# Guitarist's Reference vs StrumForge

The clearest difference is price: StrumForge at Free against Guitarist's Reference's $19.99. StrumForge also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 62%) and update cadence (every 3 days vs every 3 weeks). Guitarist's Reference's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On rating, ads, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

StrumForge is free to download; Guitarist's Reference costs $19.99 up front. StrumForge sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Guitarist's Reference asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Guitarist's Reference against 4.9 for StrumForge. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 16 and 53 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 62% of Guitarist's Reference's written reviews are positive against 100% of StrumForge's.

Guitarist's Reference ships an update every 3 weeks, StrumForge every 3 days. Both last shipped on October 17, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Guitarist's Reference | StrumForge |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $19.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.8 (16 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/guitarists-reference/id304048049/reviews) | **[4.9 (53 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/strumforge-chord-progressions/id6760612199/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 16 | **53** |
| Positive reviews | 62.0% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Every 3 days** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 79 MB | 66 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [My App Catalog LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/304048052) | [Adam Spain](https://appshunter.io/developer/1885322054) |

## What reviewers say

### Guitarist's Reference

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/guitarists-reference/id304048049)

This comprehensive suite offers a vast collection of guitar chords, scales, and arpeggios with clear diagrams and detailed theory. It includes tools for finding chord-scale relationships, exploring alternate tunings, and even a virtual guitar for practice.

**Highlights:** 3000+ guitar chords with diagrams, 42 scale types including modes and pentatonics, Arpeggio finder, 36 alternate tunings, Chord-scale relationship guide, Virtual guitar, Guitar tuner

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Comprehensive guitar reference
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 💡 Reverse chord finder
- 🚀 Detailed chord, scale, and arpeggio information
- 👍 Great for beginners and advanced players

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and freezes
- 🔧 Missing some common chord and scale voicings
- 🔧 Chord playback implementation could be improved
- 🔧 Outdated or lacking support for newer iOS versions
- 🔧 Interface could use a more modern design

**Reported bugs**

- Chord finder not detecting all chord inversions
- Issues with alternate tuning functionality
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Ability to overlay multiple scales
- Customizable chord/scale display options
- Integrated tuner functionality
- Support for more alternate tunings
- Improved chord/scale audio playback


### StrumForge

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/strumforge-chord-progressions/id6760612199)

Instantly generate countless guitar chord progressions and practice with built-in scales, tempo, and grooves. Explore various chord types and fingerings, and play along with integrated drum patterns. Designed for musicians to focus on playing and songwriting.

**Highlights:** Generate over 425,000 chord progressions, Play along with chord diagrams in tempo, Solo over progressions with scale diagrams, Lock or randomize key, Choose chord types (open, barre, triads, power), Built-in drum groove and tempo control, Left-handed chord diagram support

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| StrumForge Pro Weekly | $2.99 | per 7 days |
| StrumForge Pro Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| StrumForge Pro Annual | $24.99 | per year |
| Lifetime Pro | $49.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Guitarist's Reference free?

Guitarist's Reference costs $19.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is StrumForge free?

StrumForge is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Guitarist's Reference or StrumForge?

StrumForge is rated higher. Guitarist's Reference averages 4.8 out of 5 from 16 ratings, while StrumForge averages 4.9 from 53 ratings.

### Do Guitarist's Reference or StrumForge have ads?

Neither Guitarist's Reference nor StrumForge shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Guitarist's Reference or StrumForge?

Guitarist's Reference ships an update every 3 weeks, and StrumForge every 3 days. Most recently, Guitarist's Reference was updated on October 17, 2026 and StrumForge on October 17, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*