Notation Scanner vs Music Reader
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Notation Scanner
This app allows users to scan and recognize sheet music using their device's camera or existing images. It functions as a sheet music reader and player, supporting over 100 instruments and offering playback controls. Users can also export their recognized scores in various formats.
- Scan sheet music via camera or image library
- Recognize and playback music scores
- Support for over 100 instruments
- Adjust tempo and voice parts
- Export as MusicXML, MIDI, PNG, PDF
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A powerful scanner for sheet music lovers to recognize sheet music. A handy music OCR tool for you to scan and playback sheet music. Just try to take a photo on the printed sheet music and enjoy it. It dose the recognition process on server side, so it can recognize many more music stuffs than other apps. You could use it as a simple sheet music reader or player as you want. It supports more than 100 different types of instrument along with a very nice sound effect. ----------------------- Features: -Scan the whole sheet at once using the built-in camera or a picture from your image library. -Tap a bar to play the song from. -Support multi-page and reorder them as you wish. -Support up to 8 systems. -Support for changing tempo speed. -Turn up/down the voice of each part. -Export MusicXML, MIDI, PNG and PDF files.
Music Reader
This app is a comprehensive tool for sheet music. It allows users to view, learn, listen, mark, and play musical scores. It supports various music genres and instruments, acting as a portable songbook and powerful player.
- View and play sheet music
- Mark and annotate scores
- Import MusicXML and NotationPad files
- Supports dark mode
- Transposition (PRO)
- Change instrument parts (PRO)
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Music Reader provides all you need about sheet music. You could view, learn, listen, mark and play music notes and notations as you want. it is your portable songbook and a powerful sheet music reader & player. A easy-to-use painting system for you to draw any marks on sheets. From classic to popular, from rock to country, from piano to symphony, all kinds of music played well in Music Reader. *Compatible with dark mode *Supports importing MusicXML(.xml) and NotationPad(.ecz) file PRO ACCESS SUBSCRIPTION - No Ads - Transposition - Change instrument for parts - Support layers for painting marks - The subscription price is $4.99/monthly, $14.99/yearly - Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period - Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal - Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase - Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that service, where applicable - Terms of use: https://service.notationpad.com/sheetmusicplus/terms_service.html
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Music Reader at Free against Notation Scanner's $2.99. Music Reader also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.1). Notation Scanner's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ads (none vs shown). On review sentiment and device support 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
Music Reader is free to download; Notation Scanner costs $2.99 up front. Music Reader sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Notation Scanner asks for nothing beyond the download.
Music Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 736 and 192 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 49% of Notation Scanner's written reviews are positive against 51% of Music Reader's.
Notation Scanner ships an update every 2 weeks, Music Reader every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Notation Scanner | Music Reader |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.1 (736 ratings) | 4.5 (192 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 49.5% of reviews | 51.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 736 — better | 192 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 11.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 168 MB | 183 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | 嵩 张 | 嵩 张 |
Customer experience
Notation Scanner
Music Reader
Bugs and requests
Notation Scanner
Reported bugs
3 issues- Cannot recognize any photos or scans of sheet music
- Playback skips notes and has timing issues
- App crashes frequently when trying to scan music
Requested features
3 requests- Allow users to manually correct scanned music
- Improve recognition accuracy for different sheet music styles
- Add more instrument options beyond just piano
Music Reader
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Notation Scanner
No in-app purchases
Music Reader
- Pro Access$2.991 Month
- Pro Access7 Days trial$14.991 Year
- Pro Access$14.991 Year
Questions
Is Notation Scanner free?
Is Music Reader free?
Which has better reviews, Notation Scanner or Music Reader?
Do Notation Scanner or Music Reader have ads?
Which is updated more often, Notation Scanner or Music Reader?
Other comparisons
