Comparison

Bongos vs Real Percussion

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

Head to head
About

Bongos

Experience realistic bongo drumming with professionally recorded sounds that change based on where you strike the drums. This app offers high-quality samples, additional percussion, and low latency for an immersive musical experience on your iPhone or iPad.

Highlights
  • 18 high-quality bongo samples
  • Cowbell and sticks percussion
  • Professionally recorded & mastered sounds
  • No latency for precise playing
  • Multitasking support for playing along with music
  • Universal app for iPhone and iPad
Features
Read full description

The ultimate Bongos for your iPhone and iPad 18 with professionally recorded and mastered sounds: Depending where you hit the bongos sounds varies! It doesn’t matter if you are a professional musician, want to become a bongocero or just want to drum for fun - you should get this app! Features: ⇒ 18 high quality bongo samples ⇒ More percussion: Cowbell and sticks ⇒ Professionally recorded & mastered sounds ⇒ No latency for fast and exact playing! ⇒ Optimized for iPhone / iPad speakers, headphones and external speakers ⇒ Supports multitasking: Play along with your own music ⇒ HD Retina Graphics for iPhone, iPod touch and the new iPad ⇒ 2 Apps in 1: Universal App for iPhone AND iPad To play along with your own music, start the music on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad and start the app. Important: If you can't hear anything on your device, please make sure, you turned up the ringtone volume and enabled application sounds in the iPhone settings menu. --------- Make sure to leave a comment with ideas and wishes for future versions in your review!

About

Real Percussion

Learn to play a wide variety of percussion instruments on your smartphone or tablet. This app offers video lessons, loops, and realistic sounds to help you master drumming and develop musical skills. Practice quietly anywhere, anytime, and share your performances with others.

Highlights
  • Over 100 drum lessons
  • Realistic 3D percussion kits
  • Wide variety of instruments
  • Studio-quality audio
  • Export recordings to MP3
  • Share performances on social media
  • MIDI support
Features
Read full description

The Real Percussion provides all the tools necessary to master the art of playing percussion musical instruments on your smartphone or tablet. Now you can easily play any music, anywhere! Experience the sensation of your fingers transforming into drumsticks and feel like part of a real band! What is percussion? A percussion instrument is an object designed to produce sound through shaking, scraping, or striking with the aid of drumsticks or hands. Why haven't you started learning to play percussion yet? The Real Percussion offers various video lessons to assist you, along with a variety of loops to play along with. Don't have access to real percussion instrument or drum set? No problem! The Real Percussion offers a diverse range of percussion musical instruments and drum sets with high-quality sounds, allowing you to play any music you desire! You don't need an acoustic or electronic percussion to learn to play! The Real Percussion is an excellent choice for practicing or playing drums quietly, without causing disruptions or requiring much space. Enjoy the freedom to play percussion wherever you like! Show your friends how good you are at playing percussion! Share videos of your performances with friends and on social media! The Real Percussion app allows children and adults to learn drumming while having fun, enhancing their cognitive and motor skills. This drum game will stimulate your musical talent, making it easy to learn beats as if using a real percussion kit. With Real Percussion, you can play instruments like: - Xylophone - Marimba - Maracas - Tambourine - Timpani - Guiro - Agogo - Vibraphone - Castanets - Cajon - Hang drum - Cabasa - Vibraslap - Bongos - Conga - Drum - Cymbal - and more! So what are you waiting for to become a percussionist? Explore Real Percussion features: - Over 100 drum lessons to learn drumming - Various percussion kits, including realistic 3D sets - Wide variety of drums, cymbals, tambourines, and other percussion instruments - Loops for playing along - Studio-quality audio - Export your recordings to MP3 format - Share your recordings on social media - New percussion sets, lessons, and loops introduced weekly - Compatible with all screen resolutions - Phones and Tablets (HD images) - MIDI support - Free app The app contains the following subscription: - Premium Version (Remove ads; Unlock all loops; Unlock all lessons and Unlock Metronome) - Monthly payment ($3,90). - Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. - The subscription is automatically renewed unless cancelled 24 hours before the renewal. - The subsequent monthly subscriptions are automatically renewed unless cancelled 24 hours before the next renewal (considering the day of the effective monthly subscription). - Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase. - Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable. Terms of use and Privacy Policy: http://www.kolbapps.com/privacy_policy_and_terms.pdf Terms of use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Designed for drummers, percussionists, professional musicians, enthusiasts, and beginners! Download the Real Percussion app and turn your fingers into drumsticks right now! Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube for tips on using the app: @kolbapps Kolb Apps: Touch & Play!

Screenshots

Bongos2 screens
Real Percussion4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Real Percussion at 4.4 against Bongos's 3.3. Real Percussion also leads on ratings volume (1.7K vs 24) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). Bongos's advantage is review sentiment (66% vs 53%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.6). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

Both are free to download. Bongos sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Real Percussion sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Real Percussion holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Real Percussion has 1.7K ratings behind it against 24, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 66% of Bongos's written reviews are positive against 53% of Real Percussion's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Bongos ships an update every 2 months, Real Percussion every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Bongos versus Real Percussion: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBongosReal Percussion
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.3 (24 ratings)4.4 (1.7K ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.7% of reviews — better53.3% of reviews
Number of ratings241.7K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size39 MB85 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSkunk Brothers GmbHKOLB SISTEMAS - EIRELI

Customer experience

Bongos

All ratings24 ratings
Positive54.2%
Neutral8.3%
Negative37.5%
Written reviews849 reviews
Positive65.7%
Neutral14.3%
Negative20.0%

Real Percussion

All ratings1,698 ratings
Positive85.7%
Neutral6.3%
Negative8.0%
Written reviews60 reviews
Positive53.3%
Neutral16.7%
Negative30.0%

User reviews

Bongos

From 24 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Realistic bongo sounds
  • 🎶 Encourages musical creativity
  • 🤗 Fun for all ages
  • 💻 Works well on mobile devices

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
  • 🙄 Repetitive after a while
  • 📢 Intrusive ads
  • 🔊 Could use louder/better sound

Real Percussion

From 1.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎉 Fun and enjoyable to use
  • 🎨 Wide variety of instruments
  • 👍 Easy to play
  • 🎶 Helps with music creation

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Tuning issues with certain instruments (e.g. tenors, timbales)
  • 🔊 Some sounds not realistic or off-beat
  • 💰 Too many ads, subscription required to remove them
  • 🔌 Compatibility issues with other apps (e.g. GarageBand)

Bugs and requests

Bongos

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Sound not working on some devices
  • Rotation issues on certain phones
  • Ads covering up playing area

Requested features

4 requests
  • Record and playback feature
  • More instrument options
  • Ability to tune/adjust bongos
  • Integration with music apps

Real Percussion

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Incorrect positioning of tenor drums
  • Latency issues when playing
  • Glitches causing incorrect drum sounds to play

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more instrument options (e.g. timpani, buffalo drum)
  • Implement MIDI support for integration with other apps
  • Add loop/pattern recording functionality
  • Improve tuning and realism of drum sounds

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Bongos

One-time1
  • Bongos Ad-Free$1.99
10 purchases

Real Percussion

Subscriptions9
  • Premium Version$1.991 Month
  • Premium Version - 3 Days Free$2.991 Month
  • Premium Version1 Month trial$2.991 Month
Show 6 more
  • Premium Version3 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Premium Version$3.991 Month
  • Premium Version$6.997 Days
  • Premium Version (6 months)$9.996 Months
  • Premium Version (1 year)$12.991 Year
  • Premium Version3 Days trial$17.991 Year
One-time1
  • Remove Ads$99.99

Questions

Is Bongos free?
Bongos is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Real Percussion free?
Real Percussion is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Bongos or Real Percussion?
Real Percussion is rated higher. Bongos averages 3.3 out of 5 from 24 ratings, while Real Percussion averages 4.4 from 1.7K ratings.
Do Bongos or Real Percussion have ads?
Both Bongos and Real Percussion show ads.
Which is updated more often, Bongos or Real Percussion?
Bongos ships an update every 2 months, and Real Percussion every 3 weeks. Most recently, Bongos was updated on November 1, 2026 and Real Percussion on November 6, 2026.

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