Comparison

TeachMode vs SightReader

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

Head to head
About

TeachMode

Features
Read full description

TeachMode - Smart Lesson Management for Music Teachers TeachMode turns your teaching into finished admin automatically. Built for music teachers, TeachMode helps you stay organised, save time, and deliver better lessons. Track students, plan lessons, generate reports, and create invoices as you teach so nothing gets left until the end of term. KEY FEATURES Teach Mode Walk into every lesson prepared with instant access to notes, tasks, and student progress. Student Tracking Keep all student information in one place including lesson history, attendance, and development. Lesson Notes and Planning Quickly record notes, set goals, and plan future lessons without interrupting your teaching flow. Professional Reports Generate clear, structured end of term reports that parents understand. Automatic Invoicing Create and send professional invoices directly from your timetable in seconds. Timetable Management View and manage your weekly schedule with an easy to use layout. Parent Portal Give students and parents access to lesson notes, progress, and upcoming lessons. Perfect for peripatetic teachers, private tutors, and music schools. TeachMode simplifies your workflow so you can focus on teaching. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.ppstix.com/privacy

About

SightReader

Learn to read piano music effectively with real-time feedback on both notes and timing. Progress through grades with engaging exercises and track your development with a practice journal.

Highlights
  • Pitch & Rhythm mode with metronome scoring
  • Library of piano music across centuries
  • ABRSM-aligned exercises by grade
  • Note, chord, and scale drills
  • Practice journal for progress tracking
  • Daily practice streaks and certificates
Features
Read full description

A fun, effective way to learn piano sight reading, tested by piano teachers. Stop memorising every piece note by note. SightReader teaches you to play new music straight from the page, in just five minutes a day. From your first middle C to Grade 8. Most apps check which notes you play. SightReader also checks when. Switch on the metronome and Pitch & Rhythm mode grades your timing beat by beat, the part of sight reading that usually goes unmeasured. ON IPHONE AND IPAD, THE APP IS THE ONLY WAY No browser on iOS can reach a MIDI keyboard. Not Safari, and not Chrome, Edge or Firefox, because Apple requires them all to use Safari's engine. The app connects to your keyboard directly, over USB or Bluetooth. HOW IT WORKS Plug in a MIDI keyboard, or use the on-screen one. A note appears on the staff. You play it. SightReader listens in real time and shows you what you nailed and what you missed: notes turn green when you're right, red when you're not, and with the metronome on, blue when you're early and yellow when you're late. You see what you played and how you timed it. PITCH & RHYTHM MODE The metronome is the switch. Off, you're in Pitch Only and the score waits while you find each note. On, Pitch & Rhythm takes over: a count-in of at least four clicks, then the music moves at the beat with or without you, and every note is judged on when it lands as well as whether it's right. Early shades blue, late shades yellow, missed goes red. Each attempt ends with a timing breakdown: how much you played on time, how much early, how much late, and your average tendency in milliseconds, so "94ms early" names the habit you can work on. Play a piece start to finish in Pitch & Rhythm and you earn bonus XP. It works on every piece, free tier included. WHAT'S INSIDE • Pitch & Rhythm mode: turn on the metronome and every note is also scored against the beat, with a timing breakdown after each attempt • A library spanning four centuries of piano: Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Modern, from Bach and Mozart to Debussy and Bartók • ABRSM-aligned exercises, grade by grade, from Initial to Grade 8 • Note and chord drills, plus every type of scale • Levels for every stage, from first-time readers to late-grade repertoire • A practice journal logging every session, so you can see which keys, clefs and intervals trip you up, down to the individual note PRACTICE THAT STICKS Every piece scores up to three stars, and every star earns XP towards your next level. Practise each day and your streak grows. Finish a grade and earn a certificate to keep or share with your teacher. FOR LEARNERS Build real reading confidence instead of leaning on memory. Short sessions, feedback on every note, and music worth coming back to. FOR PARENTS Daily piano time as a five-minute game your child looks forward to. Progress you can read at a glance, and certificates worth putting on the fridge. FOR TEACHERS Assign the right exercises, track progress, and see where each student is stuck, all from one dashboard. Free for verified educators. FREE TIER Free forever: unlimited drills and scales, Lessons to the end of Grade 1's first unit, the first five levels of each grade to Grade 5, and 54 pieces. Go Pro for the full 3,700+ piece library, all ABRSM grades, curated daily practice, grade achievements, your own uploads, and offline practice. No MIDI keyboard? Use your microphone on any piano, the virtual piano, or play any instrument and report your results. Five minutes a day is enough to notice the difference within a few weeks. PRO TIER SightReader Pro is an auto-renewing subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at purchase. It renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel in your Apple Account settings. • Privacy Policy: https://sightreader.app/privacy • Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

TeachMode4 screens
SightReader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: SightReader at every 4 days against TeachMode's every 10 days. 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. TeachMode sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $9.99 per month and SightReader sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

TeachMode ships an update every 10 days, SightReader every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
TeachMode versus SightReader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTeachModeSightReader
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.2 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—5 — better
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Freemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size32 MB21 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPHILIP MICHAEL CHARLES PAGEBret Cameron

In-app purchases

1 purchases

TeachMode

Subscriptions1
  • TeachMode Monthly$9.991 Month
2 purchases

SightReader

Subscriptions2
  • SightReader Pro$5.991 Month
  • SightReader Pro$57.991 Year

Questions

Is TeachMode free?
TeachMode is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SightReader free?
SightReader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do TeachMode or SightReader have ads?
Neither TeachMode nor SightReader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, TeachMode or SightReader?
TeachMode ships an update every 10 days, and SightReader every 4 days. Most recently, TeachMode was updated on October 5, 2026 and SightReader on October 10, 2026.

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