Comparison

Stem Split vs StemLab

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

Head to head
About

Stem Split

This app separates any song into four audio stems: vocals, accompaniment, bass, and drums. All processing happens on your device, ensuring privacy and no uploads. You can then adjust the level, tempo, and pitch of these stems in real-time.

Highlights
  • Separate songs into 4 audio stems
  • On-device processing
  • Real-time level, tempo, and pitch adjustment
  • Import from Files app and iTunes
  • Supports WAV, AIFF, MP3, and MP4 formats
  • Export stems for sharing and other apps
Read full description

With Stem Split you can separate any song into 4 high quality stems: vocal, accompaniment, bass and drums. All processing takes place on your device, using an advanced neural network, ensuring your data stays on your phone. Import songs files from Files or from your iTunes library (non-DRM tracks only). Play back stems and adjust level, tempo and pitch in realtime. The imported song's stems are always accessible from within Files for easy sharing or import into other audio apps. Supported audio input formats include: WAV, AIF, MP3 and MP4. Stems can be saved in AAC format to save space or uncompressed WAV format for highest quality.

About

StemLab

This app uses AI to isolate up to six musical stems from any song directly on your device. It offers a multi-track mixer with studio effects, looping, recording, and export capabilities for musicians and producers. No subscription is required for core functionality.

Highlights
  • AI song stem separation
  • Multi-track mixer
  • Studio effects chain
  • A/B looping
  • On-device processing
  • Stem export
Features
Read full description

Split any song into 6 isolated stems on your iPhone — vocals, drums, bass, guitar, piano, and other. Nothing uploads. Nothing waits in a cloud queue. No subscription required. StemLab runs the AI separation entirely on your device, then opens a full multi-track mixer with studio FX, A/B looping, recording, and stem export. Built for musicians, producers, and singers who want clean, isolated stems without monthly fees. SEPARATE Imports MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A, even MP4 and MOV video — up to 500 MB per file. Pick a 4-stem or 6-stem AI model to extract vocals, drums, bass, guitar, piano, and more in a single pass. Works as a vocal remover, instrumental maker, acapella extractor, and backing track creator. Everything happens on your iPhone — your music never leaves the device. MIX A real multi-track mixer, not just a separator. Per-stem volume, solo, mute. Set A/B loop points to slow down a solo, transcribe a phrase, or rehearse the chorus on repeat. Scrub the timeline with centisecond precision and watch live waveforms render in real time. MAKE IT YOURS Record your own vocal over the instrumental, lay down a guitar take on top of the AI bass, or import any audio file as a custom layer. Build mashups, track covers, write demos, replace a stem entirely — all inside one session, on your phone. ADD EFFECTS Shape each stem with a 6-effect chain: Pitch Shift, Reverb, Delay, Compressor, 4-band EQ, and Saturation. Run Bus FX on the master mix. Bypass any effect without removing it. Save your settings as a reusable preset and load them on the next song with one tap. EXPORT Send out individual stems or a new stereo mixdown in WAV, FLAC, or M4A — now baked with your FX chain, so your Pitch Shift, Reverb, Delay, Compressor, EQ, and Saturation settings carry straight into the export. Pick your sample rate (44.1 / 48 / 96 kHz) and bit depth (16 / 24 / 32-bit). Drop the result straight into your DAW, sampler, looper, or any other app. Built for guitarists isolating solos, bassists transcribing lines, beatmakers pulling clean acapellas, DJs making edits, music teachers building practice tracks, worship leaders covering for missing players, and singers laying covers over original songs. ---------- StemLab Pro unlocks unlimited separations, individual stem export, the full FX chain, and unlimited presets. Available as a one-time lifetime purchase — buy once, keep what you bought. Yearly subscription option also available. EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Terms: https://lauperlabs.com/stemlab/terms Privacy: https://lauperlabs.com/stemlab/privacy

Screenshots

Stem Split4 screens
StemLab4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: StemLab at 4.3 against Stem Split's 2.3. StemLab also leads on update cadence (every 9 days vs every 17 months) and ratings volume (20 vs 4). Stem Split's advantage is iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.2). On price, review sentiment, ads 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. Stem Split sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and StemLab sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

StemLab holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 2.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: StemLab has 20 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Stem Split ships an update every 17 months, StemLab every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Stem Split versus StemLab: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStem SplitStemLab
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.3 (4 ratings)4.3 (20 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings420 — better
Update frequencyEvery 17 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS18.0 — better26.2
Further details — not scored
Size179 MB338 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMellowmuse LtdLauper Labs

Customer experience

Stem Split

All ratings4 ratings
Positive25.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative75.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

StemLab

All ratings20 ratings
Positive85.0%
Neutral5.0%
Negative10.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Stem Split

One-time1
  • Vocal Split$3.99
2 purchases

StemLab

Subscriptions1
  • StemLab Pro Yearly$4.991 Year
One-time1
  • StemLab Pro Lifetime$16.99

Questions

Is Stem Split free?
Stem Split is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is StemLab free?
StemLab is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Stem Split or StemLab?
StemLab is rated higher. Stem Split averages 2.3 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while StemLab averages 4.3 from 20 ratings.
Do Stem Split or StemLab have ads?
Neither Stem Split nor StemLab shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Stem Split or StemLab?
Stem Split ships an update every 17 months, and StemLab every 9 days. Most recently, Stem Split was updated on October 2, 2026 and StemLab on September 29, 2026.

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