an original take on traditionally clean and snappy SSL-style bus compression.

Vocal and instrumental groups can benefit from the transparent nature of the Bettermaker Bus Compressor, leading to mixes that sound glued together but still have room to breathe. If you’re a mastering engineer who works on pop, hip-hop, or orchestral music, you’ll love the precise and detailed nature of the AMEK Mastering Compressor. For a more colorful approach to mastering, reach for the various tones provided by the Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor Class A.

Plugin Alliance ensures that its VST compressor plugins are compatible with DAWs like Ableton Live, FL Studio, Logic Pro, Pro Tools, and Studio One. All compressor plugins are available as VST compressor plugins as well as AAX DSP, and A for GarageBand.

These compressor plugins are regularly updated to maintain compatibility with the latest MacOS and Windows operating systems. Additionally, all of Plugin Alliance’s VST compressors undergo extensive testing to guarantee stable performance within diverse production environments.

If you can’t decide which compressor plugin to choose, there’s a simple solution. Start a free MEGA trial to demo all Plugin Alliances' compressor plugin VSTs for 30 days.