Comparison

Solo vs StringLife

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

Head to head
About

Solo

Master your guitar fretboard with this interactive trainer. Learn note names, intervals, chord changes, and scales through guided exercises. Designed by professional guitarists, it offers customizable workouts for all skill levels.

Highlights
  • Fretboard visualization
  • Note name trainer
  • Interval shape memorization
  • Chord change outlining
  • Scale practice
  • Interactive fretboards
  • Customizable workouts
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Solo is the ultimate practice App for mastering fretboard visualization, designed by world renowned guitarists Tom Quayle and David Beebee. Four powerful fretboard trainers allow you to work intuitively on each aspect of the visualization process; learning note names, memorising interval shapes, outlining chord changes, and practicing scales. Solo asks you to find intervallic functions against one root note, chord symbol or scale at a time, listens to the notes you play, and doesn’t move on until you’ve correctly found each note by its intervallic function in the specified order. Practice with Solo and finally learn your note names, master interval shapes, confidently play through chord changes and break out of scale boxes with intervallic functions. Start transforming your playing and confidence on the fretboard today! NOTE TRAINER The Note Trainer is perfect for beginner and intermediate players getting to grips with note names on the neck - the foundation of solid fretboard knowledge. ‣ Solo shows you random root notes to find and listens, waiting for you to get it correct. ‣ Slide on the interactive fretboards for helpful diagrams and to study alternative options. Choose from 6 string guitar (standard and 4ths tuning), 7 string guitar, 4 string bass & 5 string bass. ‣ Optional practice suggestions offer challenging ways to limit and test yourself. ‣ Duration based workouts allow you to craft the perfect practice session. INTERVAL TRAINER The Interval Trainer will help players at all levels work on interval shapes with intervallic functions - the key to unlocking true freedom on the fretboard. ‣ Choose any combination of intervallic functions to practice. ‣ Create custom interval groups or choose the intervals for ANY chord type or scale. ‣ The Interval Trainer will randomise your chosen intervals and ask you to find them against either a fixed or random root note. ‣ Slide on the interactive fretboards for helpful diagrams, showing you where all of the interval shapes are across the neck, and to study alternative options. Choose from 6 string guitar (standard and 4ths tuning), 7 string guitar, 4 string bass & 5 string bass. ‣ Duration based workouts allow you to craft the perfect practice session. CHANGES TRAINER In the Changes Trainer you find intervallic functions, using single notes to outline different chord types or sets of chord changes, a key skill for learning to improvise through chord changes. ‣ Practice outlining intervallic functions through over 100 common chord progressions and single chord exercises. ‣ 50 intervallic function levels. Go from simple chord tones to complex melodic structures and scales. ‣ Solo intelligently maps out the correct intervals over each chord and listens for you to play each intervallic function in the specified order. ‣ Powerful workout options provide almost limitless ways to challenge yourself. ‣ Transpose the key of any progression or exercise. ‣ Choose to randomly transpose the progression (or single chord exercise) each time it repeats. ‣ Work on voice leading chord tones through single note lines. SCALE TRAINER The Scale Trainer contains a vast array of scales and powerful workout options, allowing you to finally break out of the box and develop a much deeper understanding of how scales are constructed on the fretboard. ‣ Practice finding scales on the fretboard using intervallic functions. ‣ Over 50+ Scales and modes. ‣ Powerful workout options provide almost limitless ways to challenge yourself. ‣ Melodic sequence options let you focus on starting from any chord tone within the scale. ‣ Duration based workouts allow you to craft the perfect practice session.

About

StringLife

Features
Read full description

StringLife — String Change Tracker Never wonder when you last changed your strings again. StringLife tracks the life of every set of strings on every guitar you own — so you always know when it's time for a fresh set, before your tone suffers for it. Track what matters Log a new string job in seconds. Scan the barcode on your string packet and StringLife fills in the brand, gauge, series, and material automatically. Or enter the details manually — StringLife remembers your preferences and pre-fills the form next time. Know when to change Set hour and day thresholds for each guitar. StringLife tracks your play time and days elapsed, then flags strings that are getting long in the tooth with a clear status indicator — New, Aging, or Due. Your full string history Every set you've ever put on, all in one place. See how long strings lasted, how many hours you played them, and why you changed them. Reorder in one tap Each guitar card surfaces a direct link to reorder the exact strings currently on it. When you're ready for a fresh set, buying the right strings takes one tap — no searching, no guessing the gauge. Built for guitar players and techs Personal mode tracks your own collection. Tech mode lets you manage multiple clients and their guitars — ideal for guitar technicians and repair shops. iCloud sync Your data syncs automatically across all your devices. Everything stays up to date whether you log time on your iPhone or iPad. StringLife is designed for players who take their tone seriously — from bedroom guitarists to touring professionals.

Screenshots

Solo4 screens
StringLife3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: StringLife at $1.99 against Solo's $17.99. StringLife also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2) and update cadence (weekly vs monthly). Solo's advantage is chart position (#63 vs unranked). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

Solo costs $17.99 and StringLife $1.99 up front. Solo sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. StringLife asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Solo ships an update monthly, StringLife weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Solo versus StringLife: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSoloStringLife
Price$17.99$1.99 — better
Rating4.7 (653 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews83.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings653 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
Best chart rank#63 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size231 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTrio Software LtdAlexander Michaud

Bugs and requests

Solo

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when launching the app
  • Inconsistent note detection
  • Inability to save progress or settings

Requested features

8 requests
  • Add ability to create custom chord progressions
  • Integrate metronome functionality
  • Provide visual representation of intervals on staff
  • Add option to practice natural notes only
  • Implement option to hear chord tones in the background
Show 3 more
  • Allow randomization of scale order
  • Add support for non-standard tunings
  • Implement sound feedback when finding the correct note

StringLife

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Solo

One-time2
  • Custom Tunings$1.99
  • Custom Chord Progressions$5.99
None

StringLife

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Solo free?
Solo costs $17.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is StringLife free?
StringLife costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Solo or StringLife have ads?
Neither Solo nor StringLife shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Solo or StringLife?
Solo ships an update monthly, and StringLife weekly. Most recently, Solo was updated on October 20, 2026 and StringLife on October 11, 2026.

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