MusicSmart vs Now Playing Plus
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MusicSmart
Instantly discover detailed credits for any song, from songwriting and performance to marketing and visuals. This app acts as an IMDb for your music library, offering insights into the creation process and roles involved. Explore information about recordings, backstories, and even visual credits.
- Instant music credit discovery
- Detailed songwriting and composition info
- Performance and recording credits
- Marketing, distribution, and business details
- Visual and location credits
- Instrument breakdowns
- Integration with Apple Music, Spotify, and Shazam
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Ever wonder who wrote that song? MusicSmart reveals every credit instantly. It’s like IMDb for music. Critically acclaimed by MacStories, 9to5Mac, MacMagazine, and more. MusicSmart aggregates music knowledge from various sources into a powerful and easy-to-use app. With features such as Smart Sections and Roles/Instruments Insights, you can gain a deeper understanding of the music creation process and the responsibilities of each role. Navigate the catalog from within the main app or share music from Apple Music or Spotify to read the details about any song. Shazam is also available, so you can access liner notes and learn more about songs playing around you. Here are some of the credits you can find with MusicSmart: • High-resolution album covers, booklets, disc art, inlays, and more. • Description: Information about the recording process, the backstory behind the song, artists, etc. • Songwriting and Composition: Composer, Arranger, Producer, and more. • Performance and Recording: Vocals, Performer, Programmer, Engineers, Editor, and more. • Marketing and Distribution: A&R, Publishers, Distributors, and more. • Business: Labels, Copyright, and more. • Visuals: Director, Cinematographer, Designer, Visualizer, and more. • Locations: Recorded At, Mixed At, Mastered At, and more. • Instruments: Drums, Shakers, Strings, Guitars, Keyboards, and more. Download MusicSmart today for free to unlock a wealth of knowledge about your favorite music, all in one convenient location! Note: No Apple Music or Spotify subscription is required to use MusicSmart. MusicSmart relies on multiple online sources and databases to find liner notes and credits. The number of details available may vary for each song. Privacy Policy: https://marcosatanaka.com/privacy/music-smart.html Terms of Use: https://marcosatanaka.com/terms/music-smart.html
Now Playing Plus
Enhance your Apple Watch face with convenient audio controls. This app adds corner and circular complications, allowing quick access to playback functions without navigating through menus.
- Corner complications
- Circular complications
- Audio controls
- Quick access
- Customizable watch face
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Now Playing Plus provides corner and circular complications for your Apple Watch face. This gives you easy access to audio controls, without needed to hunt around in the App List or Dock.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: MusicSmart at 4.3 against Now Playing Plus's 3.7. MusicSmart also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 9 months) and ratings volume (274 vs 53). Now Playing Plus's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (71% vs 52%). On price, ads 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
Both are free to download. MusicSmart sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Now Playing Plus asks for nothing beyond the download.
MusicSmart holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MusicSmart has 274 ratings behind it against 53, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 52% of MusicSmart's written reviews are positive against 71% of Now Playing Plus's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
MusicSmart ships an update fortnightly, Now Playing Plus every 9 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MusicSmart | Now Playing Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (274 ratings) — better | 3.7 (53 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 52.1% of reviews | 71.4% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 274 — better | 53 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 9 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV — better | iPhone, iPod, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 17 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 50 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Loop Apps LTDA | The Iconfactory |
Customer experience
MusicSmart
Now Playing Plus
Bugs and requests
MusicSmart
Reported bugs
3 issues- Continuous crashes on certain devices
- Incorrect release dates shown
- Fails to recognize many albums in library
Requested features
5 requests- Integrate with YouTube Music
- Add lyrics/Genius integration
- Improve formatting for a more aesthetic look
- Allow access to liner notes without adding to library
- Provide musician credits for each track
Now Playing Plus
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
MusicSmart
- MusicSmart Premium$1.991 Month
- MusicSmart Premium$9.991 Year
- MusicSmart Premium (Lifetime)$19.99
Now Playing Plus
No in-app purchases
