Comparison

Earmaster vs Refine

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

Head to head
About

Earmaster

Features
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Earmaster turns ear training into a quick, fun game, so you can play real songs by ear. Every song uses just 7 notes. Mozart plays the key, then a mystery note: guess its number. A few minutes a day and your ear gets sharper every round. PRACTICE • 60 second rounds that start easy, with notes 1 and 2, and grow to all 7 • Major and Minor keys, four speeds • The hardest level adds the notes below and above • Always one clear next goal, a little harder than the last • Levels from Bronze to Legend, and Mozart's wig grows with you SONGS • Hear a famous melody, then play it back note by note • Ode to Joy, Jingle Bells, Twinkle Twinkle, the Tetris theme, Eine kleine Nachtmusik and many more • Five songs per round, scored by accuracy, with perfect songs counted • Five levels, from first tunes to long Expert passages THEORY • Short lessons on keys and numbers for piano and guitar Earmaster is completely free. No ads, no account. Earlier versions offered subscriptions. If you still have one, you can manage or cancel it from Settings in the app or in your Apple Account. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rPTdSnx2FLB3y4kM33BmgBEH_srEEdB4OxmxXIVjJk0/edit?usp=sharing

About

Refine

Transform dense texts into concise, memorable lessons. This app breaks down chapters into short reads, generates recall questions, and maps idea connections to improve long-term retention. Study effectively on any device, turning commutes and chores into learning opportunities.

Highlights
  • Short chapter reads
  • Active recall questions
  • Idea connection mapping
  • PDF and book import
  • Cross-device synchronization
  • Read-aloud functionality
Features
Read full description

Read it once. Remember it for good. You know the feeling: a textbook you have read three times and still cannot recall in the exam, a paper you highlighted everywhere and understood nowhere, a shelf of books you started and never finished. Refine is built for that. Scan a cover or open a PDF, and every chapter becomes a short read you can actually finish, a map of how its ideas connect, and questions that bring each idea back just before you would forget it. You stop re-reading, and start remembering. KNOW IN MINUTES WHETHER A BOOK IS WORTH YOUR WEEKS Point your camera at a cover or barcode and you get every chapter as a two-minute read: the argument, the takeaways, the reasoning. Decide in minutes whether this book deserves your time, and walk into the first chapter already knowing where it is going. TURN A DENSE PDF INTO SOMETHING YOU CAN EXPLAIN Import the textbook chapter, lecture PDF or arXiv paper everyone else is skimming. Code stays as code, equations stay as equations, tables keep their shape. You get the paper's question, method and result in one clear read, so you can follow the seminar, the lab meeting or the lecture instead of just attending it. BUILT FOR THE SUBJECTS THAT FIGHT BACK Physics, chemistry, biology, calculus, machine learning, computer science, finance. The denser the material, the more Refine does for you: chapters small enough to finish on a busy day, and questions you answer from memory, not recognition. Made for students who read to pass, and engineers, researchers and quants who read to stay dangerous. REMEMBER IT ON THE DAY IT COUNTS Reading once fades within days. Refine asks you to recall each idea, a couple of minutes a day, and brings it back right before it would slip. No cramming, no marathon re-reads the night before. Just steady proof, every morning, that it is still in your head, with a reminder at the time you usually read. SEE HOW THE IDEAS CONNECT, NOT JUST WHAT THEY ARE Every chapter becomes a map of its ideas and how one causes, limits or explains another. Place the concepts yourself, follow one idea across the whole book, and ask "what if?" to watch what changes. When you can see the structure, you can explain it, adapt it and use it, instead of reciting it. STUDY IN THE TIME YOU ALREADY HAVE Every chapter as a short read or a full read, and every read can be read to you. Turn on read-along and each line lights up as a natural voice reads it aloud, so a walk, a commute or a chore becomes a study session, and you never lose your place. YOUR LIBRARY, WHEREVER YOU OPEN IT Start a chapter on your phone on the train, finish it on your iPad at your desk, review it on your Mac. Your books, your progress and your reviews are simply there. Terms of Use: https://refines.app/terms Privacy Policy: https://refines.app/privacy

Screenshots

Earmaster4 screens
Refine4 screens

Verdict

The call

Earmaster and Refine are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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. Earmaster sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $29.99 per month and Refine sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Earmaster ships an update every 5 days, Refine every 3 days. Both last shipped on November 10, 2026.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Earmaster versus Refine: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEarmasterRefine
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—3 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Freemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB56 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperTristan Boutinmartin chibwe

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Earmaster

Subscriptions2
  • PianobyEar Monthly3 Days trial$29.991 Month
  • PianobyEar Yearly3 Days trial$99.991 Year
7 purchases

Refine

Subscriptions5
  • Refine Pro Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Refine Pro Monthly$14.991 Month
  • Refine Pro Yearly$49.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Refine Pro Yearly7 Days trial$69.991 Year
  • Refine Pro Yearly7 Days trial$99.991 Year
One-time2
  • One Book$4.99
  • Refine Pro Lifetime$99.99

Questions

Is Earmaster free?
Earmaster is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Refine free?
Refine is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Earmaster or Refine have ads?
Neither Earmaster nor Refine shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Earmaster or Refine?
Earmaster ships an update every 5 days, and Refine every 3 days. Most recently, Earmaster was updated on November 10, 2026 and Refine on November 10, 2026.

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