Comparison

Drum Notes vs Beat Blocks

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

Head to head
About

Drum Notes

Create, share, and practice percussive music scores with an intuitive editor. Explore a global community of drummers and percussionists, access thousands of beats, and utilize practice tools. Ideal for musicians, teachers, and bands of all levels.

Highlights
  • Intuitive score editor for drum set and percussion
  • Explore and learn from community-shared beats and rhythms
  • Practice tools including metronome and rhythm trainer
  • Organize rhythms, arrangements, and exercises
  • Create and share drum exercises for students
  • Export scores as audio or image formats
Features
Read full description

* Grammy Academy awarded: app to support percussive music preservation. Write, share, and practice drum music like never before. Join over 200,000 drummers and percussionists in 180 countries who have already created 400,000+ scores with Drum Notes, a simple app to create and share drum beats, music scores, drum lessons, drum loops, drum tabs and rhythms. Ideal for beginners and pros alike. Drum Notes features an intuitive score creator, perfect for drumset and percussive genres like Samba, Marching Bands, Drumlines, Cuban percussion, and Drum grooves. Think of it as a more accessible version of Musescore, Flat or Finale, tailored for drummers. Like a drum machine or drum sequencer with real drum scores. FOR DRUMMERS - ALL LEVELS Intuitive Music Score Editor: Effortlessly create percussive sheet music with a user-friendly music writing editor, for drum set or any percussion instrument. Explore Beats: Learn drums by discovering thousands of beats, loops, and percussion samples from our drumming community. Practice Tools: Adjust your own pro metronome, customize grooves, and use the drum score editor as a rhythm trainer. Organize Your Notes: Keep rhythms, arrangements, recordings, and exercises neatly organized. FOR TEACHERS - ENHANCE YOUR INSTRUCTION Drum Exercises: Create, share, and manage exercises with ease. Student-Teacher Groups: Maintain shared spaces for class materials and track progress. Public Library: Access and share a wealth of exercises and materials. FOR BANDS - PERFECT FOR BATUCADAS Arrange and Share: Organize complex patterns and rhythms, and export them in audio or image formats. Private Groups: Create groups for sharing compositions and performance notes. Explore Percussion Rhythms: Discover diverse samples and beats to inspire and enhance your band’s sound. FOR CONTENT CREATORS - SHARE PROFESSIONAL CONTENT Export Options: Share drum grooves as high-quality audio or images. Perfect for showcasing your work on social media. Diverse Library: Use an extensive collection of beats and samples for creating stunning content. FOR MUSICIANS - EXPAND YOUR PLAYBACK OPTIONS Playback Tool: Use Drum Notes to playback loops and samples for various instruments. Versatile Use: Ideal for enhancing rhythm and practice sessions with authentic beats. ADDITIONAL FEATURES Diverse percussion instruments: Drum Set Electronic Drum Kit Cajon Rumba Instruments: Congas, Clave, Cowbell, Shaker, etc. Samba Instruments: Surdos, Repique, Caixa, Agogos, Rebolo, Pandeiro, etc. Samba Reggae Instruments: Timbal, Bacurinha, etc. Marching Band / Drumline Instruments: Quads, Snare Drums, Bass Drum, Cymbals. Capoeira Instruments: Berimbau Viola, Berimbau Berra Boi, Berimbau Medio, Agogo, Pandeiro, Atabaque And many more… Percussion Library: Rock, Jazz, Samba, Marching Band, Capoeira, and many more. Customizable Settings: Adjust metronome BPM, sound accents, and more. Global Community: Connect with percussionists and drummers worldwide. PREMIUM FEATURES Unlock unlimited compositions, percussive instruments per score, and private groups. Support our mission to improve musical knowledge. JOIN THE DRUM NOTES COMMUNITY Developed by a team dedicated to empowering drummers and percussionists. Drum Coach App: Explore our app for developing practice habits with exercises, scores, and audio instructions. We wish you great grooves! #drum, #drums, #drumline, #samba, #percussion * if you are looking for the app Drumap (drum app; drum map), this is it! Now we are called Drum Notes. upbeat.studio https://upbeat.studio/privacy-policy-drum-notes/ https://upbeat.studio/terms-and-conditions-drum-notes/

About

Beat Blocks

This app offers a fun and interactive rhythm training experience for musicians. It features three distinct visualization modes to help users master timing and sight-reading, with a custom rhythm editor for advanced practice.

Highlights
  • Three unique rhythm visualization modes
  • Custom rhythm editor (premium)
  • Curated rhythm benchmarks
  • Professional metronome
  • One-time unlock for lifetime access
Features
Read full description

Beat Blocks is an interactive rhythm practice app built for players at every level. See the beat, build your own patterns, play along, and strengthen your timing with multiple ways to visualize rhythm. 4 Unique Visualization Modes: - Beat Blocks Mode: The signature dot-grid view. Notes and rests become clear geometric blocks, making rhythm structure easy to see and feel. - Circles Mode: Each beat becomes a colorful circle divided into slices for its subdivisions, then lights up in time as the rhythm plays. - Staff Mode: Practice with standard musical notation and connect your rhythm training to real-world sight-reading. - Jianpu (Numbered) Mode: A clean numbered-notation view for players who prefer Jianpu. Key Features: - Custom Rhythm Editor: Build and save your own rhythms in 4/4, 3/4, and 6/8. Create eighth-note patterns, triplets, dotted rhythms, syncopations, rests, and multi-measure exercises. - Expanded 6/8 Practice: Explore a dedicated set of 6/8 rhythm patterns designed for compound-meter training. - Course & Starter Library: Practice with ready-made rhythm groups, from basic pulse control to more advanced subdivision and syncopation. - Loop & Tap-Along: Loop any rhythm to internalize it, or test your timing with tap-along scoring and per-beat feedback. - Professional Metronome: Use high-quality sounds, count-in, tempo control, visual pulse, and flexible loop playback to keep practice precise. - Share & Import: Export custom rhythms as text and import rhythms created in Beat Blocks, including existing 4/4 exercises from earlier versions. - One-Time Unlock: Start with free practice content, then unlock full course and custom-rhythm playback with a one-time purchase. No subscription. No ads. Whether you are building a steady foundation or practicing complex meters, Beat Blocks turns rhythm training into a visual, creative, hands-on experience. See it. Build it. Feel it. Master the beat.

Screenshots

Drum Notes4 screens
Beat Blocks4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Drum Notes at 4.6 against Beat Blocks's 3.9. Drum Notes also leads on review sentiment (57% vs 17%) and ratings volume (204 vs 35). Beat Blocks's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 weeks). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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. Drum Notes sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Beat Blocks sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Drum Notes holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Drum Notes has 204 ratings behind it against 35, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 57% of Drum Notes's written reviews are positive against 17% of Beat Blocks's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Drum Notes ships an update every 2 weeks, Beat Blocks weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Drum Notes versus Beat Blocks: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDrum NotesBeat Blocks
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (204 ratings) — better3.9 (35 ratings)
Positive reviews57.4% of reviews — better16.7% of reviews
Number of ratings204 — better35
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksWeekly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size133 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperUPBEAT STUDIO鑫 孟

Customer experience

Drum Notes

All ratings204 ratings
Positive92.2%
Neutral3.4%
Negative4.4%
Written reviews47 reviews
Positive57.4%
Neutral19.1%
Negative23.4%

Beat Blocks

All ratings35 ratings
Positive65.7%
Neutral11.4%
Negative22.9%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive16.7%
Neutral8.3%
Negative75.0%

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Drum Notes

Subscriptions8
  • Premium Monthly Subscription$5.991 Month
  • Premium Monthly Subscription$7.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly Subscription$42.991 Year
Show 5 more
  • Premium Yearly Subscription1 Year trial$42.991 Year
  • Premium Monthly Subscription$44.996 Months
  • Premium yearly Subscription$49.991 Year
  • Premium yearly subscription14 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Drumap PRO Yearly Offer1 Year trial$49.991 Year
One-time2
  • Samba on Drum set workshop$5.99
  • Music Capoeria Workshop$6.99
1 purchases

Beat Blocks

One-time1
  • Full Access$4.99

Questions

Is Drum Notes free?
Drum Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Beat Blocks free?
Beat Blocks is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Drum Notes or Beat Blocks?
Drum Notes is rated higher. Drum Notes averages 4.6 out of 5 from 204 ratings, while Beat Blocks averages 3.9 from 35 ratings.
Do Drum Notes or Beat Blocks have ads?
Drum Notes shows ads; Beat Blocks does not.
Which is updated more often, Drum Notes or Beat Blocks?
Drum Notes ships an update every 2 weeks, and Beat Blocks weekly. Most recently, Drum Notes was updated on September 21, 2026 and Beat Blocks on September 26, 2026.

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