Comparison

iWriteMusic Pro vs Dorico

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

Head to head
About

iWriteMusic Pro

Create beautiful, professional-quality sheet music with an intuitive interface. This app offers efficient input systems, comprehensive notation tools, and useful playback options for musicians of all levels. Easily share your compositions as PDFs, JPGs, or MIDI files.

Highlights
  • Intuitive and simple user interface
  • Efficient One-Flick and Traditional Entry Systems
  • Professional quality sheet music creation
  • Comprehensive notation element support
  • Useful playback options with mixer
  • Export to PDF, JPG, and MIDI
  • Easy score and parts management
Features
Read full description

Less learning. More music. Professional notation without the lengthly learning process. Whether you are capturing a musical idea, preparing lesson material or a lead sheet, or completing a large score, iWriteMusic helps you turn inspiration into finished notation efficiently. 7 reasons to choose iWriteMusic. 1. Easy to master. Essential controls are organized clearly, so even if notation apps are new to you, you can get started without relying on a thick manual or a long series of tutorial videos. 2. Enter notes faster, your way. With OneFlick, you can combine choices such as pitch and note value into a single gesture. Traditional Entry lets you choose the notation item and its position separately. Use either method to match the task and the way you prefer to work. 3. Create polished, professional scores. Flexible page-layout tools help you prepare music for practice, lessons, rehearsals, performance, and distribution. Create individual parts from a score and print directly with AirPrint. 4. Use the notation your music requires. Create multi-track, multi-voice scores with lyrics, chord symbols, percussion, drum notation, and multi-bar rests. Add key, time, clef, and tempo changes within a piece, along with grace notes, articulations, dynamics, and full or partial transposition. 5. Keep scores and parts organized. Manage scores and their individual parts together, and use folders to organize a growing collection of compositions and teaching materials. 6. Listen, check, and practice. Play your score while you work. Use the mixer, solo, mute, instrument selection, loop playback, and swing playback to check your music or support daily practice. 7. Export and share for any purpose. Export PDF, image, Standard MIDI, MusicXML, and audio files (WAV). Share editable iWriteMusic files and continue working on another device. For composers, arrangers, songwriters, music teachers, students, singers, and instrumentalists. Use iWriteMusic for musical sketches, lead sheets, chord charts, lesson materials, choral and ensemble scores, chamber music, band music, orchestral scores, and individual parts. iWriteMusic is free to download. Some features require one-time in-app purchases.

About

Dorico

Create professional music notation and compositions with this powerful app. Easily input notes, edit performances, and share your work in various formats. It's suitable for beginners and professionals alike.

Highlights
  • Compose music notation
  • On-screen keyboard, drum pads, fretboard
  • MIDI editing tools
  • PDF, audio, MusicXML export
  • Print to AirPrint
  • Read mode with annotation
  • Automatic engraving
Features
Read full description

Compose your own music for free with Dorico. Create beautiful music notation for up to eight instruments quickly and easily with the on-screen keyboard, drum pads and fretboard. Play back instantly with the included sounds and shape the performance with powerful MIDI editing tools. When your piece is finished, share it as PDF, audio or MusicXML, or print directly to your AirPrint-enabled printer. Perform using the built-in read mode, and annotate with your Apple Pencil. Dorico is the award-winning music notation and composition software from Steinberg for macOS, Windows, and iPadOS. It’s easy enough to learn and use that it is used by students in schools, and deep enough that it satisfies the needs of the most demanding professionals in the worlds of concert music, music for film and TV, and music publishing. Dorico for iPad is fully compatible with Dorico for macOS and Windows, so you can work on your projects on the move on your iPad and in your studio on your desktop or laptop computer, or share projects with musicians using Dorico on any platform. Dorico’s interface is split into four modes. In Setup mode, you can add and change instruments, create and reorder sections of music (called “flows”), and choose how your music will be formatted for your musicians into layouts. In Write mode, you can input and edit music and other notations using simple, well-organized toolboxes and panels. In Engrave mode (included if you buy a paid subscription to Dorico’s advanced features), you can make graphical tweaks to every item in your project. Finally, in Play mode, you have access to powerful sequencer-style MIDI editing tools, including piano roll and velocity editors. Dorico includes built-in virtual instruments and effects to allow you to play back your compositions, and you can also easily use any compatible Audio Unit plug-in or external MIDI device (with optional subscription or Lifetime Unlock in-app purchase), and tweak playback using the on-screen Mixer. Input music using an on-screen piano keyboard, or by connecting a MIDI keyboard to your iPad directly via USB or using a compatible USB-to-Lightning adaptor. If you have a Magic Keyboard or other external keyboard, you can make use of extensive keyboard shortcuts to work quickly and efficiently. Dorico is free to use, allowing you to write for ensembles of up to four players. Register with your free Steinberg ID to increase the player limit to eight, allowing you to write for ensembles like string or wind quartet, or SATB choir. If you want to take your composition and arranging to the next level, you can buy an optional subscription or Lifetime Unlock in-app purchase to access more features and power: write for ensembles of any number of players, and gain access to Engrave mode, allowing you to make graphical tweaks to individual items anywhere in your project. HIGHLIGHTS • Best automatic engraving of any software • Easy note input using on-screen keyboard, MIDI keyboard, or external keyboard • Intelligently adjusts notation as you write • Any number of movements or pieces in a single project • Automatic layout of instrumental parts • Expressive playback using included sounds and effects • Supports Audio Unit virtual instruments and effects processors • Sequencer-style piano roll MIDI editor • Sophisticated chord symbols, unpitched percussion and drum set notation • Unbarred music, tuplets across barlines, etc. all handled correctly — no workarounds • Transfer to and from other apps via MusicXML, MIDI, PDF, etc. For support, please visit www.dorico.com/forum If you like Dorico, please support us by rating this app in the App Store. Thank you!

Verdict

The call

iWriteMusic Pro and Dorico both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 75% of iWriteMusic Pro's written reviews are positive against 55% of Dorico's. Dorico's advantage is ratings volume (2.3K vs 533). On price, rating, update cadence and ads 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

Both are free to download. iWriteMusic Pro sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Dorico sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for iWriteMusic Pro against 4.6 for Dorico. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 533 and 2.3K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 75% of iWriteMusic Pro's written reviews are positive against 55% of Dorico's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iWriteMusic Pro ships an update every 2 weeks, Dorico every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
iWriteMusic Pro versus Dorico: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriWriteMusic ProDorico
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (533 ratings) — better4.6 (2.3K ratings)
Positive reviews74.9% of reviews — better55.4% of reviews
Number of ratings5332.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPadiPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better17
Further details — not scored
Size20 MB975 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperiWriteMusicProjectSteinberg Media Technologies GmbH

Customer experience

iWriteMusic Pro

All ratings533 ratings
Positive93.4%
Neutral3.6%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews235 reviews
Positive74.9%
Neutral10.6%
Negative14.5%

Dorico

All ratings1,908 ratings
Positive91.1%
Neutral3.6%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews294 reviews
Positive55.4%
Neutral12.9%
Negative31.6%

User reviews

iWriteMusic Pro

From 533 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Intuitive interface
  • 💡 Useful features for composing and arranging
  • 👍 Good value for the price
  • 🚀 Responsive customer support

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Stability issues after updates
  • 🐛 Unreliable playback and MIDI export
  • 🔒 Lack of file management options
  • 💡 Limited notation options (e.g. dynamics, articulations)

Dorico

From 2.3K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Powerful and full-featured notation app on iPad
  • 👍 Seamless integration with desktop version
  • 🚀 Efficient workflow with keyboard shortcuts
  • 👍 Impressive engraving and layout capabilities
  • 🚀 Comprehensive feature set for composing and arranging

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
  • 🔒 Subscription-only model, no option to purchase outright
  • 🐛 Glitchy touch/scroll functionality
  • 🐛 Inability to delete clefs or access certain settings
  • 🐛 Inconsistent performance on older iPad models

Bugs and requests

iWriteMusic Pro

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Inability to save or export files after iOS 7 update
  • Crashing when editing certain notation elements
  • Playback issues with repeat signs and tempo changes

Requested features

5 requests
  • MusicXML import/export support
  • Ability to change note sizes and fonts
  • More time signature options
  • Improved copy/paste functionality
  • Folder organization for saved files

Dorico

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Crashes when opening or editing projects
  • Corrupted/lost files after app crashes
  • Unresponsive keyboard and note input issues
  • Scrolling and UI glitches, especially in Engrave mode
  • Incompatibility with certain iPad models and iOS versions

Requested features

5 requests
  • Support for Apple Pencil and handwriting input
  • Improved file management and organization
  • Expanded audio unit/plugin integration
  • More customization options for layout and engraving
  • Ability to export/import flows and projects between iPad and desktop

In-app purchases

1 purchases

iWriteMusic Pro

One-time1
  • Advanced File Management$0.99
3 purchases

Dorico

Subscriptions2
  • Dorico Monthly Subscription7 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • Dorico Annual Subscription14 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Dorico Lifetime Unlock$119.99

Questions

Is iWriteMusic Pro free?
iWriteMusic Pro is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Dorico free?
Dorico is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, iWriteMusic Pro or Dorico?
iWriteMusic Pro is rated higher. iWriteMusic Pro averages 4.7 out of 5 from 533 ratings, while Dorico averages 4.6 from 2.3K ratings.
Do iWriteMusic Pro or Dorico have ads?
Neither iWriteMusic Pro nor Dorico shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iWriteMusic Pro or Dorico?
iWriteMusic Pro ships an update every 2 weeks, and Dorico every 3 weeks. Most recently, iWriteMusic Pro was updated on November 6, 2026 and Dorico on November 8, 2026.

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