# Band vs Zero Fret

The clearest difference is rating: Zero Fret at 5.0 against Band's 4.0. Zero Fret also leads on monetization model (free vs paid) and update cadence (daily vs every 2 months). Band's advantage is ratings volume (40 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Zero Fret holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Band has 40 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Band ships an update every 2 months, Zero Fret daily. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Band | Zero Fret |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.0 (40 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/band-in-a-box/id397173717/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zero-fret/id6805130786/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **40** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 23.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Daily** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free** |
| Size | 771 MB | 2 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [PG Music Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/350594075) | [Patrick Hall](https://appshunter.io/developer/6778912162) |

## What reviewers say

### Band

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/band-in-a-box/id397173717)

Create professional backing tracks instantly from chord progressions. Choose from thousands of styles and hear real musicians play your music. View chords, notation, and tabs, and even generate solos for improvisation.

**Highlights:** Instant backing track generation, Thousands of musical styles, RealTracks with live musicians, Chord sheet and notation display, Generated solos for improvisation, Interactive instrument displays, Record melodies via MIDI

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🎵 Excellent for solo musicians and on-the-go practice
- ☁️ iCloud integration for seamless file access across devices
- 🎹 High-quality RealTracks and realistic accompaniment sounds
- 📱 Convenient mobile access to BIAB songs from desktop
- 🎯 Intuitive interface for chord entry and song creation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and instability issues
- 💾 Critical file saving and loading failures
- 🔧 Changes to songs don't apply to playback
- 🎚️ Instrument adjustments and muting don't work
- 🔌 Requires constant server/WiFi connection for functionality

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when saving songs
- Changes to chords, styles, and form not applied to playback
- Cannot generate RealTracks, only MIDI output
- Notation feature shows whole bar rests instead of arrangements
- Playback sync lag with chord display (2+ measures behind)

**Requested features**

- Loop function for specific song segments
- Transpose functionality for practice in all keys
- Multiple chords per measure entry
- Ability to change key automatically for transposing instruments
- Mute individual instruments


### Zero Fret

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zero-fret/id6805130786)

This app provides a visual and haptic guitar and bass tuning experience. It displays string wobble and offers tactile feedback to guide tuning adjustments, supporting a wide range of instruments and custom tunings.

**Highlights:** Visual string wobble indicator, Haptic feedback for tuning guidance, Support for guitar, bass, ukulele, and more, Custom tuning creation and saving, Chromatic fallback tuning, Adjustable reference pitch

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Band free?

Band is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Zero Fret free?

Zero Fret is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Band or Zero Fret?

Zero Fret is rated higher. Band averages 4.0 out of 5 from 40 ratings, while Zero Fret averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Band or Zero Fret have ads?

Neither Band nor Zero Fret shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Band or Zero Fret?

Band ships an update every 2 months, and Zero Fret daily. Most recently, Band was updated on November 10, 2026 and Zero Fret on October 31, 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.*