Organize FL Studio Plugin Database VSTs

Updated: Nov 25, 2023

In this article we cover how to organize the Plugin database in FL Studio.

This will also include how to create image thumbnails for plugins in FL Studio!

The Plugin Database is where users customize the organization of their VST plugins in FL Studio.

The Effects and Generators folders are for users to customize. The Installed folder is where we PULL VST Plugins from (do not delete plugins in the Installed folder).

I think my approach is the best way to organize VSTs in FL Studio!

This video shows how to keep the FL Studio Plugin database organized. My custom music folder (course) teaches how to organize FL Studio files to transfer to a new music computer, and allows for EASY backups!

How Does the Plugin database work?

FL Studio creates three folders for us: Effects, Generators, and Installed.

Difference Between Effects, Generators, and Installed Folder

Effects are plugins like Equalizers (EQ), Compressors, Reverbs, Delays, Chorus, Distortion.. and similar effect plugins.

Generators are plugins like instruments, but can also be other things video players.

Note, we only use the Effects and Generators to customize our Plugin database for our own organization purposes. We do not touch the “Installed” folder, we just pull from it! (The plugins stored can be in VST2 or VST3 formats.. VST3 plugins are typically found in the Commons Folder).

Installed is where FL Studio sees all VSTs on your computer, depending what folder paths you included in the FL Studio Plugin Manager, which can be accessed in Settings (F10), selecting the File tab, and selecting “Manage plugins”.

Once the FL Studio Plugin Manager is opened, you can add and remove folders to the far left of “Plugin search paths” with the + or x folder icon:

So guess what? The Installed folder now sees all the plugins that the FL Studio Plugin Manager just scanned for you in the various folder paths you’ve included!!!!

After scanning (“Find more plugins” button at top of Plugin Manager), you can now close the Plugin Manager, and go back to the FL Studio Plugin database in the Browser:

Now, after seeing these different VST formats (VST, VST3, and Fruity), the question is “Which one do you choose?”.

Well, Fruity is FL Studio’s own built-in plugins which are not able to be used outside of FL Studio. So use those for any stock FL Studio plugins!

Now, the industry is continuing to evolve into VST3 format, which is the next version of VST to come (similar to MIDI 2.0), so if your plugin supports VST3, and it works well in FL Studio, I would suggest the VST3 version, as it will have the latest technology built-in and ready to adapt as things evolve. But there’s nothing wrong with VST2, if that’s all your plugin offers, or if the VST3 version is buggy compared to the VST2 version.

When you are installing VSTs, if you just use FL Studio for your audio plugins, then installing only the VST3 version is what I’d suggest! However, if you also use audio plugins for other things, like video editing, then I’d install the VST3 and VST2 64-Bit versions so you can use your high-quality VSTs you are familiar with no matter where you work with audio!

How to Add a VST to the Plugin database

Not only is FL Studio awesome for lifetime free updates, but the workflow is very intuitive and well-thought out.. like I’ll explain when adding a plugin to this database below.

To add a plugin to the Plugin database, we simply open a plugin, and in the top-left menu arrow, select “Add to plugin database (flag as favorite)”. It is as simple as that, and FL Studio will create an image for you, and you’re good to go.

But if you’re reading this, you probably want to get organized in various folders like EQ, Delay, Reverb, then have your various EQ, Delay, and Reverb plugins go into those respective folders.

So the trick is to first go to that particular folder in the Plugin database in the Browser sidebar. You have to click and highlight that folder inside FL Studio, then you can select “Add to plugin database (flag as favorite)”, which will add the plugin and image into that particular folder.

Where to Access the Plugin database?

I personally suggest creating the folder structure you want for your Effects and Generators outside of FL Studio. FL Studio will automatically see the updated folder structure when you are adding/removing folders and plugins, which you’ll learn below.

To access the Plugin database, the easiest way is to just right-click a folder like Effects or Generators in the Browser, and select “Open”, which opens the folder for you right away!

But here’s the folder path. Remember, FL Studio now stores all user files in Documents, which is quite easy now!

C:\Users\[*YOUR USERNAME*]\Documents\Image-Line\FL Studio\Presets\Plugin database

So as you can see, the Plugin database for us users to customize our plugins in Effects and Generators lives inside the Documents folder.

By default, FL Studio folder structure is helpful. However, like explained in the video, upon updating, FL Studio would add plugins back and mess up my Plugin database organization I did, which took a couple hours!! So I create an extra folder inside Effects and Generators, and label it as “My Effects” and “My Generators”. I keep those “My” folders backed up, and are my “main copy” of my plugins. I simply copy and paste this “My Effects” folder into a new FL Studio install, which is very quick, and you may have to remove duplicated images (easy fix!).

Now inside “My Effects” I create a custom folder structure like EQ, Reverb, Distortion to stay organized, and so FL Studio will not touch my own folder structure. If FL Studio does update, I can see if I want to use those new plugins, and if not, I can remove them or just leave them depending on how organized you like to get!

The Different Files Stored in Plugin Database

Now, when you go “Add to plugin database (flag as favorite)”, FL Studio stores 3 files for each plugin. It has a .fst, .nfo, and .png file. Note, the .png must be hidden so you do not see duplicated files in the Browser!

Most Important Plugins for FL Studio

If you take my FL Studio courses, you know I’m a huge fan of FabFilter plugins.

However, if you’re still using stock plugins, here’s some of the best FL Studio stock plugins to keep around in your Plugin Database as your organizing:

• Fruity Parametric EQ2
• Fruity Reeverb 2
• Fruity Delay 3
• Fruity Stereo Enhancer
• Fruity Chorus
• Fruity Blood Overdrive
• Fruity WaveShaper
• Fruity Soft Clipper
• Pitcher

There’s many other powerful FL Studio stock plugins, but these are ones I highly recommend you use! You can view all the FL Studio stock plugins here.

How to Get More Plugins for FL Studio?

There’s a couple things to say about adding more plugins into FL Studio..

That is.. SELECT WISE PLUGINS AS A PRODUCER (to avoid gear lust), and high-quality plugins make all the difference in terms of quality, workflow, and enjoyment!

• Best VSTi Plugins (Virtual Instruments)
• Best VST Plugins (Mixing/Mastering Plugins)
• Best Drum Samples for FL Studio
• HOW TO SELECT THE RIGHT PLUGINS

Watch the video above for how to install plugins in FL Studio within the plugin database!

Wrapping Up FL Studio Plugin database

If you have any questions, please see my FL Studio Plugin database articles.

Organization truly is the #1 most important thing for a music producer, and this Plugin database allows us to access the plugins we want quickly when selecting Generators or Effects in the drop down menus in the Channel rack or Mixer.

If you would like to learn more about my FL Studio organization, view my custom music folder course.

I also have a book about creating your own FL Studio template, as a template can actually do you harm if you don’t set one up tailored to your own workflow! (I also have my own personal FL Studio template to buy).

Finally, feel free to contact me any time, or watch some of my FL Studio courses!

About Author: GratuiTous

GratuiTous discovered FL Studio around 2009 when a friend introduced him to the DAW.. he then began making FL Studio tutorials in 2011 which lead to creating his Beatmaker Training Platform. He also authors music production books, and hosts the "Music Production Made Simple Podcast". Fun Fact: He was an electrician in Canada for 10 Years!

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