Comparison

Melodist Composer vs FretStudio

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

Head to head
About

Melodist Composer

This app allows you to write and edit tablature for guitar, bass, drums, and synths on your mobile device. It features a unique version history for all edits and includes advanced music analysis tools to understand your compositions.

Highlights
  • Tablature writing for guitar, bass, drums, synth
  • Unlimited undo/redo history for edits
  • Harmonic and rhythmic analysis
  • Dynamic and motivic analysis
  • Pattern and style analysis
  • Import Guitar Pro, MIDI, and MusicXML files
Features
Read full description

Melodist Composer is a mobile tablature editor. Open a Guitar Pro, MIDI, MusicXML, or mdst file, hear it play, change it, and keep every version of it. IMPORT WHAT YOU ALREADY HAVE Guitar Pro 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. MusicXML. MIDI. Open a file straight from Files, Mail, or any app that can share one. It lands in your library ready to play. HEAR IT PROPERLY Playback runs on a real soundfont synthesiser, not beeps. Every General MIDI instrument, per track. Bring your own .sf2 or .sf3 and set a different one for each composition. EDIT ON THE STAFF Notes, bends, slides, hammer-ons, palm mutes, repeats and time signatures, placed on the tab where you're already looking. Build a chord and drop it in, or let the arpeggiator spell it out. Loop a section until it's right. Connect a keyboard and move the cursor without touching the screen. NEVER LOSE A VERSION Every edit is recorded, so you can step back through the history of a piece and see exactly what each change did, note by note. Branch an idea, try it, keep both. Nothing is overwritten and nothing is thrown away. TAKE IT WITH YOU. Export as MIDI or MusicXML for whatever else you use. Or export a .mdst; An open, documented format that carries the whole piece and its history. WORKS ON A PLANE No account, no sign-in, no connection. Your compositions live on your device. FREE, THEN UNLIMITED Keep up to five compositions for free, with every feature unlocked. Nothing is held back behind the subscription except the count. Melodist Unlimited removes the limit. Terms of Use: https://melodist.studio/terms Privacy Policy: https://melodist.studio/privacy

About

FretStudio

Features
Read full description

FretStudio turns music into a language you can actually speak. Notes are the letters. Chords are the words. Progressions and melodies are your sentences. And songs are the stories you tell. FretStudio is one place to learn that language, practice it, and perform it. LEARN Structured tracks take you from your first note to full songs — built for real beginners, including short fingers and the barre-chord wall we all hit. Clear, step-by-step, no theory dumped on you before you need it. PLAY A practice studio built for progress: load any song, sync a backing track, slow the tempo without changing pitch, loop a tricky section, and watch the chord chart scroll in time. Automatic key and tempo detection does the setup for you. PERFORM Everything you need on stage. Build setlists, run a distraction-free teleprompter that scrolls with the music, rehearse a song, then take the whole set live. BRING YOUR OWN SONGS Import from ChordPro, OnSong, plain text, and more. Your library syncs to your own Dropbox or Google Drive, so your songs are yours and follow you everywhere. BUILT TO BE SEEN CLEARLY Every status and cue uses color and symbol — never color alone — so the app stays readable if you're color-blind. Free to start. Upgrade any time for the full learning path, unlimited songs, cloud sync, and the complete performance toolkit. Free, no account required FretStudio is free to use with 5 songs — the full app, not a demo. Import your own songs, practise, perform with the teleprompter, use gig mode, build lessons, transpose, and export. All of it works without creating an account. FretStudio Pro — 250 songs, unlimited setlists, and your library synced across every device through your own Dropbox or Google Drive. FretStudio Premium — Unlimited songs, plus teaching tools, student links, and community. FretStudio Lifetime — Premium forever, one payment. Create an account only when you want your library on more than one device. Your songs stay yours — export everything, anytime, on any plan. Music is a language. Come tell your story. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Melodist Composer4 screens
FretStudio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: FretStudio at none against Melodist Composer's 2. FretStudio also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). 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. Melodist Composer sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. FretStudio asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Melodist Composer versus FretStudio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMelodist ComposerFretStudio
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 7 months—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size55 MB27 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNew World Code LtdFretStudio LLC

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Melodist Composer

Subscriptions2
  • Composer Unlimited Monthly$6.991 Month
  • Composer Unlimited Yearly$79.991 Year
None

FretStudio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Melodist Composer free?
Melodist Composer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is FretStudio free?
FretStudio is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Melodist Composer or FretStudio have ads?
Neither Melodist Composer nor FretStudio shows ads.

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