Comparison

DP8 vs PadDrums

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

Head to head
About

DP8

Experience a full drum kit with an intuitive layout. Enjoy dynamic performance and high-quality sounds at your fingertips. Practice along with songs using real-time speed adjustment and a simple mixer.

Highlights
  • Full drum kit layout
  • Natural dynamic performance
  • High-quality sound
  • Multi-genre drum sounds
  • Integrated song playback
  • Real-time song speed adjust
Features
Read full description

Bring your rhythm to the screen. Drum Pad 8 puts a playable drum kit on your iPhone and iPad, with Pop, Rock and Jazz sounds and video practice that fits into your day. WATCH, PLAY, REPEAT Video mode now works on iPhone as well as iPad. Choose your own clips from Photos or Files, or open a compatible video website. Move to the part of a local video you want to practice. MORE ROOM TO PLAY Collapse the toolbar to play across the full screen, with the video behind your drum pads. While playing, touches go to the drums. Expand the toolbar to hide the pads and use the website. Set pad opacity from 10% to 100% to keep the video and kit as visible as you like. FIND YOUR FEEL Enjoy improvements for faster drum response and choose an audio latency setting that suits your device. Switch between Pop, Rock and Jazz, choose dynamic or loud response, and turn crash/bass-drum sync on or off. The app interface supports 12 languages, selectable in Options. PLAY WITH YOUR MUSIC Play along with streaming music from another app or supported local songs. Availability and playback controls depend on the source. Website video playback depends on the provider, content and connection; not every website or video is compatible. Demo videos shown in screenshots are not included. DRUM PAD 8 PRO A one-time in-app purchase removes ads and unlocks the AUv3 drum instrument for use in a compatible host. For a more immediate playing feel, use the built-in speakers or wired audio. Bluetooth can add delay, and actual response depends on your device, audio route and other audio apps.

About

PadDrums

Features
Read full description

PadDrums turns your iPhone into a full electronic drum kit — no hardware required. ■ 4 Sound Kits Switch instantly between Acoustic, 808, Techno, and LoFi kits. Play Kick, Snare, Hi-Hat, Open Hat, Toms, Crash, and Ride across 9 responsive pads. ■ Fully Customizable Pads Reassign any sound to any pad and build your own custom kit from scratch. ■ Preset Beat Patterns Trigger 2-beat, 4-beat, 8-beat, or 16-beat rhythm patterns with one tap. Fine-tune the groove with BPM and swing controls. ■ Built-in FX Shape your sound with reverb and other effects, right on the pad. ■ True Multi-Touch Hit multiple pads at once without dropouts, for a real, expressive playing feel. Whether you're sketching a beat, practicing rhythm, or just jamming — PadDrums puts a full drum kit in your pocket.

Screenshots

DP84 screens
PadDrums1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: PadDrums at none against DP8's 1. PadDrums also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs monthly). DP8's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.5). On price, ads and device support 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. DP8 sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. PadDrums asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

DP8 ships an update monthly, PadDrums every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
DP8 versus PadDrums: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDP8PadDrums
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (82 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings82 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better26.5
Further details — not scored
Size101 MB13 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperMingChun ChienKouki Yoshimoto

In-app purchases

1 purchases

DP8

One-time1
  • Drum Pad 8 Pro$2.99
None

PadDrums

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is DP8 free?
DP8 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PadDrums free?
PadDrums is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do DP8 or PadDrums have ads?
Both DP8 and PadDrums show ads.
Which is updated more often, DP8 or PadDrums?
DP8 ships an update monthly, and PadDrums every 2 days. Most recently, DP8 was updated on November 11, 2026 and PadDrums on November 7, 2026.

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