Is there a metronome app that speeds up automatically as I improve?

Practice Lab's Woodshed mode does this: you loop a hard passage, set a target tempo, and it raises the metronome only when your playing is objectively clean and steps back when it is not. A metronome keeps time; it does not listen to how you play.

Download Practice Lab on the App Store

By dotdotdotapps, who make Practice Lab. Updated 2026-11-03. We list real alternatives and say when one fits better.

How the options compare

• Soundbrenner and similar metronome apps: Metronome apps with many sound and tempo settings, including wearables you feel on your wrist.
• Tonal Energy: A tuner and metronome combined in one app.
• Your teacher and a plain metronome: Still the best at hearing what an app cannot. Practice Lab is a practice partner, not a replacement.

Where Practice Lab fits

Practice Lab listens through the iPhone microphone and analyzes tempo consistency and rhythm accuracy on your device. It works with any instrument you can play near the phone. Practice audio is not uploaded to the developer's servers.

Free includes manual Woodshed loops. Premium unlocks the full auto-climbing ladder with tempo-progress history.

What it costs

Practice Lab is free to download. Free gets you the tuner and metronome (neither is on the Premium list), a 7-day accuracy trend, one coaching note a week and manual Woodshed loops. Premium unlocks unlimited AI coaching and the full auto-climbing Woodshed ladder: $1.99 a week, $3.99 a month, $27.99 a year or $49.99 once in the US. Prices from the US App Store, checked 2026-11-03; they vary by region.

Quick answers

More questions about Practice Lab

• Is there an app that tells me if I am rushing or dragging when I play?
• What is a good tuner and metronome app that also tracks my practice?

Full details: Practice Lab app page · all answers

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