# AudioLayer vs MIDI Tools

The clearest difference is price: MIDI Tools at $4.99 against AudioLayer's $12.99. MIDI Tools also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and rating (4.7 vs 4.4). AudioLayer's advantage is ratings volume (179 vs 22) and device support (3 vs 1). On ads there is nothing between them.

AudioLayer costs $12.99 and MIDI Tools $4.99 up front. AudioLayer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. MIDI Tools asks for nothing beyond the download.

MIDI Tools holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: AudioLayer has 179 ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 56% of AudioLayer's written reviews are positive against 70% of MIDI Tools's.

AudioLayer ships an update fortnightly, MIDI Tools every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | AudioLayer | MIDI Tools |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $12.99 | **$4.99** |
| Rating | [4.4 (179 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/audiolayer/id1381478666/reviews) | **[4.7 (22 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/midi-tools/id1446209019/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **179** | 22 |
| Positive reviews | 55.6% of reviews | **70.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Paid |
| Size | 242 MB | 11 MB |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | **11.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Harry Gohs](https://appshunter.io/developer/382428644) | [Victor Porof](https://appshunter.io/developer/1446209018) |

## What reviewers say

### AudioLayer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/audiolayer/id1381478666)

This app is a powerful mobile multi-sampler for music production, offering advanced features for creating and manipulating complex instruments. It integrates seamlessly with iOS production environments and supports iCloud for easy collaboration and storage.

**Highlights:** Streaming Sample Engine (SSE), Hierarchical Layer and Zone editing, Seamless Instrument Switching (SIS), Integrated audio sample recorder, Auto Sampler for hardware synths, AUv3 AudioUnit integration, iCloud storage and collaboration

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SoundFont Import | $3.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎹 Powerful multi-layer sampling capabilities
- 📥 EXS24 and SFZ file import support
- 🎯 Round-robin functionality for realistic instruments
- ⚡ Efficient performance on older devices
- 🎚️ Comprehensive effects rack with quality sound

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes across multiple iOS versions
- ⚠️ Stability issues in AUM and other hosts
- 🔌 High CPU/DSP usage causing performance spikes
- 🔋 Battery drain and device heating
- ❌ Missing undo function

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on startup (splash screen)
- Reverb and chorus effects cause sound to disappear
- Pitch resets to -24 after stopping Logic Pro playback
- Layer voice polyphony controls not working properly
- SFZ batch import distributes samples incorrectly across layers

**Requested features**

- Time-stretching/pitch-shifting capability
- Program Change MIDI support
- Undo/Redo functionality
- GigaSampler .gig library support
- Soundfont SF2 import (now paid feature)


### MIDI Tools

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/midi-tools/id1446209019)

This application provides a suite of MIDI audio units for iOS, allowing users to manipulate MIDI messages within their DAW's effects chain. It offers tools for altering velocity, transposing keys, monitoring events, and routing MIDI to external hardware or internal buses.

**Highlights:** MIDI message manipulation within DAW effects chains, 8 AUv3 MIDI audio units, Velocity and aftertouch alteration, Key transposition and range restriction, MIDI event monitoring and reporting, Tempo-synced trigger blocking, External and internal MIDI routing

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is AudioLayer free?

AudioLayer costs $12.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is MIDI Tools free?

MIDI Tools costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, AudioLayer or MIDI Tools?

MIDI Tools is rated higher. AudioLayer averages 4.4 out of 5 from 179 ratings, while MIDI Tools averages 4.7 from 22 ratings.

### Do AudioLayer or MIDI Tools have ads?

Neither AudioLayer nor MIDI Tools shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, AudioLayer or MIDI Tools?

AudioLayer ships an update fortnightly, and MIDI Tools every 4 days. Most recently, AudioLayer was updated on October 6, 2026 and MIDI Tools on October 9, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*