Comparison

Sample Crate vs WaveCloud

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

Head to head
About

Sample Crate

Easily manage and preview your sample library on your mobile device. Create custom sample kits, play them via pads, and export them for use in other applications. Features include batch renaming and audio extraction from videos.

Highlights
  • Instant sample preview
  • Create sample kits with tags
  • Play samples via pads
  • Export sample chains
  • Batch rename samples
  • Extract audio from videos
Features
Read full description

Sample Crate allows you to swiftly browse all your sample library on your mobile device. It can instantly preview any sample by just tapping it. If you like a particular sample you can add it to the Crate Player where you can play them via pads like on your favorite instrument. Top features: • Instant play any sample from your iOS device. • Create sample kits by tagging your files • Tags & Favorites are synced via iCloud • Play your samples via pads • Export sample chains to use in your favorite hardware sampler or any other iOS Apps • Batch rename your samples • Extract audio from videos or screen recordings. • Use it side by side with Any other iOS app and just drag over your favorite samples. And much more coming.

About

WaveCloud

This app offers advanced tools for manipulating audio samples into unique sounds. It allows for precise control over tiny audio fragments, enabling the creation of diverse textures, effects, and soundscapes. Features include a morphing oscillator, LFOs, filters, and unique movement modules.

Highlights
  • Granular synthesis engine
  • Morphing oscillator
  • Orbit and WaveGlide modules
  • MPE support
  • Built-in effects suite
  • Audio editor and managers
  • 200+ presets
Features
Read full description

WaveCloud is an innovative granular synthesizer that offers powerful tools for manipulating and playing sounds. Granular synthesis divides an audio sample into tiny fragments, called grains, each typically a few milliseconds in length. These grains are then manipulated independently in terms of pitch, duration, position in time, and amplitude. Unlike traditional synthesis, the capability to manipulate tiny grains of audio offers enormous precision of sound control, transformation, and compositional possibilities. WaveCloud offers a wide range of tools for experimentation – oscillator, LFOs, filters, envelopes, routing matrix, innovative WaveGlide and Orbit modules for grain movement, effects, MPE support, extensive waveform editing, customizable themes, MIDI CC control, aftertouch, audio pool manager, and 200+ presets to get you started. Granular synthesis is extremely versatile and can produce a vast range of sounds and textures, from subtle, atmospheric sounds to complex, dynamic ones. WaveCloud offers dozens of parameters, enabling you to sculpt the sound grains in any way you wish – textural pads and atmospheres, time-stretched effects, glitchy and stutter effects, vocal and instrumental manipulations, granular synthesis percussive sounds, experimental effects, as well as microtonal and harmonic soundscapes. WaveCloud features a drag and drop system for importing and exporting of audio files and presets. It has its own built-in Preset and Audio Managers to help keep everything in order. WaveCloud even features a fully-fledged zoomable audio editor along with a suite of tools to crop, fade, cut, copy, paste, and normalise your samples. We include a morphing 3-state Oscillator to support the granular engine. The granular engine allows up to 50 grains per second per note, with grain lengths up to a second in length. Grains can be sculpted with our morphing envelope generator, manipulated with our LFOs, FEGs and VCFs, and passed through lots of randomisation to keep things continually evolving. WaveCloud also features two unique features for adding movement to audio grains. Orbit mode allows you to play sweeping patterns tied to the physical host tempo of your DAW, and WaveGlide is a sequencer with glides and fades from one location to another. To top it all off, we include 7 built-in effects, delay, reverb, chorus, overdrive, phaser, resonator, and 8-band EQ. The resonator controls per-note feedback and dispersion for amazing MPE effects. WaveCloud is not only a deep and powerful granular synth but also a fun way to create many incredible sounds. Features • Over 200 presets • 3-state morphing oscillator (sine, square, saw) • Morphing grain shapes • 2 low-frequency morphing oscillators • 4 multistep envelope generators • 2 visual filters (series and parallel modes) • Per-channel feedback resonators with dispersion • MPE Support (per-channel pitch bend, aftertouch, and CC74) • Orbit mode • WaveGlide sequencing • Fully Featured Mod-Matrix • Direct record and playback of samples • Built-in sample editor with editing tools • 7 built-in effects • Built-in Audio Manager with drag and drop support • Preset Manager with easy import/export, drag and drop • Colour scheme editor

Screenshots

Sample Crate4 screens
WaveCloud4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Sample Crate at $2.99 against WaveCloud's $14.99. Sample Crate also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks) and review sentiment (79% vs 69%). WaveCloud's advantage is rating (4.9 vs 4.7) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases 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

Sample Crate costs $2.99 and WaveCloud $14.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

WaveCloud holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 44 and 26 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 79% of Sample Crate's written reviews are positive against 69% of WaveCloud's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sample Crate ships an update weekly, WaveCloud every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Sample Crate versus WaveCloud: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSample CrateWaveCloud
Price$2.99 — better$14.99
Rating4.7 (44 ratings)4.9 (26 ratings) — better
Positive reviews78.9% of reviews — better69.2% of reviews
Number of ratings44 — better26
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB286 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCristina Buga4Pockets.com

Customer experience

Sample Crate

All ratings44 ratings
Positive90.9%
Neutral6.8%
Negative2.3%
Written reviews38 reviews
Positive78.9%
Neutral10.5%
Negative10.5%

WaveCloud

All ratings26 ratings
Positive96.2%
Neutral3.8%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive69.2%
Neutral15.4%
Negative15.4%

In-app purchases

None

Sample Crate

No in-app purchases

None

WaveCloud

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Sample Crate free?
Sample Crate costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is WaveCloud free?
WaveCloud costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Sample Crate or WaveCloud?
WaveCloud is rated higher. Sample Crate averages 4.7 out of 5 from 44 ratings, while WaveCloud averages 4.9 from 26 ratings.
Do Sample Crate or WaveCloud have ads?
Neither Sample Crate nor WaveCloud shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sample Crate or WaveCloud?
Sample Crate ships an update weekly, and WaveCloud every 3 weeks. Most recently, Sample Crate was updated on October 2, 2026 and WaveCloud on October 7, 2026.

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