Suno
AI music generator that creates full songs, instrumentals, and vocals from a text prompt; paid plans include commercial use rights.
Pros
- + Generates complete songs, with vocals if you want them, in any genre from a short prompt
- + Instrumental mode is well suited to background music for videos
- + Paid plans include commercial use rights
Cons
- − Free-plan songs come with no commercial rights, so they can't go in monetized videos
- − Since September 2026, paid plans cap monthly downloads (20 on Pro, 60 on Premier)
- − The legal situation is unsettled: several label and rights-society lawsuits are still ongoing
Suno writes and performs music from a text description. Ask for “a slow, tense ambient track with low strings, no vocals” and you get back a finished piece you can drop under narration.
How it works
You describe the genre, mood, and instruments, and optionally add your own lyrics. Suno generates a few variations. Credits pay for generations, and each paid plan includes a monthly download allowance.
Pricing and rights, in practice
The difference between free and paid is legal, not just about volume. On the free plan you get no commercial rights, so a free-tier track in a monetized YouTube video is a problem. Pro and Premier include commercial use, subject to Suno’s terms. Suno’s September 2026 changes introduced monthly download caps and replaced its older models with new ones built with licensed partners. Read our AI music for YouTube guide before you build a channel around it.
Who it’s for
Suno suits narration-heavy channels that need a lot of original background music. If you need legal certainty, such as for client work or brand deals, a traditionally licensed stock-music library is still the safer choice while the lawsuits play out.