Comparison

Egoist vs SAND

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

Head to head
About

Egoist

This app lets you extract grooves from any audio file, transforming your music library into a sound source. It offers tools for sketching tracks with sample slicing, basslines, beats, and effects, suitable for both studio and on-the-go use.

Highlights
  • Audio Unit v3 & Standalone
  • Sample slicing and manipulation
  • Onboard bass and beat synthesizers
  • Effect sequencer
  • Pattern chaining for song creation
  • Slice keyboard functionality
  • iCloud synchronization
Read full description

Egoist is a groove instrument. Load any audio file and squeeze the groove out of it! Try your mp3 library and use it as a sound source! The additional onboard bass, beat and fx units make Egoist the perfect track sketch tool in the studio and on the road. • Audio Unit v3 & Standalone • Quick + Easy track sketching, based on sample slicing • Minimal, yet effective bass line • Unique beat box with more than 1000 drums from vintage to electronic • Effect Sequencer • Randomizers in all areas • iCloud Synchronization of Presets and Samples • AudioShare • Mixdown / Bounce • Full Midi Support (Virtual, Network, Bluetooth, Extern) • Music Library Access SLICER: The Slicer arranges up to 16 slices of the loaded sample. Apply different parameters like Reverse, Attack, Decay, Level and pitch with the sequencer. Using the 16 available patterns, up to 16 different samples can be used at any time. BASS & BEAT: Egoist includes a great sounding bassline synthesizer/sequencer. The bassline synth offers a mean and strong sound, with different lowpass filter flavors and overdrive. The versatile sequencer is capable of notes and pitch bends of any length. The internal beat box offers kick, snare and hihat, along with a simple sequencer. If you imagine, that you can change the drum sounds with each pattern, limitations start to get you inspired! EFFECTRIX INSIDE: The Effect unit brings funky hickups to your tracks. Engage tapestop, looper, reverb or filter at any time to give your beats that otherworldly feel and create stunning breaks! SONG SEQUENCER: Chain your patterns! Or create stunning breakbeats by changing patterns quickly! The internal Part/Song sequencer lets you sketch your pattern progressions and line out your next track. ALWAYS SPECIAL: The very special Slice Keys turn Egoist into a slice keyboard! Play the sequencer steps on the keyboard, with all their settings and effects, you will not believe how cool that is!

About

SAND

This app is a grid-based music sequencer that allows users to create compositions using AUv3 plugins and external MIDI devices. It offers extensive tools for arranging clips, editing notes, automating parameters, and routing MIDI.

Highlights
  • Grid-based MIDI sequencing
  • AUv3 plugin hosting
  • External MIDI device support
  • Advanced clip editing
  • Track and effect management
  • Song mode for arrangement
  • MIDI routing and mapping
Features
Read full description

Have SAND in your pocket. Create music anywhere. Sketch your ideas, compose with MIDI and audio clips, host your favorite plugins. All designed for creative flow, whether you're at home or on the go. SAND is a music sketchpad for AUv3, MIDI, and audio clips—built so you can try ideas quickly, without setup getting in the way. Please note: SAND does not generate sound on its own—it relies on AUv3 plugins you can find on the App Store. Try SAND free for 14 days; in-app purchases unlock features after the trial. GRID SEQUENCER Arrange MIDI and audio clips on a grid to build your ideas. Copy, duplicate, merge, combine, and drag-and-drop clips to shape your project. Quick clip tools: quantize, length, legato, transpose from the clip menu. Render MIDI clips as audio by dropping them onto an audio track. MIDI TRACKS Work with instrument and MIDI tracks in your projects. Load an instrument and unlimited audio and MIDI effects on each track. Hide tracks and assign custom icons to keep sessions organized. Save tracks as templates for future projects. Edit MIDI in a piano-roll clip editor: quantize, legato, split, duplicate, copy, and paste. Build chords with the chord selector. Adjust note position, pitch, duration, and velocity. Handle bars edit position and pitch on the note. Use an adjustable grid or free placement. Scale highlighting helps you stay in key. Record with an optional count-in or from the first note. Quantize recordings for tighter timing. AUDIO TRACKS Add dedicated audio tracks alongside your MIDI material. Import audio into clips from other apps or the clip import flow, with preview before committing. Record audio into clips with per-track input settings and track arming. Set loop or one-shot playback, beat-aligned or immediate start, and optional clip BPM. Looping clips follow project tempo. The audio editor supports copy, paste, crop, gain adjustment, normalize, silence, fades, reverse, pitch, stretch, and split. With automatic or manual preview. PLUGIN HOST Host AUv3 instruments, audio effects, and MIDI processors. Control parameters and presets, and save default states for new instances. Record notes and MIDI from plugin interfaces, and capture output from MIDI plugins. Mark plugins as favorites for faster access. SONG MODE Arrange clips in sections with independent lengths, played back seamlessly in order. Launch every clip in a section at once, sections work as scene launchers. Set a different time signature per section when needed. AUTOMATION Automate volume, pan, effect parameters, and MIDI for dynamic changes across your tracks. MASTER TRACK Apply effects globally across the project. Use the master track's clip to generate bass lines and chord progressions. MIDI ROUTING Record from external MIDI devices, including hardware synths. Send MIDI out for real-time playback and route MIDI between tracks. Use SAND as a virtual MIDI input and output. MIDI MAPPING Map a MIDI controller to control the app with a flexible, customizable layout. "Shift" mappings extend what a single controller surface can do. PROJECT VERSIONS Save and restore named snapshots of a project—experiment freely, then return to an earlier state. PROJECT MANAGEMENT Rename projects and branch copies with Save As…. (iOS 18+) Start new work from project templates. (iOS 18+) SYNC Sync with other apps and DAWs using Ableton Link. ON-SCREEN KEYBOARD AND PADS Record with a velocity-sensitive on-screen keyboard. Choose scale and root to limit keys to a scale, and adjust visible keys to match how you play. Play and record beats with on-screen drum pads. IMPORT / EXPORT Export clips as audio or MIDI. Export projects as Ableton Live sets. Record performances and export audio, including stems for separate processing.

Screenshots

SAND4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is device support: SAND at 3 against Egoist's 1. SAND also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.6). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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. Egoist sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and SAND sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Egoist against 4.6 for SAND. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 64 and 89 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 73% of Egoist's written reviews are positive against 79% of SAND's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Egoist versus SAND: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEgoistSAND
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (64 ratings)4.6 (89 ratings) — better
Positive reviews72.7% of reviews79.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings6489 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size437 MB54 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSugar Bytes GmbHMatteo Caldari

Customer experience

Egoist

All ratings64 ratings
Positive89.1%
Neutral3.1%
Negative7.8%
Written reviews77 reviews
Positive72.7%
Neutral10.4%
Negative16.9%

SAND

All ratings86 ratings
Positive90.7%
Neutral2.3%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews68 reviews
Positive79.4%
Neutral5.9%
Negative14.7%

User reviews

Egoist

From 64 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ✨ Fun and creative app
  • 🎵 Great for sample-based music
  • 💡 Powerful and flexible
  • 👍 Intuitive interface
  • 🚀 Fast idea sketching

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Storage options messed up
  • 🗑️ Included samples can't be deleted
  • 🐛 Crashes on import
  • 💩 Waste of money
  • 🔊 Dated effects

SAND

From 89 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great UI and features
  • 💡 Potential for music creation
  • 🚀 Fast and creative workflow
  • 👍 Easy to use, no instructions needed
  • 💡 Most usable studio on small screen

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Record function always starts
  • 🐛 Sand not opening in overview
  • 🐛 Integration with other apps seems off
  • 🐛 Record does not pick up data
  • 🐛 Cannot save ideas from one app to another

Bugs and requests

Egoist

Reported bugs

10 issues
  • Import crashes the library
  • Drums not working with AUv3 release
  • MIDI learn menu shows up too quickly and sticks
  • Saved works are inconsistent (tempo changes, patterns disappear)
  • Error Audiocopy - File of zero bytes when bouncing
Show 5 more
  • Dropbox not working
  • App is laggy and sluggish on iPad Pro
  • Slicer portion is very sluggish with bad latency
  • App is sluggish and jerky on older iPads
  • Does not work well in Audiobus or AUM

Requested features

14 requests
  • Allow users to delete included samples
  • Put user files at the top of the list
  • Support 'Files App' storage
  • Add preference to turn off MIDI learn menu
  • Add more filters
Show 9 more
  • Needs export to desktop version
  • Add another slicer track
  • Add own samples to drum and bass sections
  • Release 'Factory' App on iOS
  • Add Ableton Link (if not already present)
  • Update effects
  • Improve storage options
  • Fix import crashes
  • Allow preset sharing between Mac and iOS versions

SAND

Reported bugs

27 issues
  • Record function always starts when entering Midi Instrument or FX
  • Sand not opening in overview
  • Integration with other apps seems off
  • Record does not pick up data
  • Cannot save ideas from one app to another
Show 22 more
  • Auv3 interfaces don't scale well
  • Note editing, snapping/quantization awkward and buggy
  • Sand won't run within AUM anymore
  • Sand not recognized within AUM
  • Sand wouldn't recognize other apps as host
  • Rendering issues
  • Editing notes in pitch grid flies up
  • Entering note values difficult
  • Changing note length has issues
  • Bugs not worked out, more brought in
  • Clips out of sync when manually triggered
  • Unpredictability for creating new notes
  • Selecting notes for editing difficult
  • Synchronizing between tracks problematic
  • Occasional crashes
  • Notes editing/selection/moving process is a pain
  • No BT headphone support
  • Less than 50% of synths/plugins show up
  • Many plugins don't work properly
  • App prompts for purchase again after buying
  • Pattern length adjustment by 1 is crazy
  • No snapping for note length stretch

Requested features

58 requests
  • Sand always open in overview
  • Long press in sequence track window
  • Random/chance abilities in clips (Polyend Play style)
  • Semi-generative function or scale-based patterns/sequences
  • Save AUv3 presets
Show 53 more
  • Audio integration with audio quantization
  • Audio clips
  • Return to zero button
  • More clip actions for performance (fire clip/scene, count in, repeat, single shot)
  • Trigger sequences not just on bars
  • Packaged as a MIDI AUv3 processor
  • Sequencer for patterns and automation curves
  • Triplet time signatures (3/4, 6/8)
  • MIDI channels for instruments
  • Export to MIDI file
  • Deep piano roll note editing
  • Song mode
  • Stem support
  • Automation
  • Lower OS requirement
  • Selection of multiple notes in sequencer
  • Separate lane for MIDI control of FX plugins
  • Proper mixer view
  • Support for Bluetooth headphones
  • More clip actions for performance
  • MIDI AUv3 processor
  • Sequencer for patterns and automation curves
  • Triplet Time Signatures
  • MIDI channels for instruments
  • Export to MIDI file
  • Deep piano roll note editing
  • Song mode
  • Stem support
  • Automation
  • Lower OS requirement
  • Selection of multiple notes in sequencer
  • Separate lane for MIDI control of FX plugins
  • Proper mixer view
  • Support for Bluetooth headphones
  • Pattern length adjustment in note editor
  • Snapping for note length stretch
  • More clip actions for performance
  • MIDI AUv3 processor
  • Sequencer for patterns and automation curves
  • Triplet Time Signatures
  • MIDI channels for instruments
  • Export to MIDI file
  • Deep piano roll note editing
  • Song mode
  • Stem support
  • Automation
  • Lower OS requirement
  • Selection of multiple notes in sequencer
  • Separate lane for MIDI control of FX plugins
  • Proper mixer view
  • Support for Bluetooth headphones
  • Pattern length adjustment in note editor
  • Snapping for note length stretch

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Egoist

One-time1
  • Egoist Full Version$29.99
4 purchases

SAND

One-time4
  • 14-day trialFree
  • 14 Days TrialFree
  • Unlock$9.99
Show 1 more
  • Audio Tracks$9.99

Questions

Is Egoist free?
Egoist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SAND free?
SAND is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Egoist or SAND?
SAND is rated higher. Egoist averages 4.6 out of 5 from 64 ratings, while SAND averages 4.6 from 89 ratings.
Do Egoist or SAND have ads?
Neither Egoist nor SAND shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Egoist or SAND?
Egoist ships an update every 2 months, and SAND every 2 months. Most recently, Egoist was updated on October 29, 2026 and SAND on October 24, 2026.

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