Toontrack’s EZdrummer 3 is a drum instrument plug-in with seven kits, about 15 GB of drum sounds and a library of MIDI grooves. It has features that help you compose: “Bandmate”, which suggests grooves (rhythm patterns) that fit when you drag in audio or MIDI (MIDI: performance data that says which note was played and how hard), “Tap2Find”, which searches by tapping, and “Song Creator”, which arranges patterns into the shape of a song.
A drum instrument plug-in lets you play the sound of real drums on a computer. Even if you cannot play drums, you can put drums in your songs.
In this article we compare EZdrummer 3 with 10 drum instrument plug-ins and rate how well it serves its purpose on three criteria. The basis is official manufacturer information.
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Score 3.8 / 5 (average of the 10 products compared: 3.6)
- Specs last checked
- 2026/09/25
- Realism and depth
- About 15 GB
- Speed of programming
- Suggestions + song building
- Range of kits
- 7 kits + extras
- Price (store, date)
- $179 [Official, checked Oct 26]
Image: from the Toontrack official website (product image)
Summary
Among the 10 drum instrument plug-ins, EZdrummer 3 is rank A. The ranks run S, A, B and C, and A is second from the top. Averaging the scores for each criterion (out of 5, with the one criterion that matters most for the purpose counted double) gives 3.8.
Strengths
- Speed of programming (5 points): you can quickly build drums by finding or creating phrases that suit the song.
- Range of kits (4 points): there are many kits to choose from for each genre.
Who it suits: people who have never programmed drums and want to start by finding phrases that fit a song and arranging them.
Main features of EZdrummer 3
Seven kits and ready-mixed presets
A drum instrument plug-in is software that plays recordings of real drums from MIDI programming. EZdrummer 3 has seven kits and presets that are already mixed so you can use them in a song right away. There are also extra snares, kicks and cymbals, so you can swap the sounds of a kit.
Bandmate and Tap2Find find a groove that fits
When you give Bandmate the audio or MIDI of a song, it lines up candidate drum grooves that fit. With Tap2Find you can search for grooves close to a rhythm you tap on a keyboard or the screen. It is a system that makes it easy to find a pattern that fits a song even if you do not know drums well.
Song Creator builds the shape of a song
Song Creator is a feature that, starting from the grooves you choose, makes a sequence of patterns that follows the progression of a song, such as verse and chorus. Once you decide on one groove, you can make a draft of the whole drum track. You drag the finished patterns into your DAW to use them.
Video: “EZdrummer 3: Bandmate” (official Toontrack YouTube channel; narration in English) Watch on YouTube
Where it is useful
- Quickly programming drums for a cover song or an original song
- Putting in a temporary guitar with Bandmate to find drum patterns that fit
- Making a draft of the drums for a whole song with Song Creator
Rating by criterion
Realism and depth: 3 / 5
We look at how extensively it was recorded and how far you can shape the sound.
It has seven kits and a library of about 15 GB, with ready-mixed presets.
Speed of programming: 5 / 5
We look at whether you can quickly build drums that suit a song (finding phrases, creating them automatically and so on).
It has Bandmate, which suggests grooves that fit from audio or MIDI, Tap2Find, which searches by tapping, and Song Creator, which arranges them into the shape of a song.
Range of kits: 4 / 5
We look at the number of drum sets (kits) you can choose to suit a genre.
It has seven kits plus extra snares, kicks and cymbals.
How we score (Drum instrument plug-ins)
| Criterion | Basis | 5 pt | 4 pt | 3 pt | 2 pt | 1 pt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Realism and depth | Scale of the recordings, and how far the sound can be shaped | A library of 200 GB or more, plus a mixer, effects and loading your own samples | Drum sounds can be reshaped part by part, and there is a mixer | A library of 10 to 20 GB and a mixer | A smaller library | — |
| Speed of programming | How quickly you can build drums that suit a song | A feature that suggests fitting grooves and one that builds a song structure | Song building plus aids such as audio-to-MIDI conversion | Many grooves (1,000 or more), or a feature that varies grooves | Few grooves | — |
| Range of kits | Number of kits you can choose to suit a genre | 10 or more kits | Around 7 kits, plus extra snares and kicks | 5 to 7 kits | 3 to 4 kits | 2 kits or fewer |
Each criterion is scored from 1 to 5 on how well the product serves one goal: programming the drums for a song. Scores follow the conditions in the table above, and the rank is based on an average in which "Realism and depth" counts double. The basis is official manufacturer information. Sound quality and CPU load are not measured, so they are not scored; reviews from trade magazines are introduced in the articles for reference. Price is not part of the score. Features that cannot be confirmed from the manufacturer's or a retailer's description are scored as if absent.
EZdrummer 3 screens and images
Image: from the Toontrack official website (product image)
Trade-magazine review (for reference, not part of the score)
We summarized the main points from a review in an overseas music-production magazine.
Sound On Sound (June 2022)
- Praised the sound of the new library as wonderful
- Praised the wide range of MIDI grooves and the new feature for finding grooves that fit a song
- Summed up the ease of use as still “EZ”
Source: Sound On Sound review
EZdrummer 3 system requirements and getting started
| Operating system | Windows 10 or later (64-bit) / Mac (macOS 10.13 or later) |
|---|---|
| Plug-in formats | VST, VST3, AU, AAX (64-bit) |
| Standalone | Yes |
| Trial | 10-day trial available (all features) |
Checked on the manufacturer’s official pages on September 27, 2026.
Compared with other drum instrument plug-ins
Click a heading to sort. On a phone, the table scrolls sideways.
| Product | RankAvg. score | Realism and depth | Speed of programming | Range of kits | Price (store, date) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ToontrackEZdrummer 3 | A 3.8 | About 15 GB | Suggestions + song building | 7 kits + extras | $179 [Official, checked Oct 26] |
| ToontrackSuperior Drummer 3 | S 4.5 | 230 GB or more | Song building + MIDI conversion | 7 kits + extras | $399 [Official, checked Oct 26] |
| Native InstrumentsStudio Drummer | B 2.8 | About 17 GB | 3,300+ | 3 kits | $139 [PB, checked Oct 26] |
| IK MultimediaMODO DRUM 1.5 | A 4.0 | Modeling | 1,400+ | 13 kits | $199.99 [PB, checked Oct 26] |
| Steven Slate DrumsSSD5.5 | S 4.5 | 148 kits + mixer | Groove AI + Song Builder | 148+ kits | $119.99 [Official, checked Oct 26] |
| XLN AudioAddictive Drums 2 | B 3.3 | Mixer + per-drum editing | Beat Transformer | 3 kits (smallest set) | $179 [Official, checked Oct 26] |
| BFD DrumsBFD3.5 | A 4.0 | Per-drum adjustment + mixer | 82 palettes + editing | 51 kits | Not listed |
| Get Good DrumsModern & Massive 2 | A 3.8 | Fluid+ + mixer | 1,500+ | Swappable parts | $219 [Official, checked Oct 26] |
| Get Good DrumsInvasion 2 | A 3.8 | Fluid+ + mixer | 1,500+ | Swappable parts | $199 (sale; regular $239) [Official, checked Oct 26] |
| Native InstrumentsAbbey Road Modern Drummer | C 1.8 | 2 kits + mixer | Groove library | 2 kits | $99 [Official, checked Oct 26] |
Features checked on each manufacturer's official website on September 25, 2026. Check the store page behind the buy button for the price.
Read next
- MODO DRUM 1.5: features and rating (rank A)
- BFD3.5: features and rating (rank A)
- Superior Drummer 3: features and rating (rank S)
- Studio Drummer: features and rating (rank B)
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