How Much Does It Cost to Record a Song in Toronto?

Most studios answer this question with a form. Here it is with numbers, the same numbers the booking calendar charges, so you can work out a session before you book one.

The short answer

Studio time at 24K is C$80 an hour, any length from one hour to a ten-hour day, with an in-house engineer on every session. On Tuesdays it is C$55 an hour. You pay half online to hold the room and the rest at the studio afterwards.

A song usually takes between two and four hours to track. So a single song, tracked on a weekday, is somewhere between C$160 and C$320 before mixing. On a Tuesday the same session is C$110 to C$220.

That is the whole price for the session. There is no room fee on top, no engineer fee, no setup charge, and no minimum beyond a single hour.

What decides how long a song takes

The rate is flat, so the only variable is time. Three things move it.

How ready you are. A song with a written hook and verses you know cold can be tracked in a couple of hours. A song you are still finishing in the booth, or one where the feature is arriving at hour two, wants more. Send the beat ahead to info@24kstudios.ca, know the lyrics, and warm up before you arrive: the first ten minutes go to your voice instead of a file transfer.

How you work. Some artists sing full passes; some go line by line. Both are fine. At 24K takes are comped as you go, so a hook that lands on take two is finished on take two, and you leave with a decision made rather than forty files to sort through later.

Whether you are doing one song or several. Studio time is booked by the hour, so booking a block and tracking two or three songs inside it costs exactly the same per hour as booking for one. A six-hour session is C$480; a full ten-hour day is C$800. There is no day-rate discount, because the hourly price is already the rate.

Worked examples

• One song, prepared, weekday, two hours: C$160. Deposit online is half of that, the rest at the desk.
• One song, still finishing it, weekday, four hours: C$320.
• Three songs in a six-hour session: C$480, which is the same hourly price as one.
• The same three songs on a Tuesday: C$330.
• A full day, ten hours: C$800 on a weekday, C$550 on a Tuesday.

Sessions must finish by closing, which is 2 AM every day including holidays, so a late start is fine and a long one is too.

What mixing and mastering add

Tracking gets you a comped vocal on the beat. A finished, release-ready song also needs a mix and a master, and those are priced per song rather than by the hour, whether you tracked at 24K or somewhere else.

Mixing is priced by how many track stems the song has: C$150 for a song with up to 24 stems, C$200 up to 48, C$250 up to 72, and C$300 up to 96. Above that it is quoted. Mastering is C$100 a track. Both are paid in full at checkout and come back within three days of the files landing.

If you want both done together and sent from wherever you are, the remote mix and master package is C$300 a song. If you would rather be in the room for it, a four-hour in-person mix and master session for one song is C$450.

So a single song, tracked in two hours on a weekday, mixed at the smallest stem band and mastered, comes to C$160 plus C$150 plus C$100. That is the full cost from first take to a file you can send to a distributor. The mixing and mastering prices are laid out in more detail in their own piece.

How the money moves

Studio time takes a half deposit online when you book. The balance is paid at the studio after the session, by card, debit or cash. Cancel or move the session with 24 hours or more notice and the deposit comes back in full, to the card, with the studio absorbing the processing fee. Inside 24 hours it is not refunded.

Mixing and mastering are paid in full at checkout, because the work starts the moment the files arrive. Before it does, an engineer listens and tells you honestly whether the files are workable. If the vocals were recorded too poorly to save, the studio says so and refunds in full.

What you are paying for

The rate covers the room and the engineer together. The booth is isolated at the wall rather than treated after the fact, so a take does not carry the room into the mix. The chain is a Neumann U87 or a Warm Audio WA-87 into a Neve 1073SPX or a Universal Audio SOLO/610, into a Universal Audio Apollo x16, monitored on ATC SCM12 Pro. The engineer sets that chain for your voice, gets a level before the clock has done anything, and comps as you go.

The calendar is at www.24kstudios.ca/book-online. If you are not sure how many hours to book, call (647) 389-6649 or email info@24kstudios.ca first. A straight answer is quicker than guessing.

Questions people ask

How is studio time at 24K Studios priced?

By the hour, at one flat rate, for any length from a single hour to a ten-hour day. Every session includes the room and an in-house engineer. Tuesdays are a lower hourly rate. The exact figures are on the services page and the booking calendar.

How long does it take to record one song?

Usually two to four hours. A song you know cold with a written hook tracks in a couple of hours; a song you are still finishing, or one with a feature arriving mid-session, takes longer. The rate is flat, so time is the only variable.

Is there a discount for booking a full day?

No. The hourly rate is already the rate, so a ten-hour day costs ten times the hour and a six-hour block costs six times. Booking a longer block and tracking several songs inside it costs the same per hour as booking for one.

Do I pay everything up front?

No. Studio time takes a half deposit online to hold the room, and the balance is paid at the studio after the session. Mixing and mastering are paid in full at checkout because the work starts when the files arrive.

What happens if I cancel?

With 24 hours or more notice the deposit is refunded in full to your card, and rescheduling is free. Inside 24 hours the deposit is not refunded.

24K Studios is at 550 Queen St E, Toronto, open 9 AM to 2 AM every day. Music · Voice & corporate · Services and rates · Book studio time