Comparison

Bloom vs Fluss

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

Head to head
About

Bloom

Create unique melodies and elaborate patterns by simply tapping the screen. This generative music player offers an infinite selection of compositions and accompanying visualizations, even when left idle. It's a musical instrument, composition, and artwork all in one.

Highlights
  • Create melodies by tapping
  • Generative music player
  • Visualizations
  • 12 mood settings
  • Adjustable delay
  • Shake to clear
Features
Read full description

Developed by ambient pioneer Brian Eno and musician / software designer Peter Chilvers, Bloom explores uncharted territory in the realm of applications for the iPhone and iPod touch. Part instrument, part composition and part artwork, Bloom's innovative controls allow anyone to create elaborate patterns and unique melodies by simply tapping the screen. A generative music player takes over when Bloom is left idle, creating an infinite selection of compositions and their accompanying visualisations. "Bloom is an endless music machine, a music box for the 21st century. You can play it, and you can watch it play itself." - Brian Eno Features - 12 different mood settings - Random mood shuffle - Adjustable delay - Shake to clear - Evolve when idle - Sleep Timer Recommended for headphones or external speakers. “Bloom Raises the Bar for Musical iPhone Apps… if you're a fan of ambient music or music in general, you'll be wanting to get it right now” - Gizmodo “A relaxing alternative to just about anything else you can do with an iPhone” Wired “Hypnotic and ludicrously addictive” - Guardian

About

Fluss

Explore granular synthesis with a tactile interface. Import, record, or live-process audio to create unique sound textures, drones, and echoes. Features kinetic sliders for dynamic modulation and a unique shimmer feedback effect.

Highlights
  • Granular synthesis engine
  • Import, record, or live process audio
  • Kinetic sliders for modulation
  • Shimmer feedback effect
  • MIDI playable
  • Oberheim Xpander inspired filter
  • Microtonal experiment support
Features
Read full description

Fluss is a sonic playground designed by Bram Bos and Berlin-based musician Hainbach to let you explore granular synthesis in a hands-on way. The playful touch UI invites anything from live performance, experimentation to learning and mastering the granular concept. Multiple plugins: Import, Record or Live Process You can import your own WAVs (standalone & AUv3 Instrument plugin), Record audio (Record effect plugin) or live-process sound (Process effect plugin) to create anything from drones and granular echoes to moving microtonal audio textures. Designed for touch: Kinetic Sliders All sliders and XY pads are linked to a physics model which lets you flick and throw them around. Minimise the friction for endless bouncing motion, as an innovative substitute for traditional LFOs and modulation. There was never a better reason for using a touchscreen for music. Shimmer Feedback effect Like a shimmer reverb, except it feeds the processed audio back into the grain engine. This lets you create an endless loop of pitch-shifting spaciousness, turning even the simplest of sounds into massive woolly mammoths. - 3 Voice grain engine, each with an independent playhead - Playable via MIDI (since version 1.1) - Filter inspired by the Oberheim Xpander, including its resonant Phase filter - Kinetic sliders and pads for playful interaction with the sound - Universal design (iPhone and iPad; iPad Air 2 or higher recommended) - Custom scales, unquantised mode and even Scala-import for microtonal experiments - Use WAVs (or other audio files), record audio or load the app as a live-processing audio effect - Real world tested as an instrument in numerous live performances by Hainbach - Offers light mode and dark mode UI

Screenshots

Bloom4 screens
Fluss4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Bloom at $3.99 against Fluss's $13.99. Fluss's advantage is update cadence (every 3 months vs every 11 months) and iOS requirement (12 vs 15.0). On rating, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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

Bloom costs $3.99 and Fluss $13.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Bloom against 4.8 for Fluss. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 99 and 71 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 84% of Bloom's written reviews are positive against 78% of Fluss's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Bloom ships an update every 11 months, Fluss every 3 months. Both last shipped on October 23, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Bloom versus Fluss: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBloomFluss
Price$3.99 — better$13.99
Rating4.8 (99 ratings)4.8 (71 ratings) — better
Positive reviews84.5% of reviews — better78.0% of reviews
Number of ratings99 — better71
Update frequencyEvery 11 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012 — better
Further details — not scored
Size17 MB453 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperOpal LimitedBram Bos

Customer experience

Bloom

All ratings99 ratings
Positive93.9%
Neutral3.0%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews618 reviews
Positive84.5%
Neutral5.0%
Negative10.5%

Fluss

All ratings71 ratings
Positive97.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews50 reviews
Positive78.0%
Neutral4.0%
Negative18.0%

User reviews

Bloom

From 99 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌟 Fantastic
  • 🎨 Beautiful
  • 🧘‍♀️ Relaxing
  • 👨‍🎨 Creative
  • 🎶 Mesmerizing

Room to improve

  • 🔇 High frequencies prevent relaxation
  • 🔇 Harsh/imbalanced sounds
  • 🔇 Limited sound variety
  • 🔇 Lack of recording/export function
  • 🔇 Crashes on iOS 8/11

Fluss

From 71 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💡 Innovative touch interface
  • 🎶 Great for soundscapes
  • ✨ Unique sound manipulation
  • 🎛️ Intuitive controls
  • 🎵 Highly playable instrument

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes frequently
  • ⚫ Black screen issue
  • 🎧 No audible output
  • 🎛️ Not enough control
  • 😵 Too much chaos

Bugs and requests

Bloom

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on iOS 8/11 updates
  • Stops working in background
  • High notes cause issues for some users

Requested features

7 requests
  • Add more sound options/instruments
  • Implement recording and export capabilities
  • Add sleep timer and background playback
  • Improve low-end sound quality
  • Introduce MIDI support
Show 2 more
  • Expand sound manipulation options (pitch bending, sustain, etc.)
  • Add visual customization (blurred edges, etc.)

Fluss

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Crashes with black screen
  • No audible output
  • App resets when put in background
  • Cyan play head difficult to see on waveform

Requested features

20 requests
  • Adjustable layer field per grain
  • Record from internal microphone
  • More control over grain direction
  • BPM settings
  • Transition from clean to new sounds
Show 15 more
  • AUv3 plugin version
  • Scan speed multiplier (x2, x4)
  • Draw lines on pitch XY pad
  • Lock oscillators on pitch XY pad
  • Assign play heads triggered by external controller
  • Snapshots for pitch section
  • More clock and tempo syncing options
  • Visualization of buffer, playback head speed, modulation
  • Quantizer visualization
  • User-changeable pitch XY pad layout
  • Global friction and separate sensitivity option
  • Modulation to specific play head
  • Proper sampling button (microphone access)
  • Preset browser arrows
  • More control over panning, filter, scan speed

In-app purchases

None

Bloom

No in-app purchases

None

Fluss

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Bloom free?
Bloom costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Fluss free?
Fluss costs $13.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Bloom or Fluss?
Fluss is rated higher. Bloom averages 4.8 out of 5 from 99 ratings, while Fluss averages 4.8 from 71 ratings.
Do Bloom or Fluss have ads?
Neither Bloom nor Fluss shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Bloom or Fluss?
Bloom ships an update every 11 months, and Fluss every 3 months. Most recently, Bloom was updated on October 23, 2026 and Fluss on October 23, 2026.

Other comparisons