Comparison

FretStudio vs The Chord Book

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

Head to head
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/

About

The Chord Book

Access a vast library of guitar chords, tabs, and lyrics for hundreds of thousands of songs. Features interactive chord diagrams, a built-in tuner, and auto-scrolling for hands-free playing. Offers lessons for beginners and saves your favorites.

Highlights
  • 670,000+ song library
  • Interactive chord diagrams
  • Key transposition
  • Auto-scroll playback
  • Built-in guitar tuner
  • Beginner lessons
  • Offline favorites
Features
Read full description

Free Chords is the fastest way to find guitar chords, tabs, and lyrics for over 670,000 songs — completely free, no account required. WHAT YOU CAN DO IN THE APP • Search 670,000+ songs by title or artist • Interactive chord diagrams — tap any chord to see fingerings • Transpose to any key with one tap • Auto-scroll so you can play hands-free • Built-in guitar tuner — real-time pitch detection using the microphone, processed entirely on your device • Learn Hub with bite-size lessons for beginners • Favorites saved on your device • Share songs with the iOS share sheet • Haptic feedback and a dark theme optimized for stage and practice Whether you are learning your first song or gigging tonight, Free Chords gives you accurate chord sheets without paywalls or clutter. There is no account, no subscription, and no in-app purchase. Microphone audio is used only by the tuner and never recorded or uploaded. PRIVACY We do not sell your data. See https://www.free-chords.com/privacy/

Screenshots

FretStudio4 screens
The Chord Book4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: The Chord Book at 13.0 against FretStudio's 15.0. 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard1 real difference · 7 level
FretStudio versus The Chord Book: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFretStudioThe Chord Book
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—2 — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size27 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFretStudio LLCMIDWEST VENTURE GROUP LLC

In-app purchases

None

FretStudio

No in-app purchases

None

The Chord Book

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is FretStudio free?
FretStudio is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is The Chord Book free?
The Chord Book is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do FretStudio or The Chord Book have ads?
Neither FretStudio nor The Chord Book shows ads.

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