GuitarNotes vs StringMaster Lite
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
GuitarNotes
Learn and master guitar fretboard notes with interactive practice modes. Identify notes by fret location or find fret positions for specific notes. Customize your learning experience with adjustable settings and realistic sounds.
- Guess the note by fret
- Locate the note by position
- Supports left and right-handed players
- Customizable quizzes
- Realistic guitar sounds
- Adjustable practice session duration
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Know every note on the fretboard, instantly. Quick daily quizzes train your memory until chords, scales, solos make sense anywhere on the neck. 4.7 stars, 200+ ratings. Since 2012. One-time purchase, no subscriptions. TWO WAYS TO TRAIN Guess the Note: See a fret and name its note. Instant recognition is the secret to reading the neck while you play. Locate the Note: Given a note, find every position it lives in across the fretboard. Chords and scales start to make sense. YOUR PRACTICE, YOUR RULES - Pick exactly which notes, strings, and fret range to focus on. Master the first five frets before moving up the neck. - Right-handed or left-handed? Every exercise mirrors your actual guitar. - Set a practice duration and build a daily habit in just a few minutes. - Realistic guitar sounds link every position to what your ear should hear. HOW IT WORKS 1. Choose your focus: notes, strings, and frets 2. Answer quick quizzes in Guess or Locate mode 3. Watch the whole neck unlock, one short session at a time TRAIN AT YOUR OWN PACE - Set your strings and note names based on your own learning progress. - Start with just one string and a few notes, then gradually build up to all six strings and every note name. - Practice anytime, anywhere — even in small pockets of free time. Once you know the fretboard inside and out, you'll have a solid foundation for becoming a skilled guitarist. You'll be able to: 1) Quickly identify root keys, chords, and scales 2) Develop your improvisation skills WHAT PLAYERS SAY "A must if you plan to solo." - 5-star review "I downloaded every fretboard app I could find and this is by far the best." - 5-star review "My fretboard mastery has skyrocketed." - 5-star review "This app will help you drill knowledge deep down into your brain." - 5-star review, from a teacher and player of 30 years Memorize the fretboard for less than a pack of strings. GuitarNotes is a one-time purchase: no subscriptions, no ads, no data collection. Download GuitarNotes today. TERMS & PRIVACY: - Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ - Privacy Policy: https://soulreload.com/app/guitarnotes/privacy-policy/
StringMaster Lite
Learn guitar fretboards quickly with this educational tool. It offers sophisticated chord tools and can be upgraded to support more instruments and advanced features like MIDI playback and songwriting.
- Guitar fretboard learning
- Chord tools
- Supports multiple instruments (via IAP)
- MIDI playback (via IAP)
- Songwriting capability (via IAP)
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StringMaster Lite is the free version of the popular StringMaster Pro application for iPad and Mac, dedicated to learning the fretboard. Now Includes StringMaster's sophisticated Chord tools. StringMaster Lite supports Guitar fretboard only, with in App purchase options to support the full range of StringMaster Pro instruments, Merton & Tuner, Fretlight Guitars, or be fully upgraded to StringMaster Pro to include MIDI playback with chord & scale display, Scales, Songwriting capability, note finding & more.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: StringMaster Lite at Free against GuitarNotes's $2.99. StringMaster Lite also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.7) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). GuitarNotes's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and ratings volume (222 vs 24). On review sentiment, update cadence, 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
StringMaster Lite is free to download; GuitarNotes costs $2.99 up front. StringMaster Lite sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. GuitarNotes asks for nothing beyond the download.
StringMaster Lite holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: GuitarNotes has 222 ratings behind it against 24, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 84% of GuitarNotes's written reviews are positive against 79% of StringMaster Lite's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
GuitarNotes ships an update every 5 months, StringMaster Lite every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | GuitarNotes | StringMaster Lite |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.7 (222 ratings) | 4.9 (24 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 84.2% of reviews — better | 78.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 222 — better | 24 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 165 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | 小舟 苏 | Great Apptitude Pty Ltd |
Customer experience
GuitarNotes
StringMaster Lite
Bugs and requests
GuitarNotes
Reported bugs
10 issues- App is unbearably slow after update v3
- Notes are incorrect on some strings (iPhone 6s)
- No sound
- App doesn't work properly on iPhone 6s
- Numbers splash up on screen and can't be removed
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- Tuning is off
- Cannot count frets without losing track or getting eye strain
- No way to make fret numbers display
- Download issues initially
- Reinstalling after factory reset requires payment again
Requested features
23 requests- Visualize notes by mistakes
- Sort by most mistaken notes
- Completely turn off timer
- Freeplay mode
- Alternate tunings (drop D, DADGAD)
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- Support for 24 frets
- Chord function
- Scales and triads
- Chords
- Automatic playback of continuous notes
- App recognizes notes via sound
- Change tuning (half step down)
- Turn off voice speaking letters
- Support for iOS 11
- Limit number of frets
- Alternate orientation for one-handed use
- Option to prevent accidental hits on turned-off notes
- Visual options for the neck
- Tones to accompany notes
- Fret spacing more consistent with actual guitar
- Fret numbers display
- Graphic changes for eye strain
- Ability to limit fretboard breadth displayed
StringMaster Lite
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
GuitarNotes
No in-app purchases
StringMaster Lite
- Metronome and Tuner$3.99
- Fretlight Guitar Support$3.99
- Enable All Instruments$3.99
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- StringMaster Pro Upgrade$14.99
Questions
Is GuitarNotes free?
Is StringMaster Lite free?
Which has better reviews, GuitarNotes or StringMaster Lite?
Do GuitarNotes or StringMaster Lite have ads?
Which is updated more often, GuitarNotes or StringMaster Lite?
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