Comparison

Darbuka Rhythms vs Bongos

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Darbuka Rhythms

Learn and practice Middle Eastern rhythms with visual note guides, pre-set rhythms, and a rhythm designer. Includes video lessons and ear training exercises. Ideal for percussionists, bellydancers, and beginners.

Highlights
  • Visual note descriptions
  • 20 rhythms with variations
  • Rhythm designer
  • Rhythm player with speed control
  • Video lessons
  • Rhythm identification training
  • Drum playing mode
Features
Read full description

Educating application for mobile devices, devoted to the Middle Eastern rhythms. A wonderful assistant for both professional percussionists and bellydancers, and the beginners. Darbuka Rhythms: - visual description of notes for visibility and easiness of understanding, - 20 rhythms in 11 variations with the detailed description of each rhythm and instrument, and the rhythm designer for creation of your own rhythms and variations for different instruments, - rhythm player with possibility of playback speed management and combination of the instruments sounds, - video lessons from famous dancers and percussionists - creation of compositions of various rhythms and their variations with the set beat and number of bars, - training of skills related to rhythms identification by ear. 2 modes, 3 difficulty levels and 160 tasks, - possibility to take on the role of a percussionist and play the drums. The author of the application is a famous percussionist Artem Uzunov.

About

Bongos

This app provides a realistic finger bongo pad experience with high-quality sounds. Practice along to songs, customize bongo positions, and utilize built-in metronome and recording features for jam sessions and lessons.

Highlights
  • Realistic finger bongo pad
  • High-quality sound selection
  • Customizable bongo positions
  • Built-in metronome (30-300 BPM)
  • Recording and loop functions
  • Practice along to songs
Features
Read full description

***** This App is a Real Finger Bongo Pad. ***** You can practice according to the Song. ***** Ideal for Jam Sessions with other Instruments. ***** Suitable for Jam Sessions and Lessons. ***** Real High Quality Sound. [Simple Bongos] * Simple Bongo Pads with No Delay. [Sound Selection & Custom Bongo Positions] * Long Press to Select and set Sound. (After selecting the sound, push the selected Bongo again, it will be changed) * Available in All Bongo Positions. [Color] * Abundant Color Variations. [Metronome] * BPM(30〜300) [Rec] * Includes Recording, Loop and Metronome functions. * Suitable for Jam Sessions and Lessons. [List of Bongo Sounds] * Real High Quality Sound. [Bongo 1,Bongo 2,Bongo 3,Bongo 4,Bongo 5,Bongo 6,Bongo 7,Bongo 8,Bongo 9,Bongo 10,Bongo 11,Bongo 12,Bongo 13,Bongo 14,Bongo 15,Bongo 16,Bongo 17,Bongo 18,Bongo 19,Bongo 20,Bongo 21,Bongo 22,Bongo 23,Bongo 24,Bongo 25,Bongo 26,Bongo 27,Bongo 28,Bongo 29,Bongo 30,Bongo 31,Bongo 32,Bongo 33,Bongo 34,Bongo 35,Bongo 36,Bongo 37,Bongo 38,Bongo 39,Bongo 40,Bongo 41,Bongo 42,Bongo 43,Bongo 44,Bongo 45,Bongo 46,Bongo 47,Bongo 48,Bongo 49,Bongo 50,Bongo 51,Bongo 52,Bongo 53,Bongo 54,Bongo 55,Bongo 56,Bongo 57,Bongo 58,Bongo 59,Bongo 60,Bongo 61,Bongo 62,Bongo 63,WoodStick,Dog]

Screenshots

Darbuka Rhythms4 screens
Bongos4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Darbuka Rhythms at 53% against Bongos's 0%. Darbuka Rhythms also leads on ads (none vs shown). Bongos's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and rating (4.1 vs 3.8). On price, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Darbuka Rhythms sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Bongos asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Bongos holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bongos has 36 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 53% of Darbuka Rhythms's written reviews are positive against 0% of Bongos's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Darbuka Rhythms ships an update monthly, Bongos fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Darbuka Rhythms versus Bongos: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDarbuka RhythmsBongos
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (4 ratings)4.1 (36 ratings) — better
Positive reviews53.5% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings436 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyFortnightly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS12.012.0
Further details — not scored
Size70 MB577 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperArtem UzunovSatomi Uchida

Customer experience

Darbuka Rhythms

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews43 reviews
Positive53.5%
Neutral9.3%
Negative37.2%

Bongos

All ratings36 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral5.6%
Negative19.4%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Darbuka Rhythms

Subscriptions2
  • Premium$2.991 Month
  • Premium$14.991 Year
One-time8
  • Premium$0.99
  • Guess rhythm$3.99
  • Rhythms (beginners)$4.99
Show 5 more
  • Rhythms$6.99
  • Darbuka lessons. Level 1$8.99
  • Everything at once$11.99
  • All videos by Diana Gnatchenko$11.99
  • All rhythms and features$12.99
None

Bongos

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Darbuka Rhythms free?
Darbuka Rhythms is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Bongos free?
Bongos is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Darbuka Rhythms or Bongos?
Bongos is rated higher. Darbuka Rhythms averages 3.8 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Bongos averages 4.1 from 36 ratings.
Do Darbuka Rhythms or Bongos have ads?
Bongos shows ads; Darbuka Rhythms does not.
Which is updated more often, Darbuka Rhythms or Bongos?
Darbuka Rhythms ships an update monthly, and Bongos fortnightly. Most recently, Darbuka Rhythms was updated on October 24, 2026 and Bongos on October 27, 2026.

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