To change pitch in Premiere Pro, drag Audio Effects > Time and Pitch > Pitch Shifter onto the audio clip, open Effect Controls, click Edit next to Custom Setup and set the Semi-tones (−2 lowers a whole step). The tempo stays the same. No Premiere? Our free video pitch changer does it in the browser.
Three ways to change pitch in Premiere Pro
Premiere Pro has one real pitch effect, one speed setting that can move the pitch with it, and a round trip to Adobe Audition for harder jobs. Names below follow Adobe’s current Premiere Pro help pages; older live guides that mention a “Stretch and Pitch” effect in Premiere are describing Audition.
| Method | Where | Pitch | Speed | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitch Shifter effect | Effects panel: Audio Effects > Time and Pitch | Semi-tones ±12, Cents ±100 | Kept | New key for music, higher or lower voice |
| Speed/Duration | Clip > Speed/Duration (or right-click the clip) | Follows speed unless Maintain Audio Pitch is on | Changes | Slow motion, speed ramps, tape effects |
| Edit in Adobe Audition | Edit > Edit in Adobe Audition > Clip | Stretch and Pitch, pitch correction | Optional | Speech, heavy shifts, tuning vocals |
How to use the Pitch Shifter in Premiere Pro
- Open the Effects panel (Window > Effects).
- Expand Audio Effects > Time and Pitch, or type “Pitch Shifter” in the panel’s search box.
- Drag Pitch Shifter onto the audio clip in the Timeline. For a video, drop it on the clip’s audio; the picture is not changed.
- Select the clip and open Window > Effect Controls. Expand Pitch Shifter.
- Click Edit next to Custom Setup. If you can’t see Edit, the effect is collapsed or the clip is not selected.
- Under Pitch Transpose, set Semi-tones: −1 to −3 lowers a song or voice, +1 to +3 raises it; ±12 is one octave. Use Cents (−100 to +100) for fine tuning. Ratio shows the same change as a factor (0.5 to 2.0).
- Set Precision to high precision for music, close the dialog and play the clip.
- Export with File > Export > Media (or the Export tab).
Count the steps between two keys with the semitones-to-change-key table, or find the current key first with the song key finder.
How to keyframe the Pitch Shifter (gradual pitch or a pitch transition)
In Effect Controls, open the Pitch Shifter’s Individual Parameters and turn on the stopwatch of the transpose parameter; each keyframe holds a pitch, and Premiere moves between them. That is how you make a pitch drop at the end of a clip or a “pitch shift transition” between two scenes. Parameter names can differ slightly between versions, so check what your panel shows.
Pitch Shifter values: semitones, cents and ratio
The Semi-tones and Ratio fields describe the same change: ratio = 2semitones/12. One semitone is 100 cents. Use the table when you want to type the Ratio, or check what a shift does to a 440 Hz note.
| Semi-tones | Ratio | Frequency change | A4 440 Hz becomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| -12 | 0.5000 | -50.00 % | 220.00 Hz |
| -7 | 0.6674 | -33.26 % | 293.66 Hz |
| -5 | 0.7492 | -25.08 % | 329.63 Hz |
| -3 | 0.8409 | -15.91 % | 369.99 Hz |
| -2 | 0.8909 | -10.91 % | 392.00 Hz |
| -1 | 0.9439 | -5.61 % | 415.30 Hz |
| +1 | 1.0595 | +5.95 % | 466.16 Hz |
| +2 | 1.1225 | +12.25 % | 493.88 Hz |
| +3 | 1.1892 | +18.92 % | 523.25 Hz |
| +5 | 1.3348 | +33.48 % | 587.33 Hz |
| +7 | 1.4983 | +49.83 % | 659.26 Hz |
| +12 | 2.0000 | +100.00 % | 880.00 Hz |
For any other value, the semitone calculator converts semitones, cents and ratios.
How to change speed and keep the pitch (Maintain Audio Pitch)
- Select the clip, then choose Clip > Speed/Duration (or right-click the clip > Speed/Duration).
- Type the new Speed in percent: 100 % is normal, 50 % is half speed, 200 % is double.
- Tick Maintain Audio Pitch to keep the voice or music at its original pitch. Leave it off for a tape or record effect.
- Tick Ripple Edit, Shifting Trailing Clips if later clips should move, then click OK.
With Maintain Audio Pitch off, the pitch moves by 12 × log2(speed). Small speed changes already make a clear pitch change:
| Speed | Pitch change | In cents | A 440 Hz tone plays at |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 % | -12.00 semitones | -1200 cents | 220.00 Hz |
| 75 % | -4.98 semitones | -498 cents | 330.00 Hz |
| 80 % | -3.86 semitones | -386 cents | 352.00 Hz |
| 90 % | -1.82 semitones | -182 cents | 396.00 Hz |
| 95 % | -0.89 semitones | -89 cents | 418.00 Hz |
| 105 % | +0.84 semitones | +84 cents | 462.00 Hz |
| 110 % | +1.65 semitones | +165 cents | 484.00 Hz |
| 125 % | +3.86 semitones | +386 cents | 550.00 Hz |
| 150 % | +7.02 semitones | +702 cents | 660.00 Hz |
| 200 % | +12.00 semitones | +1200 cents | 880.00 Hz |
To undo that pitch change while keeping the new speed, add a Pitch Shifter with the opposite value (for 110 %, about −1.65 semitones: −1 semitone and −65 cents). Why speed and pitch are linked is explained in pitch vs tempo; outside Premiere, see how to change pitch without changing speed.
Better quality: voices, big shifts and pitch correction
- Keep shifts small. ±1 to ±3 semitones sounds natural on most material; beyond about ±5, voices start to sound like chipmunks or giants.
- Voices: the Pitch Shifter moves the formants with the pitch, so a raised voice sounds smaller. For speech, send the clip to Audition (Edit > Edit in Adobe Audition > Clip) and use Effects > Time and Pitch > Stretch and Pitch with Preserve Speech Characteristics; after you save, the clip updates in Premiere.
- Render once: set the final value instead of stacking two Pitch Shifters.
- Essential Sound (Window > Essential Sound) handles loudness, repair, clarity, reverb and ducking; it has no pitch or key setting.
Pitch correction in Premiere Pro (Auto-Tune style)
Premiere Pro has no pitch correction. Pitch Shifter moves every note by the same amount; it does not tune a singer. Adobe Audition has Automatic and Manual Pitch Correction effects, and other options are compared in the best pitch correction software.
No Premiere Pro? Change the pitch of a video in the browser
For one video in a new key, a browser tool is faster than a Premiere project: open the MP4, press −2, download. Our online pitch changer family runs on your device and uploads nothing. The video pitch changer copies the picture untouched: in our tests 18 of 18 exported videos had byte-identical picture data, the worst pitch error was 0.080 cents and the sound stayed within one frame of the picture (how our tools are tested).
- Songs and MP3 or WAV files: audio pitch changer.
- A YouTube song in your key: YouTube pitch changer.
- Speed and pitch together or apart: pitch and tempo changer.
- Deeper or higher voice with formant correction: vocal pitch changer.
- Hear every key by name: online key changer.
Editing on a Mac? The same job in Apple’s editor is in how to change pitch in Final Cut Pro. Free desktop option: changing pitch in Audacity; on a phone: changing pitch on mobile.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the Pitch Shifter in Premiere Pro?
In the Effects panel under Audio Effects > Time and Pitch > Pitch Shifter. Type “Pitch Shifter” in the search box if the folder is closed. Its settings open from Effect Controls > Custom Setup > Edit.
How do I lower the pitch of audio in Premiere Pro?
Apply Pitch Shifter, click Edit next to Custom Setup and type a negative Semi-tones value, e.g. −2 for a whole step down or −12 for an octave down. The clip keeps its length.
How do I change speed without changing pitch in Premiere Pro?
Use Clip > Speed/Duration, type the new speed and tick Maintain Audio Pitch. Without the tick, 125 % speed also raises the pitch by about 3.86 semitones.
Can I change the pitch of a voice in Premiere Pro?
Yes, with Pitch Shifter: −3 to −5 semitones gives a deeper voice, +3 to +5 a higher one. For a natural result on speech, edit the clip in Adobe Audition or use a formant-corrected voice tool.
Does Premiere Pro have pitch correction or Auto-Tune?
No. Premiere’s Pitch Shifter transposes; it does not correct notes. Use Adobe Audition’s pitch correction effects or a dedicated plugin.
Why does the Pitch Shifter sound robotic?
Large shifts, low precision and compressed sources cause artefacts. Use high precision, stay within ±5 semitones and start from the best audio you have. Still stuck? See our troubleshooting page or the other pitch and key guides.
Mayer runs Online Pitch Changer (OnlinePitchChanger.com) independently. Mayer maintains the site’s free browser tools for changing the pitch, key and tempo of audio, video and voice, and writes and checks its guides on keys, semitones, transposition and vocal ranges. Each rebuilt tool is tested before release with measured test tones, and app steps in the guides are checked against official manuals such as the Audacity manual and Apple’s GarageBand guide. Audio processed with the tools never leaves the reader’s browser. Mayer is not affiliated with YouTube, Google or any audio software company. For corrections or tool problems, see the Contact page.