Basichords vs Chordology
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Basichords
Access chord diagrams for a variety of stringed instruments, including guitar, ukulele, and banjo. Features include auto-play, interactive diagrams, finger placement guides, and detailed chord/note information. Supports multiple tunings and left-handed players.
- Chord diagrams for multiple instruments
- Auto-play chords
- Interactive chord diagrams
- Finger placement guidance
- Chord and note information
- Left-handed display option
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Chord positions for Guitar, Ukulele, Bouzouki, Cavaquinho, Mandolin, Mandola & Banjo: - auto play of the chords when selected - ability to play the chord by tapping on its diagram - finger position, to tell which finger goes where in the easiest manner - chord information (root, 3rd, 5th, 7th...) or note information (C, G, E...) for each string - option for left-handed display and disabling the autoplay feature - ad supported Supported tunings: - Guitar E-A-D-G-B-E (more than 2100 positions) - Ukulele G-C-E-A/A-D-F#-B (900+) - Cavaquinho D-G-B-D (1100+) - Mandolin/Bouzouki G-D-A-E (900+) - Mandola C-G-D-A (900+) - Banjo C-G-B-D (700+) / D-G-B-D (1100+)
Chordology
Access hundreds of thousands of chord variations for multiple instruments like guitar, piano, and ukulele. Features a minimalist, fast interface and supports iPhone, iPad, and OSX. Enjoy a completely ad-free experience.
- Multi-instrument chord dictionary
- Hundreds of thousands of chords
- Thousands of chord variations
- Guitar, piano, ukulele support
- Minimalist interface
- Ad-free
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Chordology - Chords and Scales, Beautifully Visualized See music. Hear music. Understand music. Chordology is the cleanest, most colorful way to explore chords and scales across all your favorite instruments. Whether you're a beginner learning your first shapes or a seasoned player digging into theory, Chordology turns abstract music concepts into something you can see, hear, and feel. EVERY INSTRUMENT, ONE APP Browse chords and scales for: - Piano - Guitar - Bass Guitar - Banjo - Ukulele BUILT FOR THE WAY YOU ACTUALLY PLAY - Custom tunings (Chordology Pro): set up any tuning on your stringed instruments and see every shape update instantly. - Capo support (Chordology Pro): dial in your capo position and view chords exactly as they'll sound. - Multiple finger positions: for guitar, bass, ukulele, and banjo, swipe through every voicing up and down the neck to find the one that fits. - Hear it instantly: tap play to hear any chord or scale rendered authentically on your chosen instrument. GO DEEPER THAN SHAPES Every chord comes with rich musical insight. Explore qualities like brightness, darkness, and consonance to understand not just how a chord is played, but why it sounds the way it does, and how to use it in your own music. AN INTERFACE AS BEAUTIFUL AS IT IS USEFUL Chordology's signature color system gives every note its own identity, so patterns leap off the fretboard and keyboard. The clean, bright design keeps the music front and center: no clutter, no noise, just clarity. CHORDOLOGY PRO Chordology is free: every instrument, every chord and scale, every voicing, and playback, at standard tuning. Chordology Pro is a one-time purchase - no subscription - that adds alternate tunings, a capo on any fret, and sharing. Pick an instrument. Choose a chord or scale. Press play. Start exploring. Download Chordology and see your music in a whole new light.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Basichords at none against Chordology's 1. Basichords also leads on review sentiment (75% vs 66%) and iOS requirement (8.4 vs 26.0). Chordology's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 4 months) and rating (4.4 vs 4.0). On price, ads 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
Both are free to download. Chordology sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Basichords asks for nothing beyond the download.
Chordology holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chordology has 231 ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of Basichords's written reviews are positive against 66% of Chordology's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Basichords ships an update every 4 months, Chordology every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Basichords | Chordology |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (10 ratings) | 4.4 (231 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 75.4% of reviews — better | 65.8% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 10 | 231 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 8.4 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 142 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Tekartik | Greg Raine |
Customer experience
Basichords
Chordology
User reviews
Basichords
From 10 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Simple and clean interface
- 🎸 Versatile for multiple instruments
- 💡 Shows alternate chord voicings
- 🆓 Great free app
- ⏱️ Fast chord lookup
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes when switching instruments
- 📉 Ads can be intrusive
- 🔗 Broken links to paid version
- ⚠️ Some chord types missing (e.g., diminished triads)
- 🤔 Confusing interface for some users
Chordology
From 231 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- ✨ Clean and minimalist design
- 💡 Great for learning chords
- 🚀 Fast chord lookup
- 🎹 Useful for composition
Room to improve
- 👎 Outdated UI on iPad
- 🐛 Voicing mismatch (display vs. sound)
- 🐛 Octave difference (display vs. sound)
- 🐛 Inaccurate chord identification (minor/major)
- 🐛 Non-functional options screen
Bugs and requests
Basichords
Reported bugs
7 issues- Crashes when changing instruments
- Crashes when going to settings
- App crashes on startup
- App disappears on iPad 1
- Crashes after iOS updates
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- Link to paid version not working
- Ads taking over the app
Requested features
12 requests- Baritone Ukulele chords
- FSus2 open voicing
- Alternate odd open chords
- Option to remove ads (paid version)
- Improve link to paid version
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- Add diminished triads
- Add / chords (e.g., d/f# and g/d)
- Add C#m chord
- Add drop D ukulele tuning (DGBE)
- Add bass guitar chords
- Add C2 chord
- Left-handed view option
Chordology
Reported bugs
12 issues- Voicing displayed doesn't match played voicing
- Played chord is an octave higher than displayed
- Shows minor chords as major and vice-versa
- iPad version is a stretched iPhone UI
- Options screen is non-functional
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- App crashes immediately
- Swiping on iPad to see different chord variations doesn't work
- Tapping on left/right of dots to see variations is bizarre UI
- iPad version only shows first chord variation
- Fret changer swiping doesn't slide display
- Constant rating requests
- Common ways to play chords are deeper in options
Requested features
16 requests- Ability to hear chords as displayed
- Toggle between numbers and note names
- Color scheme customization
- Add five-string banjo
- Add baritone ukulele
Show 11 moreShow fewer
- Display chord notes
- Display note scale degrees
- MIDI chord detection
- Ability to store a series of chords
- Change tuning options
- Add capo position
- Audio previews for chords
- Scales for stringed instruments
- Support split screen mode
- Center interface and allow 180-degree rotation
- More tunings for banjo
In-app purchases
Basichords
No in-app purchases
Chordology
- Chordology Pro$5.99
Questions
Is Basichords free?
Is Chordology free?
Which has better reviews, Basichords or Chordology?
Do Basichords or Chordology have ads?
Which is updated more often, Basichords or Chordology?
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