Comparison

Beat Scribe vs Notely

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

Head to head
About

Beat Scribe

Easily tap out rhythms and hear them play back instantly on a musical staff. Build complex grooves by layering tracks, adjusting timing, and adding swing. Ideal for musicians, students, and teachers looking to sketch out ideas quickly.

Highlights
  • Tap notes and rests onto a musical staff
  • Layer grooves across multiple tracks
  • Instant playback and looping of patterns
  • Adjust rhythm feel with swing and nudging
  • Support for various time signatures
  • Built-in metronome
Features
Read full description

A metronome you can compose. A metronome gives you a click. Beat Scribe gives you the whole rhythm — written on a staff, looping back, in real note values you can actually read. Hear a rhythm in your head? Tap it in and hear it back in seconds — quarters, eighths, sixteenths, triplets, dotted notes and rests, not abstract grid squares. That link between the symbol and the sound is the point: practise reading what you play, or sketch a groove without picking up the instrument. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Tap a rhythm live on the pads, or place notes on the staff for exact notation • Drop in beamed rhythm cells — two eighths, four sixteenths, dotted figures and more • Hit play and loop it back instantly • Layer parts across tracks — ride, snare, hi-hat, bass drum, toms and cymbals • Shape the feel of each track — swing or shuffle (8th- or 16th-note), or nudge a part ahead of or behind the beat for a human push and pull • Work in any meter — 4/4, 3/4, 5/4 and beyond • Keep time with the built-in metronome • Share any groove as a playable link — free, and it plays in any browser • New here? A short guided tour walks you through it, replayable any time • Made for iPhone and iPad MADE FOR Drummers, musicians, students and teachers — reading practice, building a groove, or catching an idea before it disappears. FREE & PRO The free version gives you snare and hi-hat across two tracks, plus sharing — enough to build and play a real rhythm. Beat Scribe Pro (one-time purchase) unlocks the full kit, more tracks, save / load, and importing your own sounds.

About

Notely

Compose, edit, and share beautiful sheet music with an intuitive touch-first editor. Create professional scores for various instruments, export them in multiple formats, and organize your projects with ease. Ideal for musicians of all levels.

Highlights
  • Intuitive touch-first music notation editor
  • Realistic playback with adjustable tempo
  • Export to PDF, MIDI, WAV, MP3, PNG, SVG
  • Support for multiple clefs and instruments
  • Add lyrics, chords, and annotations
  • Organize projects with folders
  • Apple Pencil support for iPad
Features
Read full description

Compose, edit, and share beautiful sheet music with Notely - Sheet Music Composer. Whether you're a beginner learning music theory or a professional composer creating orchestral arrangements, this powerful music notation app provides everything you need to turn musical ideas into polished scores. Create music with an intuitive touch-first editor, realistic playback, and professional engraving tools. Write for piano, guitar, choir, orchestra, band, or any custom ensemble, then export your compositions as high-quality PDFs, MIDI, or audio files. Features • Create unlimited music scores with Premium • Professional music notation editor • Multiple score templates for piano, orchestra, choir, guitar, and more • Support for treble, bass, alto, and tenor clefs • Add notes, rests, chords, tuplets, slurs, ties, articulations, and dynamics • Insert lyrics, chord symbols, tempo markings, and text annotations • Realistic playback with adjustable tempo and metronome • Mixer with instrument volume, solo, and mute controls • Import MusicXML and MIDI files • Export to PDF, MIDI, WAV, MP3, PNG, and SVG • Print beautiful sheet music with AirPrint support • Organize projects with folders and favorites • Automatic score layout and professional engraving • Apple Pencil support for iPad • iCloud synchronization across your Apple devices • Dark Mode and Light Mode support Perfect For • Songwriters • Music composers • Piano players • Guitarists • Music students • Music teachers • Choir directors • Orchestra arrangers • Band directors • Film and game composers From simple melodies to full orchestral scores, Notely - Sheet Music Composer helps you capture inspiration anytime, refine every detail, and share your music with confidence. Download today and start composing wherever inspiration strikes. We currently offer the following auto-renewing subscription option: - $34.99 per year - $7.99 per month By subscribing you get unlimited access to effects and remove advertisement. Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription will automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Subscriptions may be managed and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the Account Settings after purchase. No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period. • Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable Terms of Use: https://tos.atlantismobileapps.com Privacy Policy: https://privacy.atlantismobileapps.com

Screenshots

Beat Scribe3 screens
Notely3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Beat Scribe at 100% against Notely's 0%. Beat Scribe also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.0) and ratings volume (5 vs 1). On price, ads, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Beat Scribe sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Notely sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Beat Scribe holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Beat Scribe has 5 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Beat Scribe's written reviews are positive against 0% of Notely's.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Beat Scribe versus Notely: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBeat ScribeNotely
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (5 ratings) — better3.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings5 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 11 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB35 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVegan WorldNguyen Nam Giang

Customer experience

Beat Scribe

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Notely

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Beat Scribe

One-time1
  • Beat Scribe Pro$8.99
3 purchases

Notely

Subscriptions2
  • Notely Premium Monthly$7.991 Month
  • Notely Premium Yearly$34.991 Year
One-time1
  • Notely Premium Lifetime$49.99

Questions

Is Beat Scribe free?
Beat Scribe is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Notely free?
Notely is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Beat Scribe or Notely?
Beat Scribe is rated higher. Beat Scribe averages 5.0 out of 5 from 5 ratings, while Notely averages 3.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Beat Scribe or Notely have ads?
Neither Beat Scribe nor Notely shows ads.

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