# Midi Studio vs Midi Controller

The clearest difference is price: Midi Controller at Free against Midi Studio's $1.99. Midi Studio's advantage is update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 7 months) and review sentiment (64% vs 41%). On rating, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Midi Controller is free to download; Midi Studio costs $1.99 up front. Midi Studio sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Midi Controller sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 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 — 4.0 for Midi Studio against 4.1 for Midi Controller. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 65 and 42 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 64% of Midi Studio's written reviews are positive against 41% of Midi Controller's.

Midi Studio ships an update every 5 weeks, Midi Controller every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Midi Studio | Midi Controller |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $1.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.0 (65 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/midi-studio/id519720275/reviews) | **[4.1 (42 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/midi-controller-remote-and-usb/id1470513354/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **65** | 42 |
| Positive reviews | **64.4% of reviews** | 40.9% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 weeks** | Every 7 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 500 MB | 11 MB |
| Requires iOS | **5.1.1** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [VITALIY TARASYUK](https://appshunter.io/developer/519720278) | [Mizo LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1820590289) |

## What reviewers say

### Midi Studio

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/midi-studio/id519720275)

This app acts as a modular MIDI control surface, allowing users to remotely control software and hardware via Wi-Fi or USB. It offers various touch controls like faders, knobs, and XY pads for music production and studio setups.

**Highlights:** Modular MIDI control surface, Wi-Fi and USB connectivity, Faders, knobs, buttons, XY pads, Customizable layouts (Pro version), CoreMidi message support, Velocity sensitive keys

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Live Drums Layout | $0.99 | one-time |
| CD Player Layout | $0.99 | one-time |
| Vinyl Player Layout | $0.99 | one-time |
| Buy ready-made layout | $1.99 | one-time |
| Buy Control | $1.99 | one-time |
| DJ Mixer Layout | $1.99 | one-time |
| Buy Gold Layout | $4.99 | one-time |
| Daw Control Layouts | $4.99 | one-time |
| Buy Premium Layout | $9.99 | one-time |
| Create Custom Layouts | $14.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎛️ Versatile MIDI controller with multiple layout options
- 🚀 Low latency wireless MIDI connection over WiFi
- 💡 Velocity-sensitive keyboards and drum pads
- 🎹 Works seamlessly with popular DAWs (Logic, Ableton, Reason, Reaper)
- 👍 Easy to set up and intuitive interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💸 Expensive in-app purchases for custom layouts ($15-$23)
- 📦 Extremely large app size (500MB+) for a MIDI controller
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 📚 Poor documentation and unclear setup instructions
- 🚫 No customer support or unresponsive support team

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on startup or during use
- MIDI keyboard and drum pads frequently break or become unresponsive
- Dropped MIDI events during performance
- Connectivity issues between iOS devices
- In-app purchase store causes crashes

**Requested features**

- Bluetooth MIDI support as alternative to WiFi
- MIDI learn function for easier configuration
- IAA (Inter-App Audio) or Audiobus support
- Editable drum pad layouts with half-step intervals
- Configuration profiles for switching between instruments


### Midi Controller

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/midi-controller-remote-and-usb/id1470513354)

Transform your iPhone or iPad into a versatile MIDI controller. Send notes, control changes, and program changes wirelessly or via USB to any compatible DAW or hardware. Customize your workspace with unlimited, dynamic controls.

**Highlights:** USB, WLAN, and Bluetooth connectivity, Customizable buttons, pads, and sliders, Send Notes, CC, and Program Change values, Works with macOS and CoreMidi compatible hardware, No additional software required, Dynamic control creation

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly: MIDI Controller | $3.99 | per month |
| Lifetime: MIDI Controller | $29.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Midi Studio free?

Midi Studio costs $1.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is Midi Controller free?

Midi Controller is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Midi Studio or Midi Controller?

Midi Controller is rated higher. Midi Studio averages 4.0 out of 5 from 65 ratings, while Midi Controller averages 4.1 from 42 ratings.

### Do Midi Studio or Midi Controller have ads?

Neither Midi Studio nor Midi Controller shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Midi Studio or Midi Controller?

Midi Studio ships an update every 5 weeks, and Midi Controller every 7 months. Most recently, Midi Studio was updated on October 17, 2026 and Midi Controller on October 8, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*