Comparison

ScaleHelper vs Fret Mastery

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

Head to head
About

ScaleHelper

Improve your musical instrument playing with real-time feedback on your performance. Practice scales, arpeggios, and other exercises with scoring and audio playback. Prepare for exams with customizable challenges and support for multiple instruments and users.

Highlights
  • Real-time performance scoring
  • Audio playback of notes and performance
  • Practice any scale or choose specific exercises
  • Exam preparation with challenge modes
  • Support for multiple instruments and users
  • Customizable syllabus creation
  • Save and share recordings
Features
Read full description

Choose an exercise: see the notes and hear them played Play the exercise: get a score, see the notes you played and listen to your performance ScaleHelper is the fast way to improve your playing. With actual feedback based on what you played, ScaleHelper enables you to concentrate on the aspects of your playing that will help the most. ScaleHelper has 3 modes: 1. Play any scale: ScaleHelper determines the exercise you have played and scores your performance. Ideal for impromptu practise sessions. 2. Choose a scale: Choose the exercise you want to play and ScaleHelper listens and gives you a score. Ideal to improve a specific musical exercise. 3. Challenge me: ScaleHelper will ask you to play exercises from your challenge list that is based on your chosen syllabus. ScaleHelper will identify what you need to practise and make sure you get exam ready while having fun on the way. Ideal for practising a range of exercises. ScaleHelper contains everything you need for most of the instruments covered by the ABRSM, Trinity Guildhall, and MTB examining boards all the way from Grade 1 to Grade 8. ScaleHelper will be there for you every step of the way as you grow as a musician. ScaleHelper allows you to create your own syllabus from the exercises it supports: major scales; major arpeggios; harmonic minor scales; melodic minor scales; natural minor scales; minor arpeggios; chromatic scales; dominant sevenths; diminished sevenths; augmented arpeggios; scales in thirds; whole-tone scales; and pentatonic major scales. All exercises are available starting from every tonic over 1 octave, 1 twelfth, 2 octaves, 2.5 octaves and 3 octaves. There is a range of exercise lists for popular music exams available for download. Instruments supported include Violin, Viola, Cello, Guitar, Bass Guitar, Clarinet, Flute, Oboe, Saxophone, Bassoon, Recorder, Trumpet, Cornet, Trombone and Horn. A full list is available at www.ScaleHelper.com along with details of the rich feature set ScaleHelper has to offer. At less than the price of a single music lesson the guidance that ScaleHelper provides between your lessons builds on that teaching. You can dispense with the need to review scales by playing them in your lessons and instead reuse the time you gain to learn technique and perfect your pieces. ScaleHelper supports multiple users, keeping each user's history for each of their instruments. You can save recordings to study later or to show and play to your teacher and friends. You can also email recordings to share them with others. Have fun competing with your friends to see who can get the highest score or who can maintain the highest average.

About

Fret Mastery

Features
Read full description

Fret Mastery - Your Ultimate Guitar Scale Guide Take your guitar playing to the next level with Fret Mastery, the app that makes learning scales, modes, and patterns easy and fun! Designed with beginners and intermediates in mind, this intuitive app is your ultimate tool for unlocking the secrets of the fretboard. Key Features: Interactive Fretboard: Visualize scales and patterns directly on a virtual fretboard. Choose to display note names, intervals, or degrees to match your learning style. All Major Modes & Keys: Master any scale with ease! Learn step-by-step scale formulas and explore all the chords within each scale. Essential Patterns for Growth: Dive into the key patterns every guitarist needs: Pentatonic Patterns 3 Notes Per String (3NPS) Triads CAGED Shapes Interval Patterns Chord Tones Customizable Views: Toggle between showing and hiding unused notes in specific patterns like triads or CAGED shapes, helping you focus on the patterns that matter most. Both left and right handed fretboards Additional tunings such as drop d and c, dadgad and open d Exclusive iPad Feature: Dual fretboard display! Show two fretboards side-by-side with independent controls. For example, visualize a scale on one and corresponding CAGED shapes on the other. Perfect for deep learning and comparative study! Learn and Understand: Get the full picture with scale formulas, detailed explanations, and all the chords associated with each scale. Whether you're practicing at home or preparing for your next performance, Fret Mastery gives you the tools to learn smarter and play better. Download Fret Mastery today and unleash the full potential of your guitar playing! Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://stephenuniacke.github.io/FretMastery/PrivacyPolicy.html

Screenshots

ScaleHelper4 screens
Fret Mastery4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Fret Mastery at Free against ScaleHelper's $5.99. ScaleHelper's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 6 months). On ads, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Fret Mastery is free to download; ScaleHelper costs $5.99 up front. ScaleHelper sells 11 one-off in-app purchases and Fret Mastery sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ScaleHelper ships an update monthly, Fret Mastery every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences ยท 6 level
ScaleHelper versus Fret Mastery: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterScaleHelperFret Mastery
Price$5.99Free โ€” better
Positive reviews80.0% of reviewsโ€”
Update frequencyMonthly โ€” betterEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationPaidโ€”
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 โ€” better16.6
Further details โ€” not scored
Size9 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRichard WilliamsStephen Uniacke

In-app purchases

11 purchases

ScaleHelper

One-time11
  • Violin ABRSM G8$0.99
  • Cello TRINITY G1 to G3$0.99
  • Flute TRINITY G1 to G3$0.99
Show 8 more
  • Viola ABRSM G6$0.99
  • Viola ABRSM G7$0.99
  • Viola ABRSM G8$0.99
  • Violin ABRSM G1 to G3$0.99
  • Clarinet ABRSM G1 to G8$2.99
  • Violin ABRSM G1 to G8$2.99
  • Flute ABRSM G1 to G8$2.99
  • Cello ABRSM G1 to G8$2.99
4 purchases

Fret Mastery

Subscriptions3
  • All Access$1.991 Month
  • All Access$2.991 Month
  • All Access$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Access$9.99

Questions

Is ScaleHelper free?
ScaleHelper costs $5.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Fret Mastery free?
Fret Mastery is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do ScaleHelper or Fret Mastery have ads?
Neither ScaleHelper nor Fret Mastery shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ScaleHelper or Fret Mastery?
ScaleHelper ships an update monthly, and Fret Mastery every 6 months. Most recently, ScaleHelper was updated on October 14, 2026 and Fret Mastery on October 4, 2026.

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