Comparison

Foundry vs CRATE

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

Head to head
About

Foundry

This app is a powerful sampler designed for music producers. It automatically detects tempo and key, allowing for precise slicing and manipulation of audio samples. Perform and record on velocity-sensitive pads, then refine your performance on a timeline for professional results.

Highlights
  • Automatic BPM, key, and downbeat detection
  • Beat-grid slicing with draggable markers
  • Per-slice pitch, type, and length editing
  • Velocity-sensitive pad grid
  • Timeline editing with quantization
  • On-device processing, no account needed
Features
Read full description

Foundry is a sampler for producers who want to get right to chopping. Import a track from Files, and Foundry finds the tempo, key, and downbeat automatically. Slice it on a beat grid with draggable markers, audition each slice, and retune or restretch it to your project tempo, repitch for that classic sampler feel, or stretch to keep the key. Then play. Sixteen velocity-sensitive pads, a count-in, and a loop of any length. Arm, record, and your performance lands on a timeline where you can nudge hits, quantize them to a grid with adjustable strength, and bounce the result to a WAV in Files. CHOP • Automatic BPM, key, and downbeat detection • Beat-grid slicing with draggable markers and a minimap • Loop finder that confirms the grid on tricky tracks • Per-slice pitch, type, and length editing • Repitch or time-stretch slices to follow the project tempo • Project-wide transpose PADS • 4×4 pad grid with a scrolling waveform playhead • Adjustable loop length and count-in • Arm + record transport TIMELINE • Every hit recorded as a dot on its lane • Drag single hits or whole groups • Quantize grid and strength • Bounce takes to WAV, share to anywhere Sessions save automatically and pick up where you left off. Everything runs on-device - no account, no upload, no tracking. Foundry offers features under a pro subscription and will auto-renew at the end of the period, unless auto-renewal is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Payments will be chaged to your AppleID. You can manage your subsctiption via the Apple App Store "Subscriptions" panel. You may cancel your subscription any time. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

About

CRATE

Describe a musical vibe, and this app generates a beat with drums, samples, and bass in seconds. You can then easily modify it using simple text commands or intuitive pad gestures, and even sample from your microphone or imported songs.

Highlights
  • Generate beats from text descriptions
  • Modify beats with plain language commands
  • Intuitive pad-based editing
  • Live recording and step sequencing
  • Punch-in effects
  • Sample from microphone or imported audio
  • Auto-chop and re-sequence samples
  • Song arrangement and export
Read full description

CRATE is a sampler you talk to. Type or say a vibe — "dusty boom bap with rhodes", "NewJeans type beat", "dark plugg with bells" — and in a second the pads fill with drums, a chopped sample and a bass line, already playing. Then shape it the way producers do on an MPC or an SP-404, just faster. MAKE A BEAT IN SECONDS • Describe a beat and CRATE builds it from its sound library: drums, chops and bass in key. • Ask for changes in plain words — "add a sax line", "more hats", "punchier snare", "clear the bank". Only that part changes. • Drag a pad down and say what you want there. Swipe a pad left or right for another sound, up to remove it. PLAY IT LIKE A SAMPLER • 16 pads in four banks, a step sequencer and live recording that lands on the beat. • KEEP JAM saves what you just played over the loop. • Punch-in effects: hold FX and an effect pad, higher = more. • Sample from the mic straight onto a pad, or import a song and chop it into 16 pads. CHOP AND FLIP • Auto-chops land on real attacks, on the grid. • FLIP re-sequences the chops into something new while the drums keep playing. • Per-pad level, filter, attack, release, reverse, key shift and time stretch. FINISH THE SONG • Arrange intro, verse, hook and outro from your patterns, or let ARRANGE do it in one tap. • Change tempo, swing and key; export the song as audio to share. MADE FOR IPHONE DUO • On iPhone Duo the hinge is an effect: fold to build tension, snap open for the drop. The outer screen keeps the beat in view when it's folded. • Works great on iPhone and iPad too.

Screenshots

Foundry4 screens
CRATE4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: CRATE at none against Foundry's 3. CRATE also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (daily vs weekly). Foundry's advantage is ratings volume (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (16.4 vs 26.0). On price, rating 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

Both are free to download. Foundry sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. CRATE asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Foundry against 5.0 for CRATE. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Foundry ships an update weekly, CRATE daily. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Foundry versus CRATE: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFoundryCRATE
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (4 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings4 — better1
Update frequencyWeeklyDaily — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationSubscriptionFree — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.4 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size97 MB112 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperQuerci书晗 张

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Foundry

Subscriptions2
  • Foundry Pro$2.991 Month
  • Foundry Pro7 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Foundry Pro Lifetime$39.99
None

CRATE

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Foundry free?
Foundry is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CRATE free?
CRATE is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Foundry or CRATE?
Foundry and CRATE are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 4 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do Foundry or CRATE have ads?
Foundry shows ads; CRATE does not.
Which is updated more often, Foundry or CRATE?
Foundry ships an update weekly, and CRATE daily. Most recently, Foundry was updated on October 31, 2026 and CRATE on October 31, 2026.

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