Tabs & Notes vs Play Guitar Hits
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Tabs & Notes
This app displays and plays song tablature and notes, supporting gp3, gp4, gp5, and gpx files. It offers full General MIDI sound playback, making it ideal for guitar practice anywhere. Features include easy song downloads, track switching, flexible playback speed, and editable metadata.
- Plays gp3, gp4, gp5, gpx files
- Full General MIDI sound playback
- Flexible playback speed
- Free instrument to track mapping
- Editable song metadata
- Easy song download
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Tabs & Notes displays and plays your song tablature and notes. Compatible with gp3, gp4, gp5 and gpx files. Playback with full general midi sound. Great for guitar practice everywhere you want. Features: - Easy download of new songs - Fast switching between tracks of a song - Free instrument to track mapping - Flexible playback speed - Free positioning of song cursor - Editable song meta data
Play Guitar Hits
Learn to play your favorite songs on guitar with interactive, synchronized scores and multi-angle videos. Masterclasses from renowned guitarists and practice tools like slow-motion and looping help you progress at your own pace. Choose from various difficulty levels and song genres.
- Interactive synchronized scores
- Multi-angle video lessons
- Masterclasses from famous guitarists
- Adjustable playback speed
- Practice tools (metronome, loop)
- Multiple difficulty levels
- Backing tracks with vocals
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Learn how to play your favorite songs on the guitar with interactive scores synchronized with multi-angle videos. Take lessons and masterclasses from famous guitarists such as Oz Noy, Gareth Evans, Nate Savage, and many others. Play Guitar Hits is a fun and efficient method that will allow you to progress more easily and at your own pace: Slow down videos, accompaniments, and score down to 50%. Practice with a metronome, a countdown, or play a section in a loop. Play songs of your own level: Choose between 4 levels of difficulty, from easy to difficult. Progress step-by-step through short pieces divided into short sections. Play accompanied by quality backing tracks, with vocals and other instruments. Make faster progress: Learn easily with simplified scores available in standard notation, tablature, or neck view. - Many songs are available for acoustic and electric guitar. - You’ll find a glossary of playing techniques and chord diagrams used in the songs. - Discover the secrets of the greatest pop, rock, or metal standards such as AC/DC's Highway to Hell, Metallica's Nothing Else Matters or Muse's Hysteria, and many others like Angie, The Rolling Stones Back in Black, ACDC Black Dog, Led Zeppelin Can’t Stop, The Red Hot Chili Peppers Come As You Are, Nirvana Imagine, John Lennon Hello, Adele Knocking on Heaven’s Door, Bob Dylan (Gratuit) Wonderwall, Oasis Smoke on the Water, Deep Purple The Wall, Pink Floyd Zombie, The Cranberries New songs are added every week. The Play Guitar Hits adventure has just begun. Let us know your suggestions! Official website: www.playguitarhits.com TOS: www.playguitarhits.com/end-user-license-agreement
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Tabs & Notes at 5.0 against Play Guitar Hits's 3.0. Tabs & Notes also leads on iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15). Play Guitar Hits's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 5 months). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Tabs & Notes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Play Guitar Hits sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Tabs & Notes holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Play Guitar Hits has 17 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of Tabs & Notes's written reviews are positive against 37% of Play Guitar Hits's.
Tabs & Notes ships an update every 5 months, Play Guitar Hits every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Tabs & Notes | Play Guitar Hits |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | 3.0 (17 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews — better | 37.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 17 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 15 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 17 MB | 27 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Oliver Buecker | Arobas Music |
Customer experience
Tabs & Notes
Play Guitar Hits
In-app purchases
Tabs & Notes
- Tabs & Notes Full Version$0.99
Play Guitar Hits
- Monthtly Subscription7 Days trial$8.991 Month
- Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$54.991 Year
- Cocaine 1$0.99
- Crossroads 1$0.99
- The thrill is gone, B.B.King 2$1.99
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Blackbird$1.99
- Black Dog 1$1.99
- Angie$1.99
- Creep$1.99
- Crossroads 2$2.99
Questions
Is Tabs & Notes free?
Is Play Guitar Hits free?
Which has better reviews, Tabs & Notes or Play Guitar Hits?
Do Tabs & Notes or Play Guitar Hits have ads?
Which is updated more often, Tabs & Notes or Play Guitar Hits?
Other comparisons
