# EarMaster vs Solfa

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Solfa at none against EarMaster's 22. Solfa also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). EarMaster's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (81% vs 49%). On price, rating, ratings volume and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. EarMaster sells 22 one-off in-app purchases. Solfa asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for EarMaster against 4.6 for Solfa. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 429 and 806 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 81% of EarMaster's written reviews are positive against 49% of Solfa's.

EarMaster ships an update every 2 months, Solfa every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on October 26, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | EarMaster | Solfa |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (429 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/earmaster-music-theory/id1105030163/reviews) | **[4.6 (806 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/solfa-learn-musical-notes/id1436741307/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 429 | **806** |
| Positive reviews | **80.9% of reviews** | 49.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Size | 306 MB | 75 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [EarMaster ApS](https://appshunter.io/developer/412621345) | [Alexey Ovod](https://appshunter.io/developer/1545142178) |

## What reviewers say

### EarMaster

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/earmaster-music-theory/id1105030163)

Enhance your musical abilities with comprehensive ear training, sight-singing, and rhythm exercises. This app offers thousands of lessons for all skill levels, from beginners to advanced musicians, and is used by top music schools.

**Highlights:** Ear training exercises, Sight-singing practice, Rhythm training, Vocal training, Beginner's course, Customizable exercises, Detailed progress stats

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (22)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Customized: Chord Progressions | $0.99 | one-time |
| Customized: Interval Singing | $0.99 | one-time |
| General Workshop: Scale Identification | $0.99 | one-time |
| General Workshop: Interval Comparison | $0.99 | one-time |
| Customized Exercise: Scale Identification | $0.99 | one-time |
| General Workshop: Rhythmic Sight-Reading | $1.99 | one-time |
| General: Chord Identification | $1.99 | one-time |
| General: Interval Singing | $1.99 | one-time |
| General: Interval Identification | $1.99 | one-time |
| General: Chord Progressions | $1.99 | one-time |
| Jazz: Chord Identification | $1.99 | one-time |
| Customized Exercise: Melodic Dictation | $1.99 | one-time |
| Customized Exercise: Melodic Sight-Singing | $1.99 | one-time |
| Jazz Workshop: Chord Progressions | $1.99 | one-time |
| General Workshop: Melodic Sight-Singing | $1.99 | one-time |
| Beginner's Course: Modules 5 to 13 | $3.99 | one-time |
| Beginner's Course bundle | $7.99 | one-time |
| Solfege Fundamentals | $9.99 | one-time |
| Customized Exercises bundle | $14.99 | one-time |
| General Workshops bundle | $14.99 | one-time |
| Jazz Workshops bundle | $14.99 | one-time |
| Vocal Trainer | $14.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Excellent for sight reading and vocal singing
- 👍 Helpful for improving musicianship and sharpening ears
- 💡 Customizable exercises and lessons
- 🚀 Systematic and progressive approach
- 👍 Covers a wide range of topics (intervals, chords, rhythm, etc.)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Pitch recognition issues, especially for lower voices
- 🐛 Rhythm playback issues on some devices
- 💰 Expensive, with in-app purchases required for full access
- 🤔 Forced landscape mode on mobile devices

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes and errors when loading certain exercises
- Inconsistent behavior with metronome and rhythm playback
- Issues with saving progress and restoring purchased content

**Requested features**

- Allow users to specify their vocal range
- Add more chord and chord progression options
- Implement a jazz-focused curriculum
- Improve feedback and error analysis for users
- Add support for different tuning systems


### Solfa

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/solfa-learn-musical-notes/id1436741307)

This app is a quiz game designed to help beginners and children learn to read sheet music and identify musical notes. It supports various clefs and note naming systems, making it versatile for different instruments and learning styles.

**Highlights:** Learn musical notes, Read sheet music, Supports multiple clefs, Train sight-reading, Learn tonality and chords, Multiple note naming systems

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple but effective
- 👍 Great for guitar players
- 👍 Teaches fundamentals well
- 👍 Helps improve musicianship

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔍 Too many ads
- 🐛 Crashes with MIDI connection
- 🐛 Glitchy and buggy
- 🔍 Limited features and options

**Reported bugs**

- Displaying notes outside instrument range
- Incorrectly identifying notes
- Sound not working
- Unable to advance past first screen

**Requested features**

- Option to remove note names
- Thicker lines for guitar frets
- Sight reading component
- Mezzo soprano, baritone clefs
- Ability to choose number of notes per round


## Frequently asked questions

### Is EarMaster free?

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

### Is Solfa free?

Solfa is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, EarMaster or Solfa?

Solfa is rated higher. EarMaster averages 4.6 out of 5 from 429 ratings, while Solfa averages 4.6 from 806 ratings.

### Do EarMaster or Solfa have ads?

Solfa shows ads; EarMaster does not.

### Which is updated more often, EarMaster or Solfa?

EarMaster ships an update every 2 months, and Solfa every 3 weeks. Most recently, EarMaster was updated on October 26, 2026 and Solfa on October 26, 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.*