What is the best way to move a project between two DAWs?

If a native converter exists for your pair, it preserves the most: tracks, clips, MIDI, automation, tempo maps, markers and routing arrive editable. If not, export stems for the audio plus a MIDI file for the notes — it always works, but you lose the editable project structure.

§ Guide · Moving sessions

How to convert projects between DAWs

Q: Can you convert a project from one DAW to another?

Yes, but no single method covers every pair of DAWs. The universal fallbacks are stem exports (audio only) and MIDI files (notes only). AAF/OMF carries audio placement between the DAWs that support it, DAWproject is an open format a few DAWs read and write, and dedicated converters rebuild a project natively for specific pairs — for Logic Pro and Ableton Live, Doseedo converts complete projects in both directions.

Q: Do plugins transfer between DAWs?

Third-party plugin preset state generally doesn't transfer with any method — save presets inside each plugin and reload them in the destination DAW. Doseedo's Logic ↔ Ableton conversion maps stock compressor, reverb and delay settings to the destination DAW's native devices; other plugins arrive placed on the correct track as slots to re-fill.

Q: Is there a universal DAW project format?

Not one that everything reads. DAWproject is an open format with real momentum but limited adoption; AAF and OMF are older interchange formats aimed at audio post, and several major DAWs (including Ableton Live) don't read them at all. Every DAW still ships its own proprietary project format.

Updated July 2026

Every DAW saves projects in its own proprietary format, and none of them opens another's. A Logic .logicx, an Ableton .als, an FL Studio .flp, a Pro Tools .ptx — each is unreadable to the others, by design. There are exactly four real ways to move a project across that wall: stems, MIDI files, interchange formats, and native converters. Here's what each one actually carries, and which pairs of DAWs each one works for.

Why DAW projects are incompatible in the first place

A project file isn't audio — it's a database of decisions: which files sit where on the timeline, how regions loop and fade, what tempo the grid follows at bar 57, which knob of which plugin is automated by which curve. Every DAW models those decisions differently and stores them in an undocumented format that changes between versions. No standards body sits above them, so "just open it in the other DAW" has never existed. Moving a project means translating it — and each method below translates a different amount.

Method 1: Stems — universal, but flattened

Export every track from bar 1 as its own audio file, then drag the files into the other DAW. This works between any two DAWs ever made, which is why it's the default advice on every forum. The cost: the project arrives frozen. MIDI becomes rendered audio, automation is baked in, your tempo map is gone, plugins are gone, and every edit you might want to make ("raise that synth an octave") now needs the original session. Stems are the right call when the destination only needs to hear the parts — a DJ set, a vocalist's reference — not edit them.

Method 2: MIDI files — notes only

Every DAW imports and exports standard MIDI files, so the notes themselves are portable: select the regions, export a .mid, drag it in on the other side. You get pitches, timing, CC and (usually) tempo — and none of the sounds, since a MIDI file references no instruments. It pairs with stems: audio for the sound, MIDI for the editability. The traps (channel merging, loop unrolling, lost track assignments) are covered in the MIDI transfer guide.

Method 3: Interchange formats — AAF, OMF, DAWproject

AAF and OMF come from the film-post world: they carry audio clips with timeline placement, fades and levels between the DAWs that support them (Pro Tools, Logic, Cubase/Nuendo, REAPER and others). They carry no MIDI, no plugins, no software instruments — and some major DAWs simply don't read them: Ableton Live has no AAF or OMF import at all.

DAWproject is the modern attempt: an open, XML-based project format that carries tracks, clips, MIDI and automation. It's genuinely good — where it's supported. As of mid-2026 that's a short list (Bitwig Studio, PreSonus Studio One, Steinberg Cubase, and a few others); neither Logic Pro nor Ableton Live reads or writes it. If both your DAWs are on the supported list, use it; the pair this site cares about isn't.

Method 4: Native converters — a real project on the other side

The last method is software that reads one DAW's project format directly and rebuilds the project natively in the other's: tracks stay tracks, MIDI stays editable MIDI, automation stays curves, the tempo map stays a tempo map. Because the formats are proprietary and undocumented, converters are built per pair, and only a few pairs are covered at all:

Logic Pro ↔ Ableton Live: Doseedo converts complete projects in both directions — a .logicx in, a native .als out, or the reverse. Tracks with names and colors, audio clips with fades and clip gain, MIDI with CC and pitch bend, multi-point tempo and meter maps, markers, breakpoint automation, buses and sends all carry; stock compressor/reverb/delay settings map to native devices, other plugins arrive as placed slots to re-fill. It runs in the browser, free to start. (Disclosure: this guide is published by Doseedo.)
AATranslator is the long-running commercial converter for a wide set of mostly audio-centric formats (Pro Tools, REAPER, OMF/AAF and many more) — Windows software, strongest on audio placement rather than MIDI/instrument projects, and it doesn't cover the Logic ↔ Ableton pair.
Open-source scripts exist for single directions of specific pairs (for example logic2ableton for Logic → Ableton stems-and-MIDI packages). Coverage and fidelity vary; see the full comparison.

The honest limits of any converter: third-party plugin preset state isn't reconstructed (save presets in the plugin, reload on the other side), and anything with no equivalent in the destination DAW has to be approximated or skipped. The point of a native conversion isn't perfection — it's that you keep an editable project instead of a pile of frozen audio.

Which method should you use?

Both DAWs are Logic Pro or Ableton Live? Convert natively — Logic → Ableton or Ableton → Logic — and keep the project editable.
Both DAWs support DAWproject? Use it.
Audio-only session moving toward post/mixing, both sides support AAF? AAF carries placement and fades.
Anything else — stems plus a MIDI file. It always works; budget time to rebuild.

Moving between Logic and Ableton? Convert the real project

Drop a .logicx or .als and download the session rebuilt natively in the other DAW — tracks, MIDI, automation, tempo maps and routing intact. 5 conversions a month free, no account.

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FAQ

Can you convert a project from one DAW to another?

Yes — but no single method covers every pair. Stems and MIDI files work everywhere and lose the most; AAF/OMF and DAWproject work where both sides support them; native converters preserve the most but exist only for specific pairs, like Doseedo for Logic ↔ Ableton.

What's the best way to move a project between two DAWs?

If a native converter covers your pair, use it — the project arrives editable. Otherwise export stems for the audio and a MIDI file for the notes, and rebuild in the destination.

Do plugins transfer between DAWs?

Third-party preset state doesn't transfer with any method — save presets inside each plugin and reload them. In a Doseedo conversion, stock compressor, reverb and delay settings map to the destination DAW's native devices; other plugins arrive placed on the right track as slots to re-fill.

Is there a universal DAW project format?

No. DAWproject is the closest attempt and adoption is growing but short of universal; AAF/OMF cover audio placement for the post world; and every DAW still ships its own proprietary format.