Comparison

Tabs & Notes vs ProTabs

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Read full description

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

About

ProTabs

Features
Read full description

Learn the songs you love, note for note — and play along. ProTabs gives you accurate guitar and bass tabs, chords and play-along tools. Follow the tab with the music video, play chords along with the original song and practice every riff at your own pace. EVERY KIND OF SONG • ProTabs – our own interactive tabs, synced to the music video. Watch, listen and follow every note. • Guitar Pro tabs – thousands of songs with built-in playback: loop, slow down and practice. • ProChords – chords that follow the YouTube video in real time, with chord diagrams. • Chords – lyrics with chords, autoscroll, transpose and every chord shape at a glance. • Tabs and bass tabs – play them back in the built-in player. PRACTICE TOOLS • Loop any part and repeat it as often as you like. • Speed trainer: start slow and speed up every repeat until you play at full tempo. • Slow down to 25% without losing the notes, with count-in and metronome. • Circle of fifths with the chords of every key and popular progressions. • Chord changes trainer that listens through your microphone. • Tuner and metronome. YOUR OWN LIBRARY • Save favorites and build playlists for practice or your next gig. • Search by artist or song and filter by type, difficulty and style. • Missing a song? Request ProChords right in the app. PROTABS PREMIUM Unlock every song and all practice tools. Try it free for 2 weeks with the yearly plan. • Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase (after the free trial, if applicable). • Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. • Manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.gitaartabs.nl/voorwaarden?lang=en Privacy Policy: https://www.gitaartabs.nl/privacy-policy

Screenshots

Tabs & Notes4 screens
ProTabs4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: ProTabs at every 5 days against Tabs & Notes's every 5 months. Tabs & Notes's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Tabs & Notes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and ProTabs sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tabs & Notes ships an update every 5 months, ProTabs every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Tabs & Notes versus ProTabs: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTabs & NotesProTabs
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews40.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.0.0
Further details — not scored
Size17 MB72 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperOliver BueckerJan van der Heide

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Tabs & Notes

One-time1
  • Tabs & Notes Full Version$0.99
2 purchases

ProTabs

Subscriptions2
  • Play music$9.991 Month
  • ProTabs - Guitar Tabs14 Days trial$34.951 Year

Questions

Is Tabs & Notes free?
Tabs & Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ProTabs free?
ProTabs is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Tabs & Notes or ProTabs have ads?
Both Tabs & Notes and ProTabs show ads.
Which is updated more often, Tabs & Notes or ProTabs?
Tabs & Notes ships an update every 5 months, and ProTabs every 5 days. Most recently, Tabs & Notes was updated on November 6, 2026 and ProTabs on November 4, 2026.

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