# Symphony Pro vs Music Theory Advanced

The clearest difference is price: Music Theory Advanced at $4.99 against Symphony Pro's $14.99. Music Theory Advanced also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2). Symphony Pro's advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 18 months) and device support (3 vs 1). On ads there is nothing between them.

Symphony Pro costs $14.99 and Music Theory Advanced $4.99 up front. Symphony Pro sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Music Theory Advanced asks for nothing beyond the download.

Symphony Pro ships an update every 4 weeks, Music Theory Advanced every 18 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Symphony Pro | Music Theory Advanced |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $14.99 | **$4.99** |
| Rating | **[3.8 (473 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/symphony-pro-music-notation/id412380315/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **473** | — |
| Positive reviews | 55.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 4 weeks** | Every 18 months |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Size | 365 MB | 48 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.5** | 26.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Xenon Labs, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/327764518) | [Patrick Q. Kelly](https://appshunter.io/developer/310068987) |

## What reviewers say

### Symphony Pro

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/symphony-pro-music-notation/id412380315)

Compose music notation on your iPad with intuitive handwriting recognition or traditional input methods. Create scores for various ensembles, import and export in multiple formats, and utilize a wide range of notational elements. Enjoy built-in instruments for playback and auditioning.

**Highlights:** Handwriting recognition for Apple Pencil and touch, Compose for various ensembles, Import/export MusicXML, MIDI, and more, On-screen instrument input, Real-time recording and transcription, Wide range of notational elements, Print via AirPrint

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Version 4: Complete Features Bundle | Free | one-time |
| Handwriting Recognition Tool | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Handwriting recognition is great
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 🎨 Flexible for composing and arranging
- 💰 Good value for the price
- 🎹 Works well with Apple Pencil

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and bugs
- 🔍 Clunky and unintuitive interface
- 🔊 Poor sound quality of instruments
- 🔒 Issues with saving and exporting files
- 🤔 Steep learning curve for some features

**Reported bugs**

- Project menu disappears unexpectedly
- Ties and tuplets not working correctly
- Inconsistent behavior when zooming and panning
- Instruments not transposing properly
- Frequent crashes when editing complex scores

**Requested features**

- Add guitar metronome
- Improve text and lyrics handling
- Allow more customization of page layout
- Implement better transposition and chord features
- Provide more orchestral percussion instruments


### Music Theory Advanced

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/music-theory-advanced/id511632736)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Symphony Pro free?

Symphony Pro costs $14.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is Music Theory Advanced free?

Music Theory Advanced costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Symphony Pro or Music Theory Advanced have ads?

Neither Symphony Pro nor Music Theory Advanced shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Symphony Pro or Music Theory Advanced?

Symphony Pro ships an update every 4 weeks, and Music Theory Advanced every 18 months. Most recently, Symphony Pro was updated on October 24, 2026 and Music Theory Advanced on October 18, 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.*