Comparison

Drumline vs Play Drums!

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

Head to head
About

Drumline

This app offers a comprehensive virtual drumline experience with realistic sounds and instruments. It includes practice tools, tuning features, and engaging games to hone drumming skills. Designed for serious percussionists, it provides a professional marching experience on your mobile device.

Highlights
  • Realistic snare, tenor, bass, and cymbal sounds
  • Xylophone, marimba, and vibraphone instruments
  • Adjustable metronome with various modes
  • Drumhead tuning functionality
  • Memory and speed challenge games
  • Practice pad tools
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Snare drum, Tenors, Basses, Cymbals, Xylophone, Marimba, Vibraphone, Metronome, Drumhead Tuner, Challenges, and Practice Pad Tools!!! In your pocket for the cost of a drum key. This app isn't for people who like drums or are drum-curious. This app is for those who can't stop drumming on anything and everything around them to the point where they are considered "disruptive" to their family, friends, and neighbors. Honored by Apple as "New & Noteworthy" in the Music apps category and sits in the top 50 music apps most days. This isn't some free tap app with canned sound effects and busted graphics. We're bringing the world's best drumming hardware to your fingertips. We've partnered with Dynasty USA Drums, Pro-Mark Drumsticks, Evans Drumheads, and Sabian Cymbals to deliver an optimized marching experience directly to your iPhone and iPad. If you're reading this you're late. 1000s of drummers before you downloaded this app and continue to download it every day: • All battery audio samples are professional recordings by DCI DVD sound engineer Jamie Vanadia at NoiseFloor Ltd. in Chicago • All front ensemble samples are courtesy of University of Iowa Musical Instrument Samples (MIS) project (you guys rock!) • In Snare: toggle between dynamics and standard modes • In Basses and Tenors, toggle between Pro•Mark nylon and soft mallets while playing • In Cymbals, perform crashes, crash chokes, taps, sizzles, sizzle chokes, hi-hats, and zings • In Xylophone toggle between full keyboard and split layouts • In Marimba toggle between full keyboard and split layouts • In Vibraphone toggle between full keyboard and split layouts and operate foot pedal • Choose a color theme to matches your drumline • Play along with a metronome 30-300 bpm in wood block, metal, or "duts" mode • Configure the practice metronome with subdivision and offbeats and all that sweetness you need • Do the impossible: Tune your tenors or basses • Test your phrasing memory with the memory game • Test your BPM knowledge in the line leader game • Test your single stroke roll speed in the Speed Test challenge with your drum pad • Blazing fast touch responsiveness, literally to the limit of iOS • It's a whole drumline in your pocket for less than a drum key. Are you kidding?! Get all this when you buy now! Like no tricks. Snare: Dynasty's MS-XD14 Marching Snare Drum Tenors (5 drum and corps config): Dynasty's MT-680234 Tenor Drums in Corps Configuration with 6 inch and 8 inch shot drums Basses: Dynasty's MB-18 thru MB-26 Bass Drums - 18", 20", 22", 24", 26" Crash Cymbals: Sabian's Synergy HHX Cymbals - 18" and 20" Plus NEW: Xylophone, Marimba, and Vibraphone Memory Game • Test your drumming memory through sound and visuals • Test yourself on Snare, Tenors or Basses • Drumline captains, this will put your titles to the test! Metronome • 30-300 BPM Metronome • Subdivision of quarter, eighths, sixteenths, and triplets • NEW Save and store presets Drumhead Tuner • Hit-and-hold detection captures pitch instantly and displays for 5 seconds • Pre-configured for DCI specs with Low, Standard, and High tuning modes • Smart harmonic correction finds the true fundamental, even on bass drums • Built for marching percussion - no piano tuner nonsense, just drums Line Leader Game • Put your BPM senses to the test • You get 8 beats, then you pick which of the 3 BPMs was that tempo • The further you go the hard it gets! Speed Test • Challenge yourself to see how many taps you can do in 30 seconds! Learn more at: http://drumlineapp.com Join other drummers on Facebook (15000 likes and counting!!!): http://facebook.com/drumlineapp Or X: http://twitter.com/drumlineapp Yo! don't use real drumsticks on your device... you'll crack your screen and your friends will point and laugh at you! Let's try not to make this the bad, 1985. :)

About

Play Drums!

Experience a futuristic rhythm game inspired by 80s electronic drum kits and EDM. Tap colorful hexagons in time with the music to score points and improve your rhythmic abilities. Choose from various difficulty levels, songs, and drum kits.

Highlights
  • Rhythm game with EDM music
  • Beginner and advanced difficulty levels
  • Multiple drum kits and songs
  • Professionally recorded stereo sounds
  • Hi-resolution graphics
  • Lefty mode for reversed layout
Features
Read full description

Play Drums! is an exciting and unique rhythm game based on the electronic drum kits of the 1980s. Combined with electronic dance music (EDM), this fast-paced and futuristic game is not only fun and challenging, but actually improves your rhythmic abilities! When you start a song, choosing from either beginner or advanced levels, colorful concentric hexagons converge onto the drum pad that should be tapped. If you hit it right on time, you score 50 points; almost in rhythm, 25 points. And if you miss, 10 points are deducted from your score. With 10 songs and 6 different drum kits to choose from, you'll be rockin' like a real drummer in no time! Play Drums! is the most fun way ever to learn to Play Drums! FEATURES: * 5 free EDM beginner songs and 5 free EDM advanced songs to choose from * 6 free amazing drum kits to choose from......play to songs, or play drums without music * Professionally recorded stereo sounds * Beautiful hi-resolution retina graphics * Game Center integration * Lefty mode: reverse the drum layout PRIVACY POLICY: http://codyrotwein.com/privacy.html

Screenshots

Drumline4 screens
Play Drums!4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Play Drums! at Free against Drumline's $4.99. Play Drums! also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.6). Drumline's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and rating (4.1 vs 3.7). On review sentiment, update cadence, 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

Play Drums! is free to download; Drumline costs $4.99 up front. Drumline sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Play Drums! sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Drumline holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Drumline has 1.2K ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 39% and 40% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Drumline versus Play Drums!: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDrumlinePlay Drums!
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating4.1 (1.2K ratings) — better3.7 (13 ratings)
Positive reviews39.2% of reviews40.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.2K — better13
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 4 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#35 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.613.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size171 MB70 MB
Age rating4++9
DeveloperJohn OstlerDrum Starz

Customer experience

Drumline

All ratings1,151 ratings
Positive75.5%
Neutral6.1%
Negative18.4%
Written reviews125 reviews
Positive39.2%
Neutral17.6%
Negative43.2%

Play Drums!

All ratings13 ratings
Positive61.5%
Neutral15.4%
Negative23.1%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive40.0%
Neutral40.0%
Negative20.0%

Bugs and requests

Drumline

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Drums not registering hits correctly
  • Tenors and bass drums not playing proper pitches
  • Cymbals not functioning as expected
  • App crashing or not producing any sound

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add landscape mode for better playability
  • Allow customization of drum tuning and sound
  • Implement a metronome and ability to play along with music
  • Add more advanced drumming techniques (rolls, diddles, etc.)

Play Drums!

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Drumline

One-time2
  • Memory Game$0.99
  • Pro Version$1.99
5 purchases

Play Drums!

One-time5
  • Remove Ads$0.99
  • London House$0.99
  • Rocket$0.99
Show 2 more
  • Cephalopod$0.99
  • Blue Scorpion$0.99

Questions

Is Drumline free?
Drumline costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Play Drums! free?
Play Drums! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Drumline or Play Drums!?
Drumline is rated higher. Drumline averages 4.1 out of 5 from 1.2K ratings, while Play Drums! averages 3.7 from 13 ratings.
Do Drumline or Play Drums! have ads?
Play Drums! shows ads; Drumline does not.
Which is updated more often, Drumline or Play Drums!?
Drumline ships an update every 4 months, and Play Drums! every 4 months. Most recently, Drumline was updated on September 24, 2026 and Play Drums! on September 11, 2026.

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