Comparison

WeDrum vs Drum Notation by Beat Note

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

Head to head
About

WeDrum

Learn to play drums with a realistic simulator. Play along to your favorite songs, join a virtual band, and practice rhythms. Features AR mode for immersive play and a variety of drum kits and genres.

Highlights
  • Play along to songs
  • Virtual band experience
  • Augmented Reality (AR) mode
  • Multiple drum kits
  • Practice drum rudiments
  • Hi-Fi drum sounds
  • Metronome
Features
Read full description

Master the Drums! Play the beat right from your mobile! Learn world-famous hits, form a band, and become a PRO Drummer! WeDrum is free real drum set simulator games that hold all types of electric drums required by a true drummer! This music games lets you play on the electric drum kit with drums sticks right along with a pianist, guitarist and even a singer! No prior drum lessons necessary! The drum app suits anyone who loves music and wants to experience what it’s like to be a drummer in a music band! WeDrum goes even more realistic - we’ve added Augmented Reality (AR) feature! From now on you can locate a drumset wherever you like. Practice and play without buying expensive instruments! Try it out now to dive into the drums’ reality, for FREE! ◆◆ Key features ◆◆ SELECT: Choose your favorite music tune to play on a drum set from a rich collection of songs across a wide variety of music genres. New free songs are added to the Songbook regularly. GATHER: Pick a pianist, a guitarist and a vocalist to enjoy a band-like experience or take delight in playing on your own. PLAY: Drum along to a song following bright dynamic hints and tips. The better you play, the better results you get. ACHIEVE: Keep up with the tempo and earn the best score you can. Enjoy the crowd cheering like a real musician playing on the stage. Replay the song to improve the score. SHARE: Share your drumming experience with the world via social media. ◆◆◆ More highlights ◆◆◆ Switch to SOLO mode to enjoy jamming and freestyling on a drum kit simulator app with professional Hi-Fi sounds and an incredibly realistic drum machine set graphics. Many popular drum kits - Rock, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Dance, Electric, Ethnic, etc. Metronome: turn the metronome on to keep up with the tempo. Perfect for practicing your drums rudiments. Hi-Fi drum beats sounds: special sound settings for each music instrument. Animated visual effects Are you going to be the next famous drummer who rattles his drum sticks like a ninja? Or you’d rather stay calm and wave them as wizards spell with their wands? It’s totally up to you! Gismart offers you an ultimate drum kit app with high quality sounds that is designed to be handy for people who prefer drums to other musical instruments, should they be the guitar or the piano, or whatever they are. Oh, yeah..! Keep it in mind that rhythm music games like WeDrum is a perfect fit for a beginner beat maker who spends 24 hours a day tapping drum pads as well. Plunge into the world of real drums with WeDrum! Learn, practice, play along with to your favorite songs in the most realistic drum games! PREMIUM subscription Subscribe to Premium to enjoy exclusive content without ads! Unlimited access to our Premium features include: - All premium songs - Custom drum sets unlocked - New songs weekly - No ads The app contains the following subscription options: - Weekly with a 3-day trial $7,99; - Yearly with a 7-day free trial at $29,99; - “Music One” weekly subscription - 3 days free, then $11.99; - “Music One” yearly subscription - 7 days free, then $59.99; - Monthly at $14,99. - Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. - The account is charged for renewal within 24-hours before the end of the current period. - Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user’s Account Settings after purchase. - The cost of renewal is equal to the value that “Apple’s App Store Matrix” determines as the equivalent of the subscription price in $USD. - Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication. Privacy Policy: https://gismart.com/privacy-policy/ Terms of Service: https://gismart.com/terms-of-service/

About

Drum Notation by Beat Note

Create, practice, and share drum music notation with ease. This app transforms sequenced beats into professional sheet music, offering tools for composition, transcription, and interactive teaching. Enhance your drumming journey with customizable practice sessions and high-quality export options.

Highlights
  • Sequencer to notation conversion
  • Compose and transcribe drum beats
  • Customizable practice sessions
  • Interactive teaching tools
  • High-quality PDF and image export
  • Multiple notation voicing options
Features
Read full description

Beat Note — Drum Notation for Drummers, Teachers, and Content Creators The fastest way to write, hear, practice, and share drum notation. Built by a drummer, for drummers. FOR DRUMMERS — FROM YOUR HEAD TO THE PAGE IN SECONDS You have a groove idea. Beat Note gets it down before you lose it. Tap the sequencer grid to build beats. Watch them turn into clean, professional drum notation in real time. Hit play and hear exactly what you wrote — at any tempo, with a click track, on loop. - Transcribe songs to check your ear and lock in what you hear - Compose your own grooves, fills, and exercises from scratch - Count in with a visual on-screen "1, 2, 3, 4" so your eyes and ears are ready together - Use Beat Note as your in-ear metronome during rehearsals — your beats, not just clicks "Been waiting a long time for an app like this. Clearly built by a drummer." — App Store review FOR TEACHERS — WRITE IT, PLAY IT, SEND IT What used to take 30 minutes in a desktop notation program now takes 2 minutes on your phone or iPad. Write exercises on the fly — during the lesson, not after it. Play back the notation so students hear exactly how it should sound. Share a link so they can listen at home. Export a PDF they can print and bring to the kit. - Use the sequencer as a live music whiteboard, in person or online - Build a library of exercises organized by tag, ready for any student - Send a shareable link or export a high-quality PDF in one tap "What would normally take 30 minutes on a computer has become 2 minutes from my mobile device. My students love it." — App Store review FOR CONTENT CREATORS — PROFESSIONAL NOTATION VIDEOS, IN MINUTES Export your beat as an animated MP4 — portrait for Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts, or landscape for YouTube and Vimeo. Choose 720p, 1080p, or 4K. Pick a color theme. Preview before you export. PDF, PNG, WAV or AAC audio, shareable link, and animated MP4 — all from one app. NOTATION THAT LOOKS RIGHT Professional drum notation, consistent across every format you export. What you see on screen is what your students get in the PDF, what your followers see in the video, and what you hear in playback. - All standard drums, cymbals, and articulations - Subdivisions from 8th notes to 32nd notes, plus triplets, quintuplets (5s), and septuplets (7s) - Common and compound time signatures, including 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8 - Linear, split hands/feet, or split drums/cymbals voicing - Sticking annotations (R, L) - Single-measure repeat symbol (%) — renders automatically when measures repeat ORGANIZE AND DISCOVER - Tags, search, and sort to manage your beat library - Discover tab: curated educational beats for all skill levels - Beat templates to get started fast - Customize tempo, click track, count-in, and timer MADE BY A DRUMMER, SHAPED BY THE COMMUNITY Beat Note was built by me — an independent developer with 35+ years behind the kit. But the direction comes from the community. Every major feature on the roadmap has been voted on, requested, and refined by drummers, teachers, and creators just like you. Join the conversation at roadmap.beat-note.app — vote on upcoming features, share ideas, and see what's coming next. I'm here to make sure it all comes together into something that actually works. Premium subscription required for full access. Educator and Creator tiers available. Free trial included. Payment is charged through your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription auto-renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period via iTunes Account Settings. Terms and Privacy Policy: https://www.beat-note.app/privacy-and-terms

Screenshots

WeDrum4 screens
Drum Notation by Beat Note4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Drum Notation by Beat Note at 83% against WeDrum's 40%. Drum Notation by Beat Note also leads on ads (none vs shown) and rating (4.6 vs 4.3). WeDrum's advantage is ratings volume (20K vs 88) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.6). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

Both are free to download. WeDrum sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per 7 days and Drum Notation by Beat Note sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $6.69 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Drum Notation by Beat Note holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: WeDrum has 20K ratings behind it against 88, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of WeDrum's written reviews are positive against 83% of Drum Notation by Beat Note's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

WeDrum ships an update every 3 weeks, Drum Notation by Beat Note every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
WeDrum versus Drum Notation by Beat Note: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWeDrumDrum Notation by Beat Note
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (20K ratings)4.6 (88 ratings) — better
Positive reviews40.4% of reviews82.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings20K — better88
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 9 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size389 MB81 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGismart LimitedKick Snare Hat Apps, LLC

Customer experience

WeDrum

All ratings20,324 ratings
Positive81.9%
Neutral6.0%
Negative12.1%
Written reviews460 reviews
Positive40.4%
Neutral7.8%
Negative51.7%

Drum Notation by Beat Note

All ratings87 ratings
Positive88.5%
Neutral4.6%
Negative6.9%
Written reviews122 reviews
Positive82.8%
Neutral7.4%
Negative9.8%

User reviews

WeDrum

From 20K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fun and engaging gameplay
  • 👍 Easy to learn and understand
  • 💡 Potential for learning drums

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🔒 Limited free content
  • 🐛 Inaccurate timing and responsiveness
  • 📺 Excessive advertisements

Drum Notation by Beat Note

From 88 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 🚀 Quick and efficient notation
  • 🎶 Great sound playback
  • 💡 Excellent for teaching and learning
  • ✍️ Simple to write exercises and ideas

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 💸 High annual cost
  • 🆓 Limited free version
  • 🚫 No one-time purchase option
  • 🤔 Subscription model makes little sense to some

Bugs and requests

WeDrum

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Freezing and crashing issues
  • Subscription charges even after unsubscribing

Requested features

3 requests
  • More song variety and difficulty levels
  • Integration with real drum sets
  • Ability to create and share custom songs

Drum Notation by Beat Note

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • Preview rarely matches notes on staff
  • Sometimes doesn't play any notes
  • Sounds not always appropriate for instrument voicing
  • Editing measures is inconvenient
  • Free trial charged immediately
Show 3 more
  • iCloud data sync issues for subscription confirmation
  • Not stable in loopings, slow delay on first note
  • Measure lines on PDFs too thick and close

Requested features

27 requests
  • 7/8 time signature support
  • Syncing between devices
  • Web version
  • Native Mac/Windows apps
  • Add text or notes to notations
Show 22 more
  • Cowbell instrument
  • More drum samples and pitch control
  • Ability to work on spaces longer than a measure
  • Add 32nd notes
  • Duplicate multiple bars at once
  • Copy/paste large sections
  • Option to drag duplicated bars to the end
  • Add melody track
  • More instrument options
  • Ability to manage volumes of different instruments
  • Add quintuplets and sextuplets to a bar
  • Add repetition options for measures
  • Add text to music sheets
  • Improve loop stability and reduce delay
  • Allow monthly subscription option
  • More free beats/unlimited free version
  • Add sticking for grace notes
  • More advanced editing options for multiple bars
  • Improve PDF export readability
  • Add virtual drum kit for accessibility
  • AI-powered automatic notation
  • Auto-sync to track

In-app purchases

8 purchases

WeDrum

Subscriptions7
  • BRAND NEW drum game3 Days trial$7.997 Days
  • Wedrum - premium subscription3 Days trial$9.997 Days
  • Music One3 Days trial$9.997 Days
Show 4 more
  • Full Access$14.991 Month
  • WeDrum premium subscription7 Days trial$29.991 Year
  • Full Access7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • Real Drums Premium3 Days trial$79.991 Year
One-time1
  • BRAND NEW striking drum game$49.99
5 purchases

Drum Notation by Beat Note

Subscriptions5
  • Educator Tier Monthly (No Trial)$6.691 Month
  • Creator Tier Monthly (No Trial)$13.491 Month
  • Educator Tier Annual (No Trial)$59.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Educator Tier Annual + Free Trial7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • Creator Tier Annual + Free Trial7 Days trial$119.991 Year

Questions

Is WeDrum free?
WeDrum is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Drum Notation by Beat Note free?
Drum Notation by Beat Note is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, WeDrum or Drum Notation by Beat Note?
Drum Notation by Beat Note is rated higher. WeDrum averages 4.3 out of 5 from 20K ratings, while Drum Notation by Beat Note averages 4.6 from 88 ratings.
Do WeDrum or Drum Notation by Beat Note have ads?
WeDrum shows ads; Drum Notation by Beat Note does not.
Which is updated more often, WeDrum or Drum Notation by Beat Note?
WeDrum ships an update every 3 weeks, and Drum Notation by Beat Note every 9 days. Most recently, WeDrum was updated on November 4, 2026 and Drum Notation by Beat Note on November 3, 2026.

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