Comparison

421Grid vs maxChord

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

Head to head
About

421Grid

Features
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Turn Practice into Progress. Inspiration into Execution. Whether you’re a drumline veteran, music educator, or aspiring percussionist, this app is your personal drumming lab—designed to help you experiment, customize, and level up your chops with precision. Built for Rudimental Drummers Who Want More Forget flipping through old notebooks or searching YouTube for exercises you can’t customize. With this app, you can build your own practice grids, apply the legendary 4-2-1 structure, and modify exercises using accents, subdivisions (triplets, fivelets, sixteenths), or even alternate stickings—all with just a few taps. Customize Everything Shift the beat. Change the direction. Reverse your sticking. Or layer complexity to push your brain and hands to the limit. Every exercise becomes your own. Designed for Students and Educators Music teachers: Quickly generate custom warmups or technique builders for your drumline. Students: Practice smarter, not just harder—with structured routines and unlimited variations. Why Drummers Are Calling This a Game-Changer: • Reinforces fundamentals through creative repetition • Encourages daily practice through customization and challenge • Perfect for drumline auditions, solo prep, or just sharpening your hands • No internet? No problem. Train anywhere you take your sticks. Ready to Break Through Your Plateaus? This isn’t just another drumming app. It’s your creative practice engine, your daily workout, and your edge over the competition. Download now and redefine your rudimental journey.

About

maxChord

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Chords under your thumb. maxChord turns chord progressions into something you play with one hand. The pads are laid out in whatever key you choose, so everything you touch is already in tune. Tap one to play it. Hold it and drag, and the chord morphs — sevenths, sus, diminished, extensions — each one a direction rather than a menu. Common notes keep ringing while the rest move, so a progression bends instead of jumping. Then build the song. PLAY • Eight chord pads, in key, labelled with roman numerals • Drag any pad in eight directions to morph it live • Chord Lock keeps a variation as the pad's new resting chord • Inversions, slash chords, and automatic voice leading • Three modes: Chords, Arpeggiator, and Lead SEQUENCE • Multi-track sequencer built from chord tiles, not a note grid • Split, resize, and drag tiles to build rhythm by feel • Sixteen patterns, chained into sections to arrange a whole song • Per-track instrument, octave, volume, arpeggiator rate, and effects • Record from the pads or from a MIDI controller in real time SOUND • Sampled instruments: grand piano, upright, Rhodes, Wurlitzer, vibraphone, harp, strings, brass, nylon guitar, church organ, and choir • A fifteen-voice analogue synth bank with real filter envelopes and oscillator detune • Eight effects — drive, filter, chorus, flanger, phaser, tremolo, delay, reverb — per track and across the whole mix, each swept with a single thumb CONNECT • MIDI in and out, including per-track output • Clock sync in both directions • Play maxChord from a controller, or drive Logic, Ableton, or GarageBand from it maxChord has no account, no ads, and no analytics. It does not collect your data, and it works entirely offline. Your songs live on your device and can be exported to a single file whenever you want them somewhere else. Made for people who hear the chord before they can name it. — maxChord Pro unlocks everything after a 3-day free trial: €1.99/month, €9.99/year, or €22.99 once for lifetime access. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the period ends, and can be managed in your Apple Account settings. Privacy Policy: https://maximumschmidt.github.io/maxchord-site/privacy.html Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

421Grid4 screens
maxChord4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: maxChord at Free against 421Grid's $1.99. maxChord also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 3 months). 421Grid's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

maxChord is free to download; 421Grid costs $1.99 up front. maxChord sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. 421Grid asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

421Grid ships an update every 3 months, maxChord every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 3 level
421Grid versus maxChord: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter421GridmaxChord
Price$1.99Free — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB317 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperN. WheelerMaximilian Schmidt

In-app purchases

None

421Grid

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

maxChord

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly3 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Yearly3 Days trial$8.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$19.99

Questions

Is 421Grid free?
421Grid costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is maxChord free?
maxChord is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do 421Grid or maxChord have ads?
Neither 421Grid nor maxChord shows ads.
Which is updated more often, 421Grid or maxChord?
421Grid ships an update every 3 months, and maxChord every 10 days. Most recently, 421Grid was updated on October 15, 2026 and maxChord on October 12, 2026.

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