8Strummer vs Complete Rhythm Trainer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
8Strummer
This app helps guitarists improve their rhythm and strumming skills. Practice complex patterns with a metronome and various chord shapes. It also serves as a tool for songwriters to find the perfect groove.
- Rhythm pattern practice
- 27 chord shapes
- Metronome accompaniment
- Save favorite patterns
- Randomize pattern
- Muted and ringing chords
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A RHYTHM GUITAR PRIMER: Keep that pick hand moving in time, until it becomes second nature. A VITAL RESOURCE FOR PRACTISING AND IMPROVING RHYTHM GUITAR SKILLS: Practise strumming complex rhythm patterns and get your timing perfect! A USEFUL SONGWRITING TOOL: Find the perfect groove for your next song! ----- Strumming in 8ths is: * 4 down-strums on the numbered beats * 4 up-strums on the 'ands': 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & = down, up, down, up, down, up, down, up. Strumming in 16ths is: * 8 down-strums on the numbered beats and the 'ands' * 8 up-strums on the in-betweens: 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a = down, up, down, up, etc... IMPORTANT: Always keep your strumming hand moving up and down evenly - including rest strokes. • Practice with a click and one of 27 chord shapes. • Save your favourite patterns • Shake to randomise the pattern • Different notation types • Muted and ringing chords Designed and produced in collaboration with guitarist and tutor Simon Nelson
Complete Rhythm Trainer
Master musical rhythm with this comprehensive training app. It offers progressive drills, diverse rhythm exercises, and interactive modes designed to make learning enjoyable. Track your progress and compete with others.
- 252 progressive drills
- Multiple time signatures and note values
- 5 drill types (imitation, reading, dictation)
- Arcade and polyrhythm modes
- Custom drill creation
- Teacher-student program features
- Cloud sync
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The ultimate rhythm training app for musicians. Learn to read, recognize, tap and write rhythms from simplest to most advanced. Rhythm is one of the most important aspects of music and one that every musician should become proficient with. Designed like a video game and with strong pedagogical concepts in mind, this app will make you master rhythm while rendering the learning process enjoyable. Features • 252 progressive drills arranged over 4 levels / 30 chapters • Extensive content: from simple time signatures to compound and asymmetric time signatures, from half notes and quarter notes to thirty-second notes, triplets, swing eighths, double dotted notes, quintuplets, ... • 5 drill types: rhythm imitation drills, rhythm reading drills, rhythm dictations, two-voice reading drills and two-voice dictations • Play a selection of 11 drills in arcade mode • Play and practice polyrhythms in a dedicated polyrhythm section • Most of the drills are randomly generated, enabling you to practice the studied rhythms as many times as needed • 23 instrument sound banks with actual recorded sounds: piano, guitar, pizzicato violin, conga, bongo, djembe, darabuka, woodblock, ... • Designed like a video game: earn 3 stars in each drill of a chapter to complete it. Or will you be able to obtain perfect 5-star scores? • Don't want to follow the preestablished path of progression? Create and save your own custom drills and rehearse them at your own convenience • Create full custom training programs and invite friends or students to join them. If for example you're a teacher you can create custom programs for your students, add drills every week and view their scores on private leaderboards • Never lose any progress: cloud sync across your various devices • 25 achievements to unlock • Leaderboards to compare arcade mode scores with other players worldwide • Nice and clean user interface with 2 display themes: light and dark • 4 sheet music display styles: modern, classic, handwritten and jazz • Designed by a musician and music teacher with a Royal Conservatory master's degree Full Version • Download the app and try out the first two chapters for free • One-time in-app purchase to unlock the full version on all your devices Having a problem? Got a suggestion? You can reach us at hello@completerhythmtrainer.com Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Complete Rhythm Trainer at 4.7 against 8Strummer's 3.6. Complete Rhythm Trainer also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 26 months) and review sentiment (88% vs 67%). 8Strummer's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and iOS requirement (7.0 vs 17.5). On price, ads 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
Both are free to download. Complete Rhythm Trainer sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. 8Strummer asks for nothing beyond the download.
Complete Rhythm Trainer holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Complete Rhythm Trainer has 105 ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of 8Strummer's written reviews are positive against 88% of Complete Rhythm Trainer's.
8Strummer ships an update every 26 months, Complete Rhythm Trainer fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | 8Strummer | Complete Rhythm Trainer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.6 (11 ratings) | 4.7 (105 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | 88.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 11 | 105 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 26 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 7.0 — better | 17.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 38 MB | 66 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Drew Milloy | Binary Guilt |
Customer experience
8Strummer
Complete Rhythm Trainer
In-app purchases
8Strummer
No in-app purchases
Complete Rhythm Trainer
- Cloud Sync and Web access$0.991 Month
- Cloud Sync and Web access$9.991 Year
- Full Version$6.99
Questions
Is 8Strummer free?
Is Complete Rhythm Trainer free?
Which has better reviews, 8Strummer or Complete Rhythm Trainer?
Do 8Strummer or Complete Rhythm Trainer have ads?
Which is updated more often, 8Strummer or Complete Rhythm Trainer?
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