Comparison

Piano ٞ vs Real Kalimba

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

Head to head
About

Piano ٞ

Learn and play piano with interactive rhythm games or a realistic keyboard. Explore a vast library of songs across genres, record your creations, and share them. Offers multiple instrument sounds and progress tracking for all skill levels.

Highlights
  • Interactive rhythm gameplay
  • Realistic freestyle keyboard
  • Vast song library
  • Record and share music
  • Multiple instrument sounds
  • Progress tracking and rewards
Features
Read full description

Join over 14 million music lovers discovering piano. Learn the fun and easy way, no lessons needed. Play songs, practice piano, and create music in one intuitive app. Choose how you play: follow the rhythm in interactive gameplay to build timing and confidence, or switch to a realistic keyboard to explore chords, melodies, and your own musical ideas. With Piano, you can jump right in. Play to the rhythm, explore notes and chords, and create music at your own pace. Designed for iOS (iPhone & iPad), Piano offers a smooth, responsive playing experience with intuitive touch controls, clean visuals, and a simple layout. Perfect for beginners, casual players, and anyone who wants to enjoy piano practice without pressure. Discover piano through interactive gameplay, creative tools, and realistic instrument sounds. Play classical piano favorites like Für Elise Clair de Lune and Moonlight Sonata Learn timeless works like Canon in D Ode to Joy and The Entertainer Discover expressive piano pieces like Gymnopédie No 1 and Nocturne Enjoy traditional songs like The Star Spangled Banner Amazing Grace and Yankee Doodle Choose Your Mode - Rhythm Play: Interactive gameplay to build timing, coordination, and confidence. - Freestyle Keyboard: A realistic instrument experience for practicing chords, melodies, and musical ideas. Both modes are powerful practice tools, helping you focus on rhythm, control, and musical expression. What You Can Do Play to the rhythm Follow timing cues, play step by step, and learn how songs come together. Freestyle Keyboard Use a full piano keyboard with real notes & chords, ideal for practicing, exploration, or composing your own melodies freely. Responsive Touch Keys Enjoy smooth, accurate playing with touch-sensitive keys built for a great iOS experience. Create, Record & Share Go beyond practicing; turn your ideas into real music. Record your performances, capture your progress, and share your journey with friends and a global community of players. Multiple Instruments Play grand piano, electric keys, xylophone, and more. A wide range of authentic sounds. Progress as You Play Unlock songs, earn rewards, and move from simple tunes to more advanced arrangements. Explore Every Genre Play classical masterpieces, pop hits, jazz, kids' songs, film themes, and more. Enjoy music from Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, Bach, Strauss, and Verdi, alongside modern favorites like Bella Ciao and Twinkle Twinkle. Search, browse, and jump into any song you want to play. Piano Pro Upgrade to unlock the full experience: • Unlimited songs to play • Multiple instrument sounds • Ad-free practice • Record with perfect timing Your subscription renews automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before renewal. Manage subscriptions in your App Store settings. Terms & Privacy: https://impalastudios.com/terms | https://impalastudios.com/privacy Feedback & Support We'd love to hear from you: support@impalastudios.com Join a global community of millions of players who practice, create, and share music every day. Piano is a go-to app for learning, playing, and performing music - trusted and loved worldwide. About Impala Studios Impala Studios creates popular apps designed to make everyday life more fun and enjoyable. From music and games to productivity tools, our apps are built for iPhone and iPad users around the world. With Piano, we bring millions of music lovers together to play, learn, and share songs every day. Piano © 2016 Impala Studios

About

Real Kalimba

Experience the soothing sounds of a thumb piano with this realistic simulator. Slide your fingers to play notes, tune the instrument, and explore various reverb effects. Record your melodies, learn new songs with interactive tutorials, and customize the visual appearance.

Highlights
  • Realistic kalimba sound and visuals
  • Adjustable tine range and tuning
  • Multiple reverb environments
  • Audio recorder with editing and sharing
  • Over 100 songs and 20+ tabs for learning
  • Customizable backgrounds, colors, and key markings
Features
Read full description

A simple and easy to play kalimba simulator also known as a thumb piano. Slide your fingers over the tines and play multiple notes at the same time. Enjoy the visual vibration of the tines! The kalimba is an African musical instrument with a wooden soundboard and metal keys(tines). It is played by holding the instrument in the hands and plucking the tines with the thumbs, the right forefinger, and sometimes the left forefinger. It has a clear, percussive, chimelike timbre. Tuning the Kalimba is now available, easily change the root note or key of the kalimba at the push of a button. The kalimba also contains 16 different reverb spaces. The environment reverb zones change how the kalimba sounds in the various reverb locations. With the new audio recorder, you can now record the kalimba sound, edit it, save the recorded sound or share it with friends that love playing real kalimba as much as you. Learn how to play like a Pro with over 100 Kalimba songs and 20 plus kalimba tabs with the help of the falling music note tiles. Features • 100+ Falling Note Songs • 20+ Kalimba Tabs • Tine Adjustment 8-17 key range • 81 Customizable Background Colors • 6 Wood Backgrounds • 2 Tine Colors • Note Captions • Settings Menu With Volume Adjustment • Haptics • Customize Key Markings, Centre Wood and Wood Carving • Kalimba Key Tuning • Environment Reverb Zones(Changes Kalimba Sounds in Locations) • Record the Kalimba sound, Edit, Save or share with friends • Play songs in different scales 
• Fast and Responsive • Beautiful Realistic Graphics • Portrait and Landscape Mode • Customisable key markings • Real sound recorded in professional studios More features and skins coming soon!

Screenshots

Piano ٞ4 screens
Real Kalimba4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Piano ٞ at every 5 days against Real Kalimba's every 11 months. Piano ٞ also leads on ratings volume (173K vs 20) and rating (4.6 vs 4.3). Real Kalimba's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Piano ٞ sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days and Real Kalimba sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Piano ٞ holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Piano ٞ has 173K ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Piano ٞ's written reviews are positive against 46% of Real Kalimba's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Piano ٞ ships an update every 5 days, Real Kalimba every 11 months. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Piano ٞ versus Real Kalimba: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPiano ٞReal Kalimba
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (173K ratings) — better4.3 (20 ratings)
Positive reviews60.0% of reviews — better46.3% of reviews
Number of ratings173K — better20
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterEvery 11 months
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#38 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size199 MB93 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperImpala StudiosBudali Kingsley

Customer experience

Piano ٞ

All ratings172,482 ratings
Positive88.7%
Neutral5.0%
Negative6.3%
Written reviews1,439 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral8.8%
Negative31.1%

Real Kalimba

All ratings20 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral5.0%
Negative15.0%
Written reviews41 reviews
Positive46.3%
Neutral9.8%
Negative43.9%

Bugs and requests

Piano ٞ

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Keys getting stuck or not registering properly
  • Recorded songs not saving or unable to be accessed
  • App freezing or getting stuck on loading screens

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more instruments and sound options
  • Implement a metronome and MIDI support
  • Improve recording capabilities to allow multi-track recordings
  • Provide more comprehensive learning tools and lessons for beginners
  • Allow customization of the keyboard size and layout

Real Kalimba

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Piano ٞ

Subscriptions10
  • Piano Premium - Try Weekly3 Days trial$0.997 Days
  • Piano Premium3 Days trial$2.697 Days
  • Piano Premium3 Days trial$3.997 Days
Show 7 more
  • Piano Premium3 Days trial$4.997 Days
  • Play-Along Premium3 Days trial$5.297 Days
  • Piano Member Monthly3 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • Piano Premium3 Days trial$6.997 Days
  • Piano Pro Max Fun3 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • Enjoy a full Piano experience3 Days trial$7.997 Days
  • Piano Premium - Monthly3 Days trial$9.991 Month
1 purchases

Real Kalimba

One-time1
  • Go Pro-Unlock All with No Ads$2.99

Questions

Is Piano ٞ free?
Piano ٞ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Real Kalimba free?
Real Kalimba is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Piano ٞ or Real Kalimba?
Piano ٞ is rated higher. Piano ٞ averages 4.6 out of 5 from 173K ratings, while Real Kalimba averages 4.3 from 20 ratings.
Do Piano ٞ or Real Kalimba have ads?
Both Piano ٞ and Real Kalimba show ads.
Which is updated more often, Piano ٞ or Real Kalimba?
Piano ٞ ships an update every 5 days, and Real Kalimba every 11 months. Most recently, Piano ٞ was updated on November 13, 2026 and Real Kalimba on November 11, 2026.

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