Drum School vs Chops
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Drum School
This app is an advanced drum learning tool for musicians of all skill levels. It offers a vast library of grooves and exercises with detailed notation, high-quality audio, and video demonstrations. Users can practice at variable tempos, isolate individual drum parts, and track their progress through various styles.
- Extensive groove library with 300+ grooves
- Detailed drum notation and high-quality audio
- Variable tempo control (30-300 bpm)
- Limb audio isolation for practice
- Video performances with adjustable speed
- 145 drum exercises including rudiments
- Technique video demonstrations
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Advanced groove library and drum learning tool for all levels. Whether you're a beginner or a pro, Drum School is the perfect tool for advancing and expanding your skills. With a large selection of grooves, exercises and practice ideas, Drum School will continue to take you to the next level. It is also the perfect tool for easy access to a large library of professional sounding grooves for play along and as a reference library. Included styles: Rock, Rock'n Roll, Alternative Rock, Heavy Metal, Punk, Blues, RnB, Hip Hop, Funk, Reggae, Ska, Disco, Drum'n Bass, House, Techno, Country, Bluegrass, Jazz, Swing, Dixieland, Ragtime, Fusion, New Orleans, Tango, Bossa Nova, Samba, Afro Cuban, Soukous, Calypso, Waltz and many more. ~ Featured in Modern Drummer and DownBeat Magazine ~ Drum School is divided in five main sections: Grooves, Practice, Technique, Hits and Favorites. - GROOVES - This is the main section of Drum School with over 300 drum grooves in many different styles. Each groove comes with: - Standard drum notation with high quality graphics in portrait or landscape mode. - High quality audio made from real drum samples that loop for play along practice. - Variable tempo range of 30 to 300 bpm without any loss of audio quality. - Audio isolation of what each limb is playing, allowing the student to break down the groove into its basic components, learn them separately, and finally put them back together in various combinations. - Bass lines that help learning and experiencing the relationship between the drums and the bass in each style in a fun way. - High quality video performance by the author of the app, established and world renowned drummer, Ferenc Nemeth. The video speed can be adjusted and the more advanced grooves come with an extra video at a slower tempo. - Multiple drum fills that can be practiced individually or in conjunction with the groove in 2, 4 or 8 bar phrases. - Color coded indication of difficulty level from 1 (easy) to 6 (hard). - Ability to mark the groove as completed so you can better track your practice progress. - Detailed description of performance details, learning tips and historical notes about each style. - PRACTICE - The practice section includes 145 drum exercises divided into: Basic Rudiments, Rolls, Flams, Drags, Hand Exercises and Coordination. Each exercise comes with: - Standard drum notation with high quality graphics in portrait or landscape mode. - High quality audio made from real drum samples that loop for play along practice. - Variable tempo range of 30 to 300 bpm without any loss of audio quality. - Audio isolation of left and right hand. - High quality video demonstration with adjustable speed. - Detailed descriptions of performance details and learning tips. - TECHNIQUE - This section includes 12 video demonstrations of basic drum technique for hands and feet. Each video is accompanied by a detailed description and learning tips. - HITS - This section includes classic Pop, Rock and Funk hits. Each groove comes with the same features as the "Grooves" section. - FAVORITES - This is where you collect your favorite grooves and the ones you are currently working on. Visit the support website for a video demonstration.
Chops
Master all 40 PAS rudiments with structured courses, dynamic exercises, and a smart metronome. Apply your skills on the kit with beautiful notation and full playback controls. Designed for drummers of all levels to practice with purpose and enhance their foundation.
- Master all 40 PAS rudiments
- Apply skills on the drum kit
- Dynamic exercises and workouts
- Structured courses for all levels
- Beautiful and readable notation
- Smart metronome with tempo adjustment
- Full playback controls
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A rudiment trainer built for drummers: workouts, exercises, courses, and progress tracking. MASTER ALL 40 PAS RUDIMENTS From the basics to advanced patterns, learn every rudiment and enhance your drumming foundation. KIT VARIATIONS Break out from your practise pad and apply your new skills on the kit. EXERCISES AND WORKOUTS Keep your practice sessions dynamic and engaging with a variety of exercises and workouts. COURSES Whether you're a beginner or an advanced drummer, follow structured courses designed for all skill levels. PRACTICE WITH PURPOSE Maximize your practice time with guided courses that keep you progressing and motivated. BEAUTIFUL NOTATION Beautiful and easy to read notation. SMART METRONOME Built-in smart metronome adjusts tempo and time signature for you, letting you focus on playing. FULL PLAYBACK CONTROLS Hear how each exercise should sound with full playback controls. Adjust the metronome and tempo. Download Chops today and unleash your full drumming potential! Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Chops at Free against Drum School's $24.99. Chops also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months) and review sentiment (100% vs 88%). Drum School's advantage is ratings volume (252 vs 15). On rating, 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
Chops is free to download; Drum School costs $24.99 up front. Drum School sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Chops sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Drum School against 4.7 for Chops. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Drum School has 252 ratings behind it against 15, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 88% of Drum School's written reviews are positive against 100% of Chops's.
Drum School ships an update every 3 months, Chops every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 19, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Drum School | Chops |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $24.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.7 (252 ratings) | 4.7 (15 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 87.5% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 252 — better | 15 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.5 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 291 MB | 50 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Ferenc Nemeth | Digital Staves |
Customer experience
Drum School
Chops
Bugs and requests
Drum School
Reported bugs
2 issues- Video freezing on slower devices
- Occasional app crashes
Requested features
3 requests- More advanced beats and fills
- Ability to create custom practice routines
- Integration with music streaming services
Chops
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Drum School
- Pop Rock Hits Vol.1$1.99
- Funk Hits Vol.1$1.99
Chops
- Chops Subscription (Monthly)7 Days trial$2.991 Month
- Education Subscription (Yearly)$12.991 Year
- Chops Subscription (Yearly)7 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Lifetime$69.99








