Comparison

GridStep vs ARC

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

Head to head
About

GridStep

A professional MIDI step sequencer offering a focused grid-based workflow for clear, controlled, and predictable music creation. It functions as a standalone app and an AUv3 plugin, ideal for both live performance and composition.

Highlights
  • Grid-based MIDI step sequencing
  • Explicit edit modes for notes, velocity, slides, and mutes
  • Trigger-based step advance
  • Controlled pattern generation
  • AUv3 MIDI effect plugin
  • Standalone app functionality
Read full description

GridStep is a professional MIDI step sequencer designed for clarity, control, and predictable results. It works as a standalone app as well as an AUv3 plugin. GridStep provides a focused grid-based workflow with explicit edit modes, per-step inspection, and one-shot generation tools. Every interaction is intentional, allowing patterns to evolve without ambiguity. Core Features Explicit Edit Modes - Dedicated modes for Notes, Velocity, Slides, and Mutes - Clear, consistent interactions across the grid Precision Grid Editing - Step-based grid with visible playhead and pattern length - Per-step inspector for detailed control - Efficient editing without leaving the main view Trigger-Based Step Advance - Advance the sequence using incoming MIDI triggers instead of the host clock - Enables irregular rhythms, external control, and non-linear playback - Fully compatible with standard clocked playback Controlled Generation - Pattern generation for notes, velocity, slides, and mutes - Apply generation globally, per lane, or per selection - Designed to support musical intent Performance-Focused Design - Deterministic, repeatable sequencing behaviour - Stage-safe interface optimized for quick adjustments - Predictable timing within AUv3 hosts AUv3 MIDI Effect - Works in AUv3 hosts such as AUM, Drambo, Logic, and Cubasis - MIDI-only design compatible with any synth or sampler Built for both live performance and composition, GridStep emphasizes stability, readability, and repeatable behaviour.

About

ARC

Create music with a versatile groovebox featuring eight tracks for synths, samplers, and drums. Its intuitive interface allows for real-time performance and easy arrangement into songs, all while staying in key and scale.

Highlights
  • Eight dynamic tracks (synth, sampler, drums)
  • Key and scale locked note/chord pads
  • 16-pad sampler with import/record
  • Deep synth editing and 25 arpeggiator patterns
  • Full mixer with EQ and individual track effects
  • Song mode for arrangement and live performance
  • MIDI input and iCloud sync
Features
Read full description

Eight tracks. Synths, samplers, drums. Play it like an instrument. ARC-24 is a groovebox for iPhone and iPad. Pads, loops, and a mixer in one place. Everything stays in key. Pick a key and a scale and the pads follow, so you can play fast without landing on a wrong note. Record a loop, keep overdubbing while it runs, and fix whatever you fumbled on the grid afterwards. Once you've got a few loops going, chain them into a song. Or leave the transport running and fire them off by hand from the mixer. • Eight tracks that sort themselves out. Synth, sampler, or drums, decided by what you play first. Overdub while the loop cycles. • Note and chord pads locked to your key and scale. Hold latches notes so they sustain. Pulse retriggers them on the beat. • A sixteen pad sampler. Import WAV, AIFF, MP3, M4A, AAC, or FLAC, pull audio from a video, or record through the mic. Chop it into slices across the grid, or map one sample over every pad and play it pitched, in scale or chromatic, at the original length or at tape speed. • Ten drum kits, from 909 and trap to lo-fi, boom bap, and hand percussion. Tune, pan, and level every pad. • Synth editing that goes deep enough to matter. 21 presets to start from, two oscillators, filter, envelope, and LFO when you want to build your own. Save the keepers. • 25 arpeggiator patterns, all of them in your key, from slow drifting phrases to sixteenth note runs. • A piano roll editor. Move, stretch, and delete notes while the loop keeps playing. • A real mixer. Faders, pan, mute, solo, and three band EQ on every channel. • Every track gets its own effects rack, not a shared send. Resonant low and high pass with cutoff and resonance. Compressor and gate. Distortion, bit crusher, ring mod, flanger. Tempo synced delay in digital, analog, or tape. Reverb with chorus and tape wow. Character for texture, air, width, and warmth. • Motion, so synth parts never sit still. Slow LFOs drift the filter as the loop runs, and Bloom opens the cutoff every time you play a note. • Song mode. Arrange loops into sections, or switch between them live from the mixer without ever stopping. • MIDI in from a USB or Bluetooth controller. • Export to WAV or AAC. • iCloud. Start something on the iPad, pick it up on the phone. Seven days free, the whole app. After that one purchase unlocks it for good. No subscription, no renewal, nothing to cancel.

Screenshots

GridStep4 screens
ARC4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ARC at Free against GridStep's $3.99. GridStep's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.3) and in-app purchases (none vs 2). On ratings volume, update cadence, ads 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

ARC is free to download; GridStep costs $3.99 up front. ARC sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. GridStep asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

GridStep holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 3 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GridStep ships an update every 2 weeks, ARC weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
GridStep versus ARC: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGridStepARC
Price$3.99Free — better
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better4.3 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews—33.3% of reviews
Number of ratings33
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.6 — better18.1
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB52 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJoe TopjianDaelan Wood

Customer experience

GridStep

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

ARC

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral33.3%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral33.3%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

None

GridStep

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

ARC

One-time2
  • 7-Day TrialFree
  • ARC-24 Full Version$9.99

Questions

Is GridStep free?
GridStep costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ARC free?
ARC is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, GridStep or ARC?
GridStep is rated higher. GridStep averages 5.0 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while ARC averages 4.3 from 3 ratings.
Do GridStep or ARC have ads?
Neither GridStep nor ARC shows ads.
Which is updated more often, GridStep or ARC?
GridStep ships an update every 2 weeks, and ARC weekly. Most recently, GridStep was updated on October 11, 2026 and ARC on October 22, 2026.

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