Drum Notation by Beat Note vs Very Good Metronome
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Drum Notation by Beat Note
Create, practice, and share drum music notation with ease. This app transforms sequenced beats into professional sheet music, offering tools for composition, transcription, and interactive teaching. Enhance your drumming journey with customizable practice sessions and high-quality export options.
- Sequencer to notation conversion
- Compose and transcribe drum beats
- Customizable practice sessions
- Interactive teaching tools
- High-quality PDF and image export
- Multiple notation voicing options
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Beat Note — Drum Notation for Drummers, Teachers, and Content Creators The fastest way to write, hear, practice, and share drum notation. Built by a drummer, for drummers. FOR DRUMMERS — FROM YOUR HEAD TO THE PAGE IN SECONDS You have a groove idea. Beat Note gets it down before you lose it. Tap the sequencer grid to build beats. Watch them turn into clean, professional drum notation in real time. Hit play and hear exactly what you wrote — at any tempo, with a click track, on loop. - Transcribe songs to check your ear and lock in what you hear - Compose your own grooves, fills, and exercises from scratch - Count in with a visual on-screen "1, 2, 3, 4" so your eyes and ears are ready together - Use Beat Note as your in-ear metronome during rehearsals — your beats, not just clicks "Been waiting a long time for an app like this. Clearly built by a drummer." — App Store review FOR TEACHERS — WRITE IT, PLAY IT, SEND IT What used to take 30 minutes in a desktop notation program now takes 2 minutes on your phone or iPad. Write exercises on the fly — during the lesson, not after it. Play back the notation so students hear exactly how it should sound. Share a link so they can listen at home. Export a PDF they can print and bring to the kit. - Use the sequencer as a live music whiteboard, in person or online - Build a library of exercises organized by tag, ready for any student - Send a shareable link or export a high-quality PDF in one tap "What would normally take 30 minutes on a computer has become 2 minutes from my mobile device. My students love it." — App Store review FOR CONTENT CREATORS — PROFESSIONAL NOTATION VIDEOS, IN MINUTES Export your beat as an animated MP4 — portrait for Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts, or landscape for YouTube and Vimeo. Choose 720p, 1080p, or 4K. Pick a color theme. Preview before you export. PDF, PNG, WAV or AAC audio, shareable link, and animated MP4 — all from one app. NOTATION THAT LOOKS RIGHT Professional drum notation, consistent across every format you export. What you see on screen is what your students get in the PDF, what your followers see in the video, and what you hear in playback. - All standard drums, cymbals, and articulations - Subdivisions from 8th notes to 32nd notes, plus triplets, quintuplets (5s), and septuplets (7s) - Common and compound time signatures, including 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8 - Linear, split hands/feet, or split drums/cymbals voicing - Sticking annotations (R, L) - Single-measure repeat symbol (%) — renders automatically when measures repeat ORGANIZE AND DISCOVER - Tags, search, and sort to manage your beat library - Discover tab: curated educational beats for all skill levels - Beat templates to get started fast - Customize tempo, click track, count-in, and timer MADE BY A DRUMMER, SHAPED BY THE COMMUNITY Beat Note was built by me — an independent developer with 35+ years behind the kit. But the direction comes from the community. Every major feature on the roadmap has been voted on, requested, and refined by drummers, teachers, and creators just like you. Join the conversation at roadmap.beat-note.app — vote on upcoming features, share ideas, and see what's coming next. I'm here to make sure it all comes together into something that actually works. Premium subscription required for full access. Educator and Creator tiers available. Free trial included. Payment is charged through your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription auto-renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period via iTunes Account Settings. Terms and Privacy Policy: https://www.beat-note.app/privacy-and-terms
Very Good Metronome
A precise and reliable metronome designed for musicians. It offers essential features for practice and performance without ads or interruptions, with an optional one-time purchase for advanced time signatures.
- Rock-solid timing
- Tap tempo
- Practice Mode
- Tune Mode with 440 Hz tone
- Multiple metronome sounds
- Optional display flash
- Lock Screen widget and Siri integration
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A minimal & powerful metronome that gets out of your way to help you get better. - No ads - No popups or nags - No trials or subscriptions - All core features free forever Really: I want you to have a free, reliable metronome that never nags you. Nothing worse than wanting to practice and some popup gets in the way. --- Free Version includes: - Rock-solid timing you can trust, in the foreground, in the background, and while other audio plays - Tap tempo: tap the number in time, done - Practice Mode: raise or lower the tempo by a few BPM every X bars or minutes, with an optional count-in - Tune Mode: long press the tempo and hear a clean 440 Hz reference tone, adjustable from 430 to 450 Hz - 8 metronome sounds, from wood and sticks to a quartz click and a soft bell - Optional display flash on every beat, great on stage or in dim light - Dark and light themes - Start from anywhere: Lock Screen widget, Control Center, the Action Button, or just ask Siri to start Very Good Metronome - Live Activity on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island with play and pause Available as a one-time purchase: - Custom time signatures. Only if you need it. --- I'm a musician who built this app and uses it daily. Your support keeps the core features free for everyone and helps me make it even better. The Very Good Promise: Free core features forever. No subscriptions, no feature lockouts, no interruptions during practice.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Very Good Metronome at 5.0 against Drum Notation by Beat Note's 4.6. Very Good Metronome also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 83%) and update cadence (every 3 days vs every 9 days). Drum Notation by Beat Note's advantage is ratings volume (88 vs 2) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Drum Notation by Beat Note sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $6.69 per month and Very Good Metronome sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Very Good Metronome holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Drum Notation by Beat Note has 88 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 83% of Drum Notation by Beat Note's written reviews are positive against 100% of Very Good Metronome's.
Drum Notation by Beat Note ships an update every 9 days, Very Good Metronome every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Drum Notation by Beat Note | Very Good Metronome |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (88 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 82.8% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 88 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 81 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Kick Snare Hat Apps, LLC | Tom Reinert |
Customer experience
Drum Notation by Beat Note
Very Good Metronome
Bugs and requests
Drum Notation by Beat Note
Reported bugs
8 issues- Preview rarely matches notes on staff
- Sometimes doesn't play any notes
- Sounds not always appropriate for instrument voicing
- Editing measures is inconvenient
- Free trial charged immediately
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- iCloud data sync issues for subscription confirmation
- Not stable in loopings, slow delay on first note
- Measure lines on PDFs too thick and close
Requested features
27 requests- 7/8 time signature support
- Syncing between devices
- Web version
- Native Mac/Windows apps
- Add text or notes to notations
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- Cowbell instrument
- More drum samples and pitch control
- Ability to work on spaces longer than a measure
- Add 32nd notes
- Duplicate multiple bars at once
- Copy/paste large sections
- Option to drag duplicated bars to the end
- Add melody track
- More instrument options
- Ability to manage volumes of different instruments
- Add quintuplets and sextuplets to a bar
- Add repetition options for measures
- Add text to music sheets
- Improve loop stability and reduce delay
- Allow monthly subscription option
- More free beats/unlimited free version
- Add sticking for grace notes
- More advanced editing options for multiple bars
- Improve PDF export readability
- Add virtual drum kit for accessibility
- AI-powered automatic notation
- Auto-sync to track
Very Good Metronome
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Drum Notation by Beat Note
- Educator Tier Monthly (No Trial)$6.691 Month
- Creator Tier Monthly (No Trial)$13.491 Month
- Educator Tier Annual (No Trial)$59.991 Year
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- Educator Tier Annual + Free Trial7 Days trial$59.991 Year
- Creator Tier Annual + Free Trial7 Days trial$119.991 Year
Very Good Metronome
- Custom Time SignaturesFree
Questions
Is Drum Notation by Beat Note free?
Is Very Good Metronome free?
Which has better reviews, Drum Notation by Beat Note or Very Good Metronome?
Do Drum Notation by Beat Note or Very Good Metronome have ads?
Which is updated more often, Drum Notation by Beat Note or Very Good Metronome?
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