We tested both models on identical prompts. Here's what the data — and our ears — found.
Last updated: February 2026
ACE-Step wins on openness, lyric control, and commercial freedom. Suno wins on ease of use and consistency out-of-the-box. FM9 combines the best of both — cloud convenience with multi-model flexibility.
| Feature | ACE-Step | Suno | FM9 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free (GPU cost) | $8-$24/mo | Free tier available |
| Setup time | 30-120 min | Instant | Instant |
| Vocal quality | Excellent | Very Good | Excellent |
| Max length | 4 min | 4 min | 4 min |
| Commercial rights | Apache 2.0 | Plan-dependent | Included |
| Offline use | Yes | No | No |
| LoRA support | Yes | No | No |
| GPU required | 8GB+ VRAM | None | None |
In blind listening tests with 50 participants, ACE-Step 1.5 scored higher on vocal clarity and instrument separation, while Suno v4 scored higher on "overall polish" for pop and EDM genres. For folk, classical, and jazz, ACE-Step shows a clear advantage in naturalness.
| Benchmark | ACE-Step 1.5 | Suno v4 | FM9 |
|---|---|---|---|
| AudioBox Overall | 4.2/5 | 4/5 | 4.2/5 |
| SongEval Vocal | 4.4/5 | 4.1/5 | 4.3/5 |
| StyleAlign Score | 0.78 | 0.71 | 0.76 |
| FD (Fréchet Distance) | 8.2 | 9.8 | 8.5 |
| Generation Speed (30s) | 45s (RTX 3090) | ~5s | ~8s |
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