Comparison

Know Notes vs Note Smash

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

Head to head
About

Know Notes

Develop your musical ear by learning to identify notes and chords by sound. This gamified app makes practicing fun and competitive, allowing you to progress from basic notes to sharps and flats.

Highlights
  • Ear training
  • Note recognition
  • Chord recognition
  • Gamified learning
  • Progressive difficulty
  • Natural notes, sharps, and flats
Features
Read full description

Train Ears, Master Music. Learn to recognize musical notes and chords by their unique sound. Gamified to make learning fun and competitive. Start small, then work your way up to learn every natural note and their sharp/flat.

About

Note Smash

Features
Read full description

Turn every note you play into a hit. Note Smash transforms note recognition into a fast, hands-on music game. Watch the Note Sprites fall, see their Note Names, and hear each one through Voice Prompt. Then play the matching sound to smash them—using your own instrument or the virtual instrument on your screen. PLAY WITH A REAL INSTRUMENT Let your device listen through the microphone. Note Smash detects the note you play and checks whether it matches the falling Note Sprite. PRACTICE ANYWHERE No instrument nearby? Jump in with the built-in virtual instrument and keep playing right on your device. BUILD FASTER MUSICAL REFLEXES Connect the note name you see with the note you need to play. As you advance through the levels, Note Sprites appear more frequently and more Note Names with sharps and flats are introduced—steadily increasing the challenge and sharpening your response speed. KEY FEATURES • Smash falling Note Sprites by playing matching notes • Use a real instrument through your device microphone • Play directly on screen with a virtual instrument • Follow each Note Name visually and through Voice Prompt • Practice note-name recognition through active play • Train faster reactions between seeing and playing a note • Take on faster Note Sprites and more Note Names with sharps and flats as you progress HOW TO PLAY 1. On the home screen, choose Virtual Instruments or Real Instruments. 2. Watch each falling Note Sprite and listen as Voice Prompt announces the current Note Name. 3. Play the matching note to smash it. * When playing along with real instruments, choose a quiet space and keep your device out of the wind — background noise can interfere with sound detection. FLEXIBLE PRICING • Free Plan - Play the first three levels forever, free — with a handful of sharps and flats included. • Annual Subscription - Unlock unlimited levels. Note Sprites appear more and more frequently, bringing more sharps and flats into play. • One-Time Purchase - Lifetime access. Unlock everything, forever — no subscription required. Make note practice feel like play. Start smashing notes with Note Smash. Privacy Policy: https://soulreload.com/app/note-smash/privacy-policy/ Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Know Notes4 screens
Note Smash4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Know Notes at 16.0 against Note Smash's 18.2. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Know Notes sells 6 one-off in-app purchases and Note Smash sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Know Notes ships an update fortnightly, Note Smash every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Know Notes versus Note Smash: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKnow NotesNote Smash
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (31 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews95.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings31 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.0 — better18.2
Further details — not scored
Size107 MB52 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerwylan neely小舟 苏

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Know Notes

One-time6
  • Violin Notes$0.99
  • Electronic Keyboard Notes$0.99
  • Grand Piano Notes$0.99
Show 3 more
  • Unlock Violin Instrument$2.99
  • Acoustic Guitar (Major Chords)$2.99
  • Unlock Acoustic Guitar$3.99
2 purchases

Note Smash

Subscriptions1
  • Yearly$1.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$4.99

Questions

Is Know Notes free?
Know Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Note Smash free?
Note Smash is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Know Notes or Note Smash have ads?
Neither Know Notes nor Note Smash shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Know Notes or Note Smash?
Know Notes ships an update fortnightly, and Note Smash every 3 weeks. Most recently, Know Notes was updated on October 27, 2026 and Note Smash on October 30, 2026.

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