Should you delete Reapeaks files from REAPER?

If you've ever imported audio or recorded something in REAPER, you've probably noticed files with a .reapeak extension showing up all over your system, right next to your audio files.

That's the default behavior. REAPER saves those files in the same location as the audio they belong to, which can scatter them across your entire computer.

In this article I'll explain what those files are and how to keep them all in one place.

🔍 What are .reapeak files?

.reapeak files are small files REAPER generates automatically to draw the waveforms you see in your tracks. Think of them as pictures of your audio.

The important thing to know is that they're completely expendable. If you delete them, REAPER just regenerates them the next time you open the project. Nothing is lost.

🗂️ Set a dedicated folder for your ReaPeaks

Instead of letting REAPER scatter them everywhere, you can point them all to one dedicated folder.

1. Go to Preferences > Paths
2. Check the option "Store all peak caches in alternate path"
3. Set a path to a folder you create for this, like /Documents/ReaPeaks

From that point on, all your .reapeak files will go there instead.

🧹 Clean it out every once in a while

Since these files accumulate over time, I recommend going into that folder every month or so and just deleting everything inside 👍

Nothing will break. REAPER rebuilds the peaks automatically the next time you open any project!

I like to set a an automatic reminder on my phone every 2 months to clean up that folder, it can surprisingly get very large!

that’s it, reaperfriends 💙