Reader's Choice Free CD and DVD Burning Software

CD and DVD burning software is an indispensable part of having a computer. From making backups, to creating music CDs, to sharing files with friends and family, I still burn many disks every week. Burning integration in Windows and apps like iTunes and Windows Media Player hasn't done away with the need to have an standalone application specifically for burning because those tools are hobbled to the point they only work for certain functions. As part of the reader survey, 102 different burning applications were recommended. The following list is the most popular from that group.

Reader's Choice: CDBurnerXP Pro received 20% of votes to lead the pack in this collection of CD/DVD burning tools. It's simple workflow translates to creating data disks of virtually any type, including support for burning data to HD-DVD and Blu-ray disks. The app also makes ISO files, including the handy feature of converting BIN and NRG formats to ISO.

Editor's Choice: ImgBurn is the app I use for most of my DVD burning needs. It was also selected by 16% of readers as their favorite CD and DVD burning software. I like ImgBurn's longstanding support for virtually any shiny disk type you want to create. It handles every disk image I've ever tried with it. Audio CD burning with ImgBurn is on par with another personal favorite, Burrrn.

3) DeepBurner was selected by 8% of readers as their favorite burner. One of the strongest features of the free version of DeepBurner is a portable variation that can be used from a USB drive, giving you access to DVD burning no matter where you are. If you want to burn video DVDs, you have to pay for the pro version of the software.

4) Burn4Free recevied 7% of reader's votes as their favorite DVD burner. I'm specifically not linking to the app because as far as I can tell they have not stopped bundling adware with the burner. As I pointed out several years ago, they bundle NavExcel with Burn4Free, which is an app I don't want on my system. A recent check of SiteAdvisor.com and Sophos suggests this practice hasn't changed.

5) AVS Disk Creator received 5% of reader votes. The software publisher raves about its Blu-ray support, which is great but far from the only solution for Blu-ray data burning. AVS makes solid tools in general, making this a safe choice if one of the other didn't spark your fancy.

Nero received an additional 5% of votes, but since it's not free, I'm excluding it from the list of free apps here. The remaining votes were spread widely across the large field of CD/DVD burning applications.

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