# Skym vs plugdata

The clearest difference is price: plugdata at Free against Skym's $7.99. plugdata also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 4) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). Skym's advantage is review sentiment (80% vs 63%) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). On rating, ratings volume, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

plugdata is free to download; Skym costs $7.99 up front. Skym sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. plugdata asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.3 for Skym against 4.4 for plugdata. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 22 and 17 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 80% of Skym's written reviews are positive against 63% of plugdata's.

Skym ships an update monthly, plugdata every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Skym | plugdata |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $7.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.3 (22 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/skym/id1546169685/reviews) | **[4.4 (17 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plugdata/id6473122351/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **22** | 17 |
| Positive reviews | **80.0% of reviews** | 63.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Monthly** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free** |
| Size | 34 MB | 147 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [ResGuide LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1501968996) | [Timothy Schoen](https://appshunter.io/developer/1718448510) |

## What reviewers say

### Skym

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/skym/id1546169685)

Control your Ableton devices with expressive touch gestures. This MIDI controller app lets you manipulate four parameters simultaneously, offering instant variability and interest to your sounds. It requires Ableton on macOS and does not generate sound on its own.

**Highlights:** Touch control for Ableton devices, Control 4 parameters simultaneously, X, Y, Speed, and Gate parameters, USB or Bluetooth connection, Free starter Ableton project included, Expressive sound design

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Heat Map | $4.99 | one-time |
| Warp Speed | $9.99 | one-time |
| Pulse Cell | $9.99 | one-time |
| Life Flower | $9.99 | one-time |


### plugdata

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plugdata/id6473122351)

This app provides a visual programming environment for audio experimentation, prototyping, and education. It allows users to create and run audio patches on their mobile devices, enabling creative sound design on the go.

**Highlights:** Visual programming environment, Audio experimentation, Prototyping, Educational tool, Standalone application, Audio plugins

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Skym free?

Skym costs $7.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is plugdata free?

plugdata is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Skym or plugdata?

plugdata is rated higher. Skym averages 4.3 out of 5 from 22 ratings, while plugdata averages 4.4 from 17 ratings.

### Do Skym or plugdata have ads?

Neither Skym nor plugdata shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Skym or plugdata?

Skym ships an update monthly, and plugdata every 3 months. Most recently, Skym was updated on September 24, 2026 and plugdata 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.*