Comparison

NML vs Nova Tuner

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

Head to head
About

NML

Access a vast library of classical music recordings with extensive metadata. Create personalized playlists and utilize study tools. Ideal for music enthusiasts and students seeking in-depth information.

Highlights
  • 2.73 million+ classical music tracks
  • Rich metadata (composer bios, program notes)
  • Customizable playlists
  • Playlists created by educators
  • Study tools and resources
  • Latest releases from over 1000 labels
Features
Read full description

Naxos Music Library (NML) offers over 2.73 million tracks of fine classical music recordings from more than a thousand labels with their latest releases. What sets NML apart from other streaming platforms comes down to metadata. Each piece of music comes with a rich set of information, from composers’ biographies to programme notes, instrumentation to publisher’s details, all authored by qualified musicologists. Individual subscribers and authorised users of institution subscribers can create their own playlists on top of having access to playlists created by their teachers and professors for their assignments. NML is more than just a huge classical music audio library available for streaming. The Resources section inside the library offers many valuable add-ons and study tools available through accessing the web version. Please send comments to customer.service@naxos.com to help us further improve our app.

About

Nova Tuner

A professional chromatic tuner designed for musicians, especially those in Early Music. It offers extensive temperament support, custom profile creation, and a clean interface for precise instrument tuning. No internet connection or data collection required.

Highlights
  • Extensive built-in temperaments
  • Add and create custom temperaments
  • User profiles for quick settings
  • Sound and Auto detection modes
  • Adjustable A4 pitch detector
  • Multiple waveform options
  • Light and dark mode support
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Written for professionals, especially those in the field of Early Music, Nova Tuner is a fully featured, accurate, chromatic tuner with extensive temperament support. A full demonstration of the app is on YouTube: https://youtu.be/egkAFaICdXY?si=peIM6QvGHLqXMqtD Nova Tuner was written by professional fortepianist and harpsichordist, Thomas Foster. MAIN FEATURES - Sound Mode (reference pitch) and Auto Mode (detect pitch) - Clean and simple interface - About 30 built-in temperaments (see www.thomasfoster.org/novatuner for full list) - Add/Create new temperaments. - Duplicate and edit built-in temperaments - Create profiles to quickly set pitch and temperament for frequently used settings. - A4 pitch detector to quickly determine an instrument's pitch level. - Quick selection of common pitch levels: 392, 415, 430, and 440 Hz (these are customizable). - Four waveforms for audible note: Sawtooth, Square, Triangle, Sine. - No data is collected, no internet connection is required. INTERFACE - All tuner information (pitch level, temperament, etc) clearly visible on main screen. - Standard, simple iOS appearance and controls. - Large and intuitive adjustment buttons (no fussy scroll wheels). - Light and dark mode. - Supports portrait and landscape orientations. - Note names in English, German, and Neo-Latin (do, re, mi) TEMPERAMENTS - Temperaments can be transposed - Add, duplicate and edit temperaments - Favorite frequently used temperaments - Filter by favorited and custom - Search entire list of temperaments by name or information (creator, type, year, etc.) - Hide unwanted temperaments so they don't appear in the list or search SPECIFICATIONS Transposition range: -11 to +11 semitones Detection range: A0 to C8 Reference tone: C2 to B7 Tuning modes: Sound, Auto, Auto with Sound Back Calibration range: A4=300-500 Hz, 0.1 Hz increments

Screenshots

NML4 screens
Nova Tuner4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Nova Tuner at 100% against NML's 40%. Nova Tuner also leads on rating (4.7 vs 2.9) and chart position (#139 vs unranked). NML's advantage is price (Free vs $7.99) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 5 months). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

NML is free to download; Nova Tuner costs $7.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Nova Tuner holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 65 and 32 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of NML's written reviews are positive against 100% of Nova Tuner's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NML ships an update every 2 months, Nova Tuner every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
NML versus Nova Tuner: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNMLNova Tuner
PriceFree — better$7.99
Rating2.9 (65 ratings)4.7 (32 ratings) — better
Positive reviews39.5% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings65 — better32
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 5 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationSubscriptionPaid — better
Best chart rank—#139 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.3 — better16.1
Further details — not scored
Size70 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNaxos Digital Services Ltd.Thomas J Foster

Customer experience

NML

All ratings66 ratings
Positive43.9%
Neutral12.1%
Negative43.9%
Written reviews129 reviews
Positive39.5%
Neutral14.0%
Negative46.5%

Nova Tuner

All ratings32 ratings
Positive90.6%
Neutral3.1%
Negative6.3%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

NML

Reported bugs

16 issues
  • App crashes during playback or when switching apps
  • Audio stops when screen goes to sleep
  • Tracks cut off mid-movement or stop arbitrarily
  • Login session expires too quickly despite 'remember me' option
  • Cannot connect to internet via WiFi (requires VPN workaround)
Show 11 more
  • Playlists disappear or fail to save
  • Back button doesn't return to previous position in list
  • Music pauses when notifications arrive
  • App freezes or becomes unresponsive
  • Search dialog has poor contrast making cursor invisible
  • Saved playlists erased after updates
  • Track information displays incorrectly during playback
  • App cuts out at end of tracks when switching focus
  • Shuffle button fails to function
  • Hiccup at beginning of each track on iPadOS
  • App only plays one track then stops

Requested features

15 requests
  • Dark mode support
  • Interactive widgets
  • Landscape orientation support for tablets/iPads
  • Chromecast and AirPlay support
  • Background music playback while using other apps
Show 10 more
  • Track scrubbing/fast-forward capability
  • Shuffle feature for favorites list
  • Custom playlist and folder organization
  • Ability to organize favorites into named categories
  • Face recognition login
  • Album-level saving instead of track-only playlists
  • Better metadata display (composer, performer information)
  • Retina display support
  • iPad-specific app version
  • Improved search with catalog number support

Nova Tuner

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

NML

No in-app purchases

None

Nova Tuner

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is NML free?
NML is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Nova Tuner free?
Nova Tuner costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, NML or Nova Tuner?
Nova Tuner is rated higher. NML averages 2.9 out of 5 from 65 ratings, while Nova Tuner averages 4.7 from 32 ratings.
Do NML or Nova Tuner have ads?
Neither NML nor Nova Tuner shows ads.
Which is updated more often, NML or Nova Tuner?
NML ships an update every 2 months, and Nova Tuner every 5 months. Most recently, NML was updated on November 1, 2026 and Nova Tuner on November 7, 2026.

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