Saxophone by Ear vs Read Notes
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Saxophone by Ear
Master the saxophone quickly with a unique ear-training method. Learn scales, notes, and chords to play melodies by ear in days or weeks, bypassing years of traditional study. Practice with your phone or real instrument.
- Learn scales and notes
- Ear training for musicians
- Understand chords
- Play by ear
- Practice with phone or real saxophone
- Saxophone notes chart
Read full descriptionHide full description
Learn to express yourself with this beautiful instrument in DAYS and WEEKS instead of years, all the 12 scales and notes in-between. With our unique learning method you will accomplish the level of understanding which is unattainable in years of traditional learning! This is a very powerful ear training and learning tool for musicians who want a shortcut to fluency on the saxophone. With this tool you will be able to play the instrument it is meant to be played by ear, any melody or solo, you will gain a very deep understanding of chords and the notes they consist of and are surrounded by, they tell you all about this in lessons, but you never actually get to ingrain it. Yet this is the most important skill there is for mastering the saxophone and play any music by ear. The app allows you to practice with just the smartphone or with your real saxophone, all types. Also serves as a handy saxophone notes chart. This exercise might look a little bit tedious, but trust us, you will see very powerful results in your music within days of using the app. You could call it hacking the saxophone. Even if you are a complete beginner, you will learn to play your favourite tunes on the saxophone in days with Saxophone by Ear, something that other musicians struggle for MONTHS and YEARS for and still not everyone gets there. You will. During the first month. How much money would you pay to obtain such a skill? Consider this your lucky day, because you are on your way for real musicianship whether it is your hobby or you want to pursue career in music, this app sets you up for the best results. Even if you prefer to play looking at the notes, this app will greatly enhance your ability to see music, hear the written music in your mind, understand music more easily and even remember music much more easily. Standart terms and conditions apply: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Read Notes
Enhance your musical abilities with interactive games focused on sight-reading, ear training, and chord recognition. Practice essential music theory concepts and improve your performance on any instrument with daily exercises and challenges.
- Sight reading practice with multiple clefs
- Ear training for notes, intervals, and chords
- Chord recognition and virtual keyboard
- 100-song library with challenges
- Progress tracking and leaderboards
- Multiple difficulty levels and practice modes
Read full descriptionHide full description
Read music for the instrument you play. Clefs, written ranges and answer screens adapt to the selected instrument. Depending on the instrument, answer with an on-screen keyboard, fretboard, string and position choices, note names or rhythm taps. Compare your answer with the right note and practice the notes you missed. Keep your existing quests, drills, pieces and progress. You can continue piano practice without choosing your instrument again. Start with 67 free songs from a library of 150. Optional one-time Premium unlocks the other 83 songs, removes ads and removes heart limits. No subscription.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Read Notes at 50% against Saxophone by Ear's 0%. Read Notes also leads on rating (4.7 vs 2.3) and update cadence (weekly vs every 6 weeks). Saxophone by Ear's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 14.0). On price, ratings volume, 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. Saxophone by Ear sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per 7 days and Read Notes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Read Notes holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 6 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of Saxophone by Ear's written reviews are positive against 50% of Read Notes's.
Saxophone by Ear ships an update every 6 weeks, Read Notes weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Saxophone by Ear | Read Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.3 (3 ratings) | 4.7 (6 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | 50.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 6 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 14.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 180 MB | 73 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Oleg Sokolov | minjae Lee |
Customer experience
Saxophone by Ear
Read Notes
In-app purchases
Saxophone by Ear
- Weekly Plan3 Days trial$7.997 Days
- Monthly plan3 Days trial$12.991 Month
- Annual plan$79.991 Year
Read Notes
- Remove Ads$7.99
Questions
Is Saxophone by Ear free?
Is Read Notes free?
Which has better reviews, Saxophone by Ear or Read Notes?
Do Saxophone by Ear or Read Notes have ads?
Which is updated more often, Saxophone by Ear or Read Notes?
Other comparisons















