Comparison

unrealBook vs UghSongs

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

Head to head
About

unrealBook

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
Read full description

unrealBook allows you to access your entire library of music or lyrics on your iPad with ease. Replace your bulky and heavy binders with a small and light device filled with your music PDF files. The alphabetized and indexed list makes it easy to find the song you are looking for. unrealBook is the answer for the gigging musician! Please check the reviews. 4.5 stars!!!!!! unrealBook is being used on tour with Billy Joel - see October 2014 and July 2016 Keyboard Magazine! unrealBook was one of the first apps for displaying music charts on stage. The evolution continues as many musicians use it on stage every day (and many since day 1!). This product is the result of input from many users. unrealBook does not come with songs or charts, you must add your own PDF files. The screenshots are samples of what you can do with unrealBook. Yes, unrealBook supports PDF Table of contents, user created indexes, bookmarks, keywords. You can even convert the PDF table of contents into indexes. It has been able to do these features for a while. "I LOVE unrealBook" "unrealbook is just an awesome app" "On gigs people are always asking about it and I am always telling them about unrealBook. Thanks for the great app and the great support. Awesome!" "Have been using unrealBook in live band set up for a year or so – really useful app my man, thank you." "I want to thank you for creating unrealBook! I love it!" "I just wanted to let you know that I used unrealBook extensively on my most recent rehearsal and show….couple of weeks ago and it performed flawlessly" "I absolutely LOVE your APP on my iPad" "I love the page turning, it's instant and also the Index is the right size for my fingers! Love not having to carry big books to work! It's so neat!" "I love unrealBook so thanks !!" •Replace your bulky and heavy binders with a small and light iPad filled with your music PDF files. The alphabetized and indexed list makes it easy to find the song you are looking for. •No more asking for a light for your music stand on dark stages. •No more worrying about a breeze turning a page by accident. •Search for a song quickly and easily. •Create bookmarks that allow you to easily load up a large PDF and go directly to a page within. •Use bookmarks and PDF files together to create set lists for different gigs. •Hot spots allow you place highlighted areas on the page that allow you to jump from one page or document to another when pressed (think To Coda and D.S. signs). •There is a built in music player so you can listen to your music while you check out the score! •Connect to the world via email, AirDrop, Dropbox and Box support. •Annotate your scores with auto-highlighted text and colored pens with different sizes. •Create set lists easily. Jump to any song in a set list directly or step through the set list sequentially. •Assign an iPad as a master and have multiple iPads slaved via bluetooth or WiFi! •Record your rehearsals or your band on stage, all while reading music in unrealBook! •Take pictures of a chart on a gig and create a PDF that you can use on stage. • Airturn Support for turning pages. • Use the iRig BlueBoard to jump directly to D.S. and CODA in a document via foot switches. • AirDrop an entire set list of files between two AirDrop compatible devices - including unrealBook Mobile on iPhone.

About

UghSongs

This app helps musicians and singers prepare for performances by organizing events, managing setlists, and centralizing practice materials. It tracks songs needing work, stores recordings, lyrics, and notes, and offers playback tools for focused rehearsal.

Highlights
  • Event and setlist organization
  • Song learning tracker
  • Link external music sources
  • Upload rehearsal recordings
  • Store lyrics and sheet music
  • Playback speed adjustment
  • Loop difficult song sections
Read full description

UghSongs helps singers and musicians turn an upcoming event into a setlist they actually know. Organize your events, add the songs you need to prepare, and keep every useful recording, lyric, note and practice tool together. UghSongs shows what still needs work, so you can spend rehearsal time on the right songs instead of searching through messages and links. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Organize events, venues, bands and setlists • See every song you still need to learn in one place • Add YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, Dropbox and other source links • Upload your own rehearsal recordings • Find lyrics and keep lyric images or sheet music with the song • Slow down playback without losing the song's timeline • Loop difficult sections and map song parts • Keep notes and learning status with each version • Receive optional reminders before an upcoming event • Use the same account across your devices UGHSONGS PREMIUM UghSongs requires an active Premium subscription. Eligible new subscribers may receive Apple's 3-day introductory trial; eligibility and availability are determined by the App Store and shown before purchase. Choose a monthly or annual auto-renewing subscription. Both plans include the complete UghSongs experience and 5 GB for recordings, lyric images and sheet music. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the current period ends. Manage or cancel in your App Store account settings. Restore Purchases is available in the app. Terms: https://ughsongs.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://ughsongs.com/privacy

Screenshots

UghSongs4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: UghSongs at Free against unrealBook's $14.99. UghSongs also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8) and review sentiment (100% vs 85%). unrealBook's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ratings volume (1.3K vs 1). On update cadence, ads 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

UghSongs is free to download; unrealBook costs $14.99 up front. UghSongs sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. unrealBook asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

UghSongs 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 UghSongs's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

unrealBook ships an update monthly, UghSongs fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
unrealBook versus UghSongs: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterunrealBookUghSongs
Price$14.99Free — better
Rating4.8 (1.3K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews84.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.3K — better1
Update frequencyMonthlyFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFreemium — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size192 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAron NelsonSolomon Salzman

Customer experience

unrealBook

All ratings1,272 ratings
Positive96.0%
Neutral2.2%
Negative1.8%
Written reviews189 reviews
Positive84.7%
Neutral4.8%
Negative10.6%

UghSongs

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

unrealBook

Reported bugs

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

Requested features

4 requests
  • 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

UghSongs

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

unrealBook

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

UghSongs

Subscriptions2
  • UghSongs Premium Monthly3 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • UghSongs Premium Annual3 Days trial$49.001 Year

Questions

Is unrealBook free?
unrealBook costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is UghSongs free?
UghSongs is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, unrealBook or UghSongs?
UghSongs is rated higher. unrealBook averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while UghSongs averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do unrealBook or UghSongs have ads?
Neither unrealBook nor UghSongs shows ads.
Which is updated more often, unrealBook or UghSongs?
unrealBook ships an update monthly, and UghSongs fortnightly. Most recently, unrealBook was updated on November 6, 2026 and UghSongs on October 31, 2026.

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