Comparison

Pocket Drums vs Learn Drums

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

Head to head
About

Pocket Drums

Experience realistic drumming with a virtual drum kit that fits in your pocket. This app offers responsive touch controls, high-fidelity drum sets, and various beats to help you play along. Learn rudiments with included videos and customize your sound with adjustable pitch, volume, and effects.

Highlights
  • Realistic touch-sensitive drum response
  • 15 high-fidelity recorded drum kits
  • 16 PlayAlong Beats and 20 music/drum beats
  • Basic drum rudiment videos
  • Adjustable pitch, sensitivity, volume, reverb, and delay
  • Multi-track recording and sharing capabilities
Features
Read full description

Pocket Drums is the most realistic sounding and looking drum app out there! Perfect for both beginners and pros alike, Pocket Drums utilizes the latest technology and decades of real drum experience to create the ideal drumming app for the iPhone or iPad. All of the features of the app combine to make you feel as if you are sitting down and playing a real drum set. The drums respond to your touch - the pitch changes slightly depending on where you hit the toms, just like a real kit. Playing realistic rolls is as easy as swirling your finger around, simply adjusting the roll speed by how fast or slow you swirl your finger. There is also 15 different professionally recorded high fidelity drum sets to choose from, and an amazing drum wrap, with more to come. Pocket Drums also features 16 PlayAlong Beats, 10 unique Drum Beats and 10 Music Beats to rock out with, as well as 10 different metronome sounds. A unique feature is the addition of 10 basic rudiment videos, so you can see firsthand how to play the drum rudiments. With the ability to adjust the pitch, sensitivity, individual drum volume, reverb, and delay, recording, ability to share and export your recordings (optional in-app purchase), and so much more, Pocket Drums is by far the most comprehensive and realistic drumming app available today! FEATURES: • 15 professionally recorded 44.1 khz high fidelity kits, with more to come • Drum Pitch Sensitivity - the pitch changes depending on where you strike the toms, just like a real kit • Reverb and Delay Controls - slider adjustments allows limitless drum sounds • Pitch Control - lower or raise the pitch of the drums • Drum Volume - adjust volume of each individual drum • Snares - 11 more snares that you can mix and match to create your ideal sound (optional in-app purchase) • Videos of basic drum rudiments played on a real snare drum • Amazingly realistic drum wraps • Realistic visual effects - drums and cymbals look and respond like a real drum set, visually corresponding to your every touch • Retina Display for both iPad and iPhone for incredibly crisp graphics • PlayAlong Beats: 16 new loops with basic bass drum, hi-hat or snare beats, to play along for added rhythmic expression! • 10 Drum Beats and 10 Music Beats to play along to, with more to come! • Realistic Rolls - simply swirl your finger around to create slower or faster rolls • Double Bass drum feature with slider adjustment • 10 Metronome Sounds and 4 Time Signatures to choose from, with BPM adjustment • Recording - easily add or delete tracks, save and loop recordings • Multi-track recording functionality • Share your recordings through email, Facebook, and Twitter • Export your recordings to your computer (optional in-app purchase) • Lefty Mode - reverse the entire drum layout • Play along to the music on your iPod • Option to add bass drum when hitting crash cymbal IN-APP PURCHASES TO UPGRADE: • Additional kit pack • 11 more snares that you can mix and match to create your ideal sound • 3 more wraps: Turquoise, Black Oyster, and Dark Wood • Export recordings • Ads removed PRIVACY POLICY: http://codyrotwein.com/privacy.html

About

Learn Drums

Master drumming with video-guided lessons designed for absolute beginners. Learn fundamental techniques, rhythm patterns, and various drumming styles at your own pace. This app provides a structured path to becoming a confident drummer, regardless of your equipment.

Highlights
  • Video-guided lessons
  • Fundamental techniques
  • Rhythm patterns and beats
  • Multiple drumming styles
  • Coordination exercises
  • Structured learning path
  • Practice routines
Features
Read full description

Learn drums from your first beat to playing full songs -- step-by-step, at your own pace, no drum kit required. Tap on your phone or tablet to practice along with real drum beats across rock, pop, blues, and funk. WHAT YOU GET Step-by-step drum lessons that start with the basics: how to hold the sticks, posture at the kit, and stick control. From there you build into full drum beats -- rock grooves, pop backbeats, blues shuffles, funk patterns -- one skill at a time. Video lessons from drum instructors who teach beginners for a living. Each tutorial focuses on one idea so you can see the technique, hear how it should sound, and copy it without guesswork. Slow-motion replays for the parts that trip everyone up. Drop the tempo, watch where the sticks land, then bring it back up to speed when your hands are ready. A song library arranged for beginners. Pick a track, play along, and use the visual feedback to see whether your timing is on the beat or drifting. This is where drum practice stops feeling like homework and starts sounding like music. NO DRUM KIT? START ANYWAY You don't need a kit to begin. Practice the grip, the rhythms, and the song parts on a tabletop, a practice pad, or right on the screen. When you do sit at a real kit later, the patterns are already in your hands. HOW IT'S BUILT FOR BEGINNERS Plain-language teaching. No music theory jargon thrown at you before you've played a single beat. If a lesson uses a word, it explains the word. Short sessions that fit a real day. Five minutes between meetings, fifteen before dinner -- progress comes from showing up, not from hour-long blocks you can never find. Honest pacing. You repeat a beat until it locks in, then move on. Skip ahead any time, or go back and re-watch a lesson without losing your place. Every drummer started where you are now -- counting one beat at a time. Download Learn Drums and play your first rhythm today. Terms of use - http://thecookbk.com/terms.php?appname=learn.drums.beginners Privacy Policy - http://thecookbk.com/privacy.php?appname=learn.drums.beginners

Screenshots

Pocket Drums4 screens
Learn Drums4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Learn Drums at none against Pocket Drums's shown. Learn Drums also leads on rating (4.4 vs 4.0) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and in-app purchases 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. Pocket Drums sells 6 one-off in-app purchases and Learn Drums sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Learn Drums holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 290 and 120 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 49% of Pocket Drums's written reviews are positive against 55% of Learn Drums's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pocket Drums ships an update every 2 months, Learn Drums every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Pocket Drums versus Learn Drums: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPocket DrumsLearn Drums
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (290 ratings)4.4 (120 ratings) — better
Positive reviews49.4% of reviews54.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings290 — better120
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size84 MB104 MB
Age rating+94+
DeveloperDrum StarzRiafy Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

Customer experience

Pocket Drums

All ratings290 ratings
Positive73.4%
Neutral7.6%
Negative19.0%
Written reviews81 reviews
Positive49.4%
Neutral2.5%
Negative48.1%

Learn Drums

All ratings120 ratings
Positive84.2%
Neutral5.0%
Negative10.8%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive54.5%
Neutral4.5%
Negative40.9%

Bugs and requests

Pocket Drums

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • App crashes when playing drums rapidly
  • Glitching audio that stutters and repeats loudly
  • App freezes when recording multiple times
  • Screen stretches and becomes unresponsive
  • App fails to open after updates
Show 4 more
  • Video upload functionality broken
  • Drums don't register input properly
  • Incompatibility with recent iOS updates
  • Ads freeze the app and prevent closing

Requested features

9 requests
  • Double bass pedal for metal songs
  • Reggae drum tones
  • Splash and china cymbals
  • Mix and match custom drum sets
  • Built-in drumming lessons
Show 4 more
  • Ability to modify and remove playlists
  • Better disco beat drum sounds
  • More instruments and variety
  • Reduced ad frequency

Learn Drums

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Pocket Drums

One-time6
  • Remove ads$0.99
  • Exporting$0.99
  • Kit Pack$0.99
Show 3 more
  • Wraps$0.99
  • Snares$0.99
  • Full - Unlock everything$2.99
6 purchases

Learn Drums

Subscriptions5
  • Learn Drums-Monthly Trial$8.991 Month
  • drum+beats+bass$11.491 Month
  • Learn to Play Drum$24.996 Months
Show 2 more
  • Learn Drums-Yearly Trial$29.991 Year
  • Drums- Easy Lessons6 Months trial$39.996 Months
One-time1
  • 7 days premium$2.99

Questions

Is Pocket Drums free?
Pocket Drums is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Learn Drums free?
Learn Drums is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Pocket Drums or Learn Drums?
Learn Drums is rated higher. Pocket Drums averages 4.0 out of 5 from 290 ratings, while Learn Drums averages 4.4 from 120 ratings.
Do Pocket Drums or Learn Drums have ads?
Pocket Drums shows ads; Learn Drums does not.
Which is updated more often, Pocket Drums or Learn Drums?
Pocket Drums ships an update every 2 months, and Learn Drums every 2 weeks. Most recently, Pocket Drums was updated on October 19, 2026 and Learn Drums on October 16, 2026.

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