# unrealBook vs NoteBeat

The clearest difference is price: NoteBeat at Free against unrealBook's $14.99. NoteBeat also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs monthly) and review sentiment (100% vs 85%). unrealBook's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (1.3K vs 1). On ads and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

NoteBeat is free to download; unrealBook costs $14.99 up front. NoteBeat sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. unrealBook asks for nothing beyond the download.

NoteBeat holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: unrealBook has 1.3K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of unrealBook's written reviews are positive against 100% of NoteBeat's.

unrealBook ships an update monthly, NoteBeat every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | unrealBook | NoteBeat |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $14.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.8 (1.3K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/unrealbook/id370135173/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notebeat/id6760743129/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **1.3K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 84.6% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Every 3 days** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free** |
| Size | 192 MB | 62 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.6** |
| Devices | iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Aron Nelson](https://appshunter.io/developer/353420800) | [剑 陈](https://appshunter.io/developer/327026918) |

## What reviewers say

### unrealBook

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/unrealbook/id370135173)

This app digitizes your music library, replacing bulky binders with your iPad. Easily organize, search, and access your music or lyrics with features like indexing, bookmarks, and setlists. Ideal for gigging musicians seeking a convenient and portable solution.

**Highlights:** Digitize music and lyrics PDFs, Alphabetized and indexed song list, Create bookmarks and setlists, Hot spots for navigation, Built-in music player, Annotation tools, Wireless syncing between iPads

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Convenient organization of music
- 👍 Useful features like setlists and annotations
- 👍 Reliable and stable performance
- 👍 Excellent customer support

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
- 🔍 Unintuitive user interface
- 🔍 Difficulty adding/importing files
- 🔍 Limited annotation and editing capabilities

**Reported bugs**

- Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
- Inconsistent page resizing and zooming
- Unexpected behavior when editing lyrics or text

**Requested features**

- Improved annotation tools with Apple Pencil support
- Ability to selectively clear annotations
- Automatic song indexing for PDF songbooks
- Larger transport controls and more intuitive navigation


### NoteBeat

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notebeat/id6760743129)

Create music with this intuitive beat-making app. It offers dual audio track playback, an 88-key piano sound, and precise note and rhythm input. Preview your arrangements and export them as m4a audio files.

**Highlights:** Dual audio track playback, 88-key piano sound, Precise note and rhythm input, Automatic arrangement preview, M4a audio export

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| NoteBeat | $1.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is unrealBook free?

unrealBook costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is NoteBeat free?

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

### Which has better reviews, unrealBook or NoteBeat?

NoteBeat is rated higher. unrealBook averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while NoteBeat averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do unrealBook or NoteBeat have ads?

Neither unrealBook nor NoteBeat shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, unrealBook or NoteBeat?

unrealBook ships an update monthly, and NoteBeat every 3 days. Most recently, unrealBook was updated on October 9, 2026 and NoteBeat on October 8, 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.*