Comparison

MPC Progression Builder vs ChordKeys

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

Head to head
About

MPC Progression Builder

Create and export musical chord progressions for your music production workflow. Features include keyboard, scale-based, and circle of fifths modes for building and refining harmonic ideas. Export directly to MPC devices or as standard MIDI files for use in any DAW.

Highlights
  • Virtual keyboard for direct chord input
  • Build progressions with up to 16 chords
  • Scale-based chord suggestions
  • Circle of Fifths progression builder
  • MPC-ready .progression file export
  • Standard MIDI file export
  • Instant playback and auditioning
Features
Read full description

Progression Builder for MPC is a powerful yet intuitive tool for producers who want to build rich, musical chord progressions and send them straight into their workflow. Designed with AKAI MPC users in mind, it also exports to standard MIDI files, making it equally useful for DAW producers, composers, and beatmakers alike. Build your progressions your way: - Keyboard Mode: Tap out chords directly on the built-in virtual keyboard and hear them instantly. - Progression Builder: Arrange up to 16 chords into full progressions you can audition, refine, and export. - Scale-Based Mode: Explore chords that naturally fit your chosen scale — perfect for clean harmonic flow. - Circle of Fifths Mode: Craft progressions using classic relationships that sound balanced and musical. Every chord pad can be customized, rearranged, or saved for later — giving you a flexible sketchpad for harmonic ideas. Whether you’re working on a soulful lo-fi loop, a jazz-inspired sequence, or a cinematic score, Progression Builder for MPC helps you find the right chords fast. Export your ideas with ease: - MPC-Ready Export: Generate .progression files compatible with MPC Live, X, One, and Force. - MIDI Export: Drop your chords into any DAW, sampler, or synth. - Instant Playback: Audition and tweak voicings, inversions, and timing before you export. - Clean, efficient, and tuned for real production environments, Progression Builder for MPC bridges the gap between music theory and creative flow — helping you stay in the zone.

About

ChordKeys

Features
Read full description

ChordKeys — Identify, learn, and play piano chords Press any keys on the vChordKeys helps piano beginners and intermediates make sense of chord charts — the kind you find on popular sites or copied from your guitarist friend. — CHORD IDENTIFICATION Press any combination of keys (on the on-screen keyboard, on a connected MIDI keyboard, or even via the microphone) and ChordKeys identifies the chord. Triads, 7ths, extended, sus, add, power chords — 46 qualities in total, with inversions shown in slash notation (F/A = F with A in the bass). — CHORD CHART PLAYER Build a personal library of songs in ChordPro format. Paste a chord chart from any site — ChordKeys automatically converts the common online style (chords above the lyrics) into the canonical inline format. Each chord becomes a tappable diagram with an inversion picker, so you can find a voicing that flows nicely from the previous one. Smooth auto-scroll follows the BPM you set, 120Hz on iPad Pro. Or Guided Practice (MIDI), which waits for you to play the chord so you don't lose your place in the chart. — FREE PRACTICE Virtual keyboard with a realistic layout, real Grand Piano samples, and slide-to-play — drag a finger across the keys for that satisfying glissando moment. — BUILT FOR LEARNING • Notes labeled in letters (C D E F G A B) or solfège (Dó Ré Mi Fá Sol Lá Si) • Transpose any song ±12 semitones • Per-song notes (the kind of tips you pick up from online tutorials), a field for the YouTube/Spotify link of the original recording, and a separate field for your favorite tutorial (with built-in video player) • Syncs via iCloud across all your devices • Export individual songs or your entire library — to share or keep a safe backup • Three sample songs (public domain) to get you started — NO TRACKING, NO ADS ChordKeys is a focused tool, not a content platform. No data collection, no ads, no upsells. Your library is yours, synced through your iCloud account.

Screenshots

MPC Progression Builder3 screens
ChordKeys4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ChordKeys at $0.99 against MPC Progression Builder's $2.99. MPC Progression Builder's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 26.2). On 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

MPC Progression Builder costs $2.99 and ChordKeys $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
MPC Progression Builder versus ChordKeys: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMPC Progression BuilderChordKeys
Price$2.99$0.99 — better
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequency—Every 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaid—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better26.2
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB10 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDavid JonesGiacomo Cacciola

In-app purchases

None

MPC Progression Builder

No in-app purchases

None

ChordKeys

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is MPC Progression Builder free?
MPC Progression Builder costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ChordKeys free?
ChordKeys costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do MPC Progression Builder or ChordKeys have ads?
Neither MPC Progression Builder nor ChordKeys shows ads.

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