# Functional Ear Trainer vs Ear Training

The clearest difference is update cadence: Ear Training at weekly against Functional Ear Trainer's every 7 months. Functional Ear Trainer's advantage is ratings volume (3.7K vs 2). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Functional Ear Trainer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Ear Training sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Functional Ear Trainer against 5.0 for Ear Training. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Functional Ear Trainer has 3.7K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Functional Ear Trainer ships an update every 7 months, Ear Training weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Functional Ear Trainer | Ear Training |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.9 (3.7K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/functional-ear-trainer/id1088761926/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ear-training-toneseed/id6762560171/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **3.7K** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 96.1% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 41 MB | 126 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Serhii Korchan](https://appshunter.io/developer/1088761925) | [Marcin Chudy](https://appshunter.io/developer/1894676229) |

## What reviewers say

### Functional Ear Trainer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/functional-ear-trainer/id1088761926)

Develop your musical ear by learning to recognize tones within the context of a specific musical key. This app helps you understand the function of each note, improving your ability to transcribe, improvise, and play music by ear. Suitable for all ages and skill levels, with just 10 minutes of daily practice.

**Highlights:** Recognize tones in musical key context, Understand note function, Improve transcription skills, Enhance improvisation, Develop perfect pitch, Daily 10-minute practice

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Functional Ear Trainer Plus | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Effective ear training
- 👍 Simple and intuitive interface
- 💡 Customizable exercises
- 🎉 Noticeable improvement with regular practice
- 🎨 Visually appealing design

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional audio glitches
- 💡 Lack of support for other instruments besides piano
- 💡 Desire for more advanced features (e.g. chord recognition)

**Reported bugs**

- Keyboard display issues when selecting all chromatic notes
- Inconsistent note resolutions in some exercises

**Requested features**

- Add support for multiple notes/chords at once
- Implement a mode for training key recognition
- Provide more customization options for exercises
- Include voice input to play the notes
- Add support for German/Norwegian key names


### Ear Training

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ear-training-toneseed/id6762560171)

This app helps musicians and students improve their musical ear through adaptive training exercises. It covers intervals, chords, scales, vocal warmups, and melodic/rhythmic dictation. Personalized practice sessions and detailed feedback aid skill development.

**Highlights:** Adaptive interval, chord, and scale identification, Vocal warm-up routines, Solfege and interval singing practice, Melodic and rhythmic dictation, Chord progression identification, Educational music theory guides, Customizable practice routines

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ToneSeed Pro — Monthly | $6.99 | per month |
| ToneSeed Pro — Yearly | $39.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Functional Ear Trainer free?

Functional Ear Trainer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Ear Training free?

Ear Training is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Functional Ear Trainer or Ear Training?

Ear Training is rated higher. Functional Ear Trainer averages 4.9 out of 5 from 3.7K ratings, while Ear Training averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do Functional Ear Trainer or Ear Training have ads?

Neither Functional Ear Trainer nor Ear Training shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Functional Ear Trainer or Ear Training?

Functional Ear Trainer ships an update every 7 months, and Ear Training weekly. Most recently, Functional Ear Trainer was updated on October 16, 2026 and Ear Training on October 2, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*