Comparison

Piano Maestro vs Take Note Studio

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

Head to head
About

Piano Maestro

This app transforms piano practice into an engaging experience for learners of all ages. It offers interactive lessons, a vast song library, and instant feedback to help master sight-reading, rhythm, and technique. Compatible with any piano or keyboard, it makes learning fun and effective for families and students.

Highlights
  • Interactive piano lessons
  • Vast song library (2,800+ songs)
  • Instant feedback on playing
  • Progress tracking with skill points
  • Method books from publishers
  • Touch mode for devices without piano
  • Teacher management features
Read full description

Piano Maestro is a fun and engaging piano practice tool for families and teachers. Chosen by Apple as #1 Education App in over 20 countries. Works with any piano or keyboard. From playing a single note to complete pieces, Piano Maestro helps your student master sight-reading, rhythm, technique and playing with both hands to make sheet music come to life. Fun piano learning for the entire family with positive screen time! What is included: - Journey - progress by chapters, rising in difficulty level. Collect SKILL POINTS as you play - Library - over 2,800 songs & exercises according to level or genre for songs or by exercise type. From classical, pop, rock, TV & movie songs and themes all songs have fun background music - Method Books - tons of lesson books from leading publishers like Hal Leonard - Receive a 3-star score after mastering rhythm, timing and sight-reading - Practice options to learn songs step-by-step to personalize your learning experience How it works: - Download Piano Maestro to your iPad, place it on your piano/keyboard and the app will immediately recognize what you are playing! - Get instant feedback on your playing to quickly learn and improve your skills - No piano? No problem! TOUCH MODE also available Piano teachers: Created by music educators, Piano Maestro is used as a resource in lessons by tens of thousands of piano teachers worldwide. Includes many teacher management features, reports and a Home Challenge Center to easily assign and assess homework to increase practice time between lessons, helping students learn faster. Join our thriving Piano Maestro Teachers community on Facebook to get ideas on how to use Piano Maestro in your lessons and to connect with other like-minded teachers. “This is the kind of app that if I could get in the hands of every single student, I would!” How the subscription works: All app users can play several free skill levels. Upgrade to a subscription package at any time - Subscribers will receive FULL access to the entire app including all pop songs, method books and other licensed content. New content added every month! Choose from one of the following subscription options. Parents and students learning without a teacher: - Monthly recurring subscription for $9.99/month - Recurring yearly subscription for $59.99/year Teachers: - My Studio: full access to all content, for $12.99/month or $9.99/month (annual) - Studio+Home: Unlocks everything for you and ALL your students, for $19.99/month or $14.99/month (annual) - All recurring subscriptions will auto-renew unless auto-renewal is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can turn off auto-renewal at any time from your iTunes account settings - Your subscription is for your iTunes account and can be used on your iOS device - Payments will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase - Subscriptions cannot be canceled during the active subscription period Piano Maestro is developed by Simply (formerly JoyTunes), creators of award-winning apps Simply Piano, Simply Guitar and Simply Sing. Created by music educators, the apps are used by tens of thousands of music teachers worldwide with over 1 million songs learned every week. Simply are experts in creating educational and fun music apps for learning piano quickly and easily. Awards & Recognition: - "EMI’s Innovation Challenge” - "World Summit Award", by the United Nations - “Best Tools for Beginners”, NAMM - "Best Tablet Game", GameIS - “Parents' Choice Award” - “Golden App”, Apps for Homeschooling Have questions, feedback or suggestions? Reach out to us at education@hellosimply.com Enjoy Playing! privacy policy: https://www.hellosimply.com/legal/privacy terms of use: https://www.hellosimply.com/legal/terms

About

Take Note Studio

Manage your account, register for classes, and stay updated on important announcements. This app provides convenient on-the-go access to all services from your smartphone.

Highlights
  • Account management
  • Class registration
  • Event registration
  • Receive notifications
  • On-the-go access
Features
Read full description

WELCOME TO TAKE NOTE STUDIO The Take Note Studio app allows you to manage your account with ease, register for classes, and special events. You'll also receive important notifications about class changes, closings, registration openings, special announcements, and upcoming events. The Take Note Studio app is an easy-to-use, on-the-go way to access everything TNS has to offer right from your smartphone.

Screenshots

Take Note Studio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Piano Maestro at 4.6 against Take Note Studio's 4.0. Piano Maestro also leads on ratings volume (27K vs 2) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.0). Take Note Studio's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 15) and update cadence (every 4 months vs every 9 months). On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Piano Maestro sells 15 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Take Note Studio asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Piano Maestro holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Piano Maestro has 27K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Piano Maestro ships an update every 9 months, Take Note Studio every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and September 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Piano Maestro versus Take Note Studio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPiano MaestroTake Note Studio
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (27K ratings) — better4.0 (2 ratings)
Positive reviews78.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings27K — better2
Update frequencyEvery 9 monthsEvery 4 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size160 MB70 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSimply LtdTake Note Studio

Customer experience

Piano Maestro

All ratings26,692 ratings
Positive89.9%
Neutral5.1%
Negative5.1%
Written reviews916 reviews
Positive78.9%
Neutral7.5%
Negative13.5%

Take Note Studio

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Piano Maestro

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Levels not unlocking properly
  • Inconsistent note recognition
  • App crashing and freezing

Requested features

5 requests
  • More popular song options
  • Better tutorial videos
  • Ability to adjust piano tuning
  • Ability to download sheet music
  • More advanced content for experienced players

Take Note Studio

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

15 purchases

Piano Maestro

Subscriptions14
  • Unlimited Access$9.991 Month
  • Full Access$9.991 Month
  • Teacher Subscription My Studio1 Month trial$12.991 Month
Show 11 more
  • My Studio1 Month trial$12.991 Month
  • Studio + Home1 Month trial$19.991 Month
  • Full Access$29.993 Months
  • Unlimited Access$39.996 Months
  • Full Access$47.996 Months
  • Unlimited Access$49.991 Year
  • Full Access$59.991 Year
  • JoyTunes Premium Membership$89.996 Months
  • My Studio1 Month trial$119.991 Year
  • JoyTunes Premium Membership$119.991 Year
  • Studio + Home1 Month trial$179.991 Year
One-time1
  • Premium Member - Lifetime Access$14.99
None

Take Note Studio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Piano Maestro free?
Piano Maestro is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Take Note Studio free?
Take Note Studio is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Piano Maestro or Take Note Studio?
Piano Maestro is rated higher. Piano Maestro averages 4.6 out of 5 from 27K ratings, while Take Note Studio averages 4.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Piano Maestro or Take Note Studio have ads?
Neither Piano Maestro nor Take Note Studio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Piano Maestro or Take Note Studio?
Piano Maestro ships an update every 9 months, and Take Note Studio every 4 months. Most recently, Piano Maestro was updated on September 30, 2026 and Take Note Studio on September 9, 2026.

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