# ShowMIDI vs plugdata

The clearest difference is rating: ShowMIDI at 4.8 against plugdata's 4.4. ShowMIDI also leads on review sentiment (88% vs 63%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ShowMIDI holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 18 and 17 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of ShowMIDI's written reviews are positive against 63% of plugdata's.

ShowMIDI ships an update every 2 months, plugdata every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 20, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | ShowMIDI | plugdata |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (18 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/showmidi/id6472608850/reviews)** | [4.4 (17 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plugdata/id6473122351/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **18** | 17 |
| Positive reviews | **87.5% of reviews** | 63.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 8 MB | 147 MB |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 | 12.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Uwyn, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/597132109) | [Timothy Schoen](https://appshunter.io/developer/1718448510) |

## What reviewers say

### ShowMIDI

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/showmidi/id6472608850)

This application provides a real-time, glanceable view of all MIDI activity on your computer. It visualizes various MIDI messages and allows you to pause the flow for a data snapshot. It can be used as a standalone tool or an AUv3 plugin within your DAW.

**Highlights:** Real-time MIDI visualization, Auto-hides irrelevant messages, Pause and snapshot data, Standalone application, AUv3 plugin support, Supports MPE configuration

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### plugdata

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plugdata/id6473122351)

This app provides a visual programming environment for audio experimentation, prototyping, and education. It allows users to create and run audio patches on their mobile devices, enabling creative sound design on the go.

**Highlights:** Visual programming environment, Audio experimentation, Prototyping, Educational tool, Standalone application, Audio plugins

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is ShowMIDI free?

ShowMIDI is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is plugdata free?

plugdata is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, ShowMIDI or plugdata?

ShowMIDI is rated higher. ShowMIDI averages 4.8 out of 5 from 18 ratings, while plugdata averages 4.4 from 17 ratings.

### Do ShowMIDI or plugdata have ads?

Neither ShowMIDI nor plugdata shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, ShowMIDI or plugdata?

ShowMIDI ships an update every 2 months, and plugdata every 3 months. Most recently, ShowMIDI was updated on September 20, 2026 and plugdata on September 30, 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.*