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Migrate · Mixed In Key to Serato DJ

Move from Mixed In Key to Serato DJ.

Analyze the beatgrids in Serato first with Set Key switched off, then let Mixed In Key write its key, energy, and cue points into the same files. Here is exactly what carries across, what gets lost, and how to bring your whole library over without starting from scratch.

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A DJ library organized in Vibes with BPM, key, and vibe tags intact after moving from Mixed In Key to Serato DJ

Bring your collection across without losing your work.

Do it in that order and Serato shows the analyzer's results in the Comments column, as something like 8A - Energy 7, with up to eight cue points sitting exactly on the beatgrid. Reverse the order and the cue points land between beats, because they are snapped to whatever grid existed at the moment they were exported.

What transfers from Mixed In Key to Serato DJ.

CapabilityCarriesWhat happens
Audio filesNothing is copied or moved. Both apps work on the same files on your drive; only the tags inside them change.
PlaylistsMixed In Key is an analyzer, not a library. It holds no crates, so your crate structure stays exactly as Serato already has it.
Key & BPMWritten into the initial key tag and the comment field, and shown in Serato once you re-analyze with Set Key off.
Hot cuesExport Cue Points writes up to eight per track into Serato's cue slots, and only lines up if the Serato beatgrid was built first.
BeatgridsSerato builds its own grid. The analyzer never writes one, which is why grid analysis has to happen before the cue export.
Star ratingsThere is no rating field in the analyzer. Ratings stay in Serato's own library database and are untouched by this workflow.
Comments & tagsKey and energy land in the comment field. Save them before your existing comments so the notes you already wrote are not replaced.

Mixed In Key writes into the tags of files you already own, so the only things that travel are the fields it writes. Serato DJ is the performance end of this: it reads the tags, it never sends anything back to the analyzer.

The easy way

Moving from Mixed In Key to Serato DJ, step by step.

There is nothing to install. You use Mixed In Key with Serato through the file tags: the analyzer writes key, energy, and cue points into the files you own, and Serato reads them on its next pass. The order of the four steps matters more than any single setting.

01

Analyze the beatgrids in Serato first

Disconnect your DJ hardware so Serato DJ Pro runs in offline mode and the Analyze Files button appears above the library. Open Analysis Settings, check Set Beat Grid / BPM, and leave Set Key unchecked so Serato's own key detection never overwrites the analyzer's result. Drag the crate or folder you are preparing onto Analyze Files and let it finish.

02

Set the tag options in Mixed In Key

In Mixed In Key's Settings, open Update Tags, enable Key + Energy, set it to save before the existing comments so your own notes survive, and tick the Initial Key checkbox. In the Export Cue Points settings, check Serato and allow it to overwrite cue points. Those two panels decide which fields Serato will be able to read at all.

03

Analyze in Mixed In Key and export the cue points

Add the same files to Mixed In Key and analyze them. When it finishes, select every track, right click, and choose Export Cue Points; Mixed In Key sets up to eight cue points per track. Because Serato already built the beatgrid in step one, those cue points snap to the grid instead of drifting off the beat.

04

Rescan the tags in Serato and spot-check

Back in Serato, select the same files and drop them onto the Analyze Files button, or click Rescan ID3 Tags in the Files panel, so it picks up the new tags. Check the Comments column: a value like 8A - Energy 7 means the result came from the analyzer. Then set Show Key As in Setup, under Library + Display, to the notation you actually read.

This is tag plumbing, not a library move. It buys you a better key string and eight cue points per track. It does not buy you crates that mean anything, an energy arc for the night, or any view of which tracks work together. Leave Set Key on in Serato, or run the two analyses in the wrong order, and you quietly fall back to Serato's own numbers and off-grid cues without being told.

DJ Software
Rekordbox
Rekordbox
Import XML or Database
Serato
Serato
Import Library Database
Traktor
Traktor
Import NML Collection
Engine
Engine
Import Engine Database
File System
Local Folder
Scan directory
Audio Files
Select files

The cleaner path

One library, every app.

Vibes does the analysis and the organizing in one place, instead of leaving you a key string in a comment field. It imports your Serato library, or a plain folder, and analyzes BPM, key in Camelot, musical, or Open Key notation, an energy curve, and track sections. From there you tag tracks into vibes by hand, by combination, or with Auto-Tagging, and Set Designer builds the running order by energy flow or key path. The result exports back into Serato DJ as playlists. Vibes never plays or mixes anything: the decks stay Serato's job.

See the DJ Library
Analyze BPM, key, energy, and track sections across the whole library in one pass
Tag tracks into vibes by hand, by combination, or with Auto-Tagging, instead of reading key strings out of a comment column
Find Compatible shows harmonic Camelot neighbours inside a BPM window, half and double time aware
Export playlists and vibes back into Serato DJ, with optional Camelot key or BPM sub-folders

Organize once, export to Serato DJ.

Your playlists, tags, ratings, and cue points travel to the gear you play on, so nothing you do in Vibes is locked away.

Track 001 by Artist A

Track 001

Artist A

128
3A
Track 002 by Artist B

Track 002

Artist B

124
5B
Track 003 by Artist C

Track 003

Artist C

132
8A
Vibes App
Playlists
Vibes
Mood
Aggressive
Euphoric
Melancholic
Mysterious
Peaceful
Playful
Tense
Function
Arrangement
Sets
Club Night 12/28
NYE Closing Set
Rooftop 01/04

Frequently asked questions

The honest answers, including the trade-offs.

They are not really competitors. Serato is the performance app: decks, crates, hardware, beatgrids. Mixed In Key is an analyzer that writes key, energy, and cue points into your file tags. The reason DJs run both is that they want one source of truth for key, and that means switching Set Key off in Serato so its detection cannot overwrite the analyzer. See how to tell what key a song is in.
Mixed In Key publishes an artist list and a video series about well known DJs who use it, so read that as marketing rather than proof. In practice it turns up most among harmonic mixers in house, techno, and open format work, where a clean key and energy read matters more than feature count. Whether it earns its place depends on how much of your selection is driven by key.
Not for Serato. The link between the two apps is tag based, so there is nothing to install inside the DJ software: the analyzer writes to your files and Serato reads them back. Mixed In Key does sell real plugins for producers, including a Studio Edition that runs key detection inside a DAW, plus its Captain, Pilot, and Human plugin lines.
It depends on what is actually missing. If you sort by key and energy and want a second opinion on both, a dedicated analyzer plus an eight cue point export is a real workflow. If the problem is that your library is a pile of crates with no structure, a better key string will not fix it. Compare the options in Mixed In Key alternatives first.
No. Harmonic mixing is a tool, not a rule. Plenty of transitions work across clashing keys, especially over drums or through a break where no melody is exposed. Key data earns its keep on long blends where two melodies overlap for sixteen bars or more. Energy, phrasing, and the room decide far more of a set than the Camelot wheel does.
It is sold from mixedinkey.com as a one time purchase per platform rather than a subscription, with paid upgrade deals when a new major version lands and a 30 day money back guarantee on every purchase. Check the store for the current figure before you plan around it. The DJ software you export into is licensed separately, so budget for both.

From a Vibes customer

The import worked perfectly. Have created several sets now and my life is so much easier
Danny

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And there's more

Methodology

How we keep this honest.

Verified against the apps

What transfers is tested against the current versions of Mixed In Key and Serato DJ.

We own our bias

We make Vibes. We show the native process and its limits honestly, and we are upfront about what no tool can carry across.

Live pricing

The Vibes price shown comes straight from our checkout, never a hardcoded marketing number.

Kept current

Last reviewed June 2026.

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