Comparison

ChordPolyPad vs Piano Chords Master

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

Head to head
About

ChordPolyPad

This app is a versatile MIDI chord player that allows users to create and play complex chord sets. It offers extensive customization for pads, MIDI controls, and chord generation, functioning as a standalone app or an AUv3 MIDI effect plugin.

Highlights
  • Standalone app and AUv3 MIDI effect plugin
  • 128 pads per preset
  • Customizable X/Y MIDI controllers
  • Advanced random chord generator
  • Internal and external MIDI support
  • Chord filtering and quantizing
  • Preset manager with in-app purchases
Features
Read full description

"ChordPolyPad" is a MIDI chords player that lets you create chord sets using a large internal library, any custom combination of notes, or randomly generated chords. Each preset contains either 8 groups of 16 pads or 2 groups of 64 pads, for a total of 128 pads. In addition to playing chords, each pad can generate customizable MIDI controls on its horizontal and vertical axes, allowing expressive real-time modulation. "ChordPolyPad" can be used as a standalone application or as an AUv3 MIDI effect plug-in. The app supports full internal and external MIDI input and output. An internal sound bank is included for immediate use. The AUv3 MIDI effect plug-in supports multiple instances. A compatible host is required and must support the Audio Unit v3 (AUv3) MIDI effect format. Hosts supporting AUv3 MIDI effect on iOS: Logic Pro, Cubasis, Beatmaker, AUM, Audiobus, NanoStudio, Auria Pro, apeMatrix. Hosts supporting AUv3 MIDI effect on macOS: Logic Pro 10.7 or later. Features: • Standalone application and AUv3 MIDI effect plug-in • 8 groups of 16 pads or 2 groups of 64 pads per preset (128 pads) • Assignable MIDI port and MIDI channel for each pad • Customizable X/Y controller per pad • Per-note velocity control for each chord • Strumming configuration per pad • Copy and paste for pads and groups • Drag and drop chords directly from the library • Chord filtering and quantizing based on the selected scale • Predefined scales and possibility to create custom scales • Advanced random chord generator with diverse musical moods featuring voice leading and context-aware harmonic progressions for naturally flowing compositions • Stop "Audio Background" automatically after inactivity (15 min, 30 min, 1 h, 2 h, or never) • Internal sound bank • Receive MIDI notes and control from external devices • Send MIDI to a virtual port usable as MIDI input by other "Core MIDI" compatible apps • Preset manager with support for in-app purchase packs • "Program Change" support • Preset sharing support by "AirDrop", "Mail", "Messages", and other supported services • Native iCloud support • "iCloud Drive" support in the "Files" app on iOS and "Finder" on macOS • Full support for "Windowed Apps" mode on iPad • Undo/Redo Supported MIDI connections: • Virtual "Core MIDI" connections between apps • Any compatible MIDI interface • MIDI over Wi-Fi • MIDI over Bluetooth

About

Piano Chords Master

This app allows users to create and play songs by setting chords for each bar on a virtual keyboard. It supports various chord types and input methods, including MIDI, and offers transposition features for practice. Unlock all chord patterns and sounds with an in-app purchase.

Highlights
  • Set chords per bar
  • Chord tone and sound confirmation
  • Identify chords by pressing keys
  • Full song playback with BPM
  • MIDI keyboard support
  • Chord transposition
  • Save and load songs
Read full description

This app supports chord piano playing. You can set the chord for each bar and check the chord tone and chord sounds on the keyboard. You can also play a song (all bars). We hope this app will help you practice songs that are composed of chords, such as pop music and jazz. ================================ Ver.3 New features: - Applying the concepts of "Bar" and "Song" (all bars). - "Bar" can contain a single chord or silence (N.C.). - "Song" can have any number of bars (previous version: 16). - Supports both portrait and landscape orientations. *If you would like to use the specifications of the previous version, please use 'Piano Chords Master [Classic]'. ================================ [ Main Features ] - Set a chord per bar (including silence (N.C.)) - Add bar editing features (Single: add, delete, paste; Range: cut, copy, delete multiple bars) - Display the chord tone of the selected chord (root, triad, 7th, tension, on-base) on the keyboard - Confirm the sound of the selected chord - Identify the chord when you press a key and display the chord name - Playback of song (all bars) (specifies BPM) - Save/load song (all bars) [ Convenient Features ] A variety of chord input methods: - Set from the key/chord selection view - Set from the on-screen keyboard - Set from a MIDI-compatible keyboard (Core MIDI compatible) Convenient chord registration method: - Simply select a common chord progression (e.g., 1-6-2-5) and add it to a bar. - Select from presets (e.g., blues, jazz standards) and register them as templates for new songs. Edit chords: - Transposition (change the key of the entire bar) Keyboard UI: - 6-octave keyboard (C2 - C7) - Adjustable keyboard width MIDI features: - Supports MIDI message (note on/off) transmission - Supports Bluetooth MIDI connection * To enter and display all chord patterns, including tensions (b9, #9, 11, #11, b13, 13), In-app purchase is required. * There are 28 sounds in total (9 are available by default). To use them all, In-app purchase is required.) [ Chord type ] M, 7, 7(b5), 7(#5), 6, 6 9, 9, add9, M7, M9, M7(b5), M7(#5), m, m6, m6 9, m(#5), m add9, m7, mM7, m7(b5), m7(#5), m9, mM9, aug, dim, dim7, sus4, 7sus4, 9sus4, M7sus4, M9sus4, sus2, 7sus2, M7sus2 (To use below, you need In-App Purchase.) 7(b9), 7(#9), 7(#11), 7(b13), 7(13), 7(b9 #11), 7(b9 b13), 7(b9 13), 9(#11), 9(b13), 9(13), 7(#9 #11), 7(#9 b13), 7(#9 13), M7(#11), M9(#11), M7(13), M9(13), m7(11), m7(13), m9(11), m7(b5 11), m7(b5 13)

Screenshots

ChordPolyPad3 screens
Piano Chords Master4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Piano Chords Master at Free against ChordPolyPad's $17.99. ChordPolyPad's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (92% vs 67%). On rating, ratings volume, update cadence and in-app purchases 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

Piano Chords Master is free to download; ChordPolyPad costs $17.99 up front. ChordPolyPad sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and Piano Chords Master sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for ChordPolyPad against 4.5 for Piano Chords Master. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 51 and 66 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 92% of ChordPolyPad's written reviews are positive against 67% of Piano Chords Master's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ChordPolyPad ships an update every 2 months, Piano Chords Master every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
ChordPolyPad versus Piano Chords Master: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChordPolyPadPiano Chords Master
Price$17.99Free — better
Rating4.6 (51 ratings) — better4.5 (66 ratings)
Positive reviews92.1% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings5166 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size54 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLaurent ColsonLoop-Sessions.LLC.

Customer experience

ChordPolyPad

All ratings51 ratings
Positive92.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.8%
Written reviews114 reviews
Positive92.1%
Neutral3.5%
Negative4.4%

Piano Chords Master

All ratings66 ratings
Positive87.9%
Neutral4.5%
Negative7.6%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral8.3%
Negative25.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

ChordPolyPad

One-time3
  • Retro Pop$4.99
  • Clubwave$4.99
  • Liminal Spaces$4.99
5 purchases

Piano Chords Master

One-time5
  • All sounds are available$0.99
  • Save chords list / seq data$0.99
  • Available sending MIDI message$0.99
Show 2 more
  • All chords are available$1.99
  • Always remove banner ads.$7.99

Questions

Is ChordPolyPad free?
ChordPolyPad costs $17.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Piano Chords Master free?
Piano Chords Master is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ChordPolyPad or Piano Chords Master?
ChordPolyPad is rated higher. ChordPolyPad averages 4.6 out of 5 from 51 ratings, while Piano Chords Master averages 4.5 from 66 ratings.
Do ChordPolyPad or Piano Chords Master have ads?
Piano Chords Master shows ads; ChordPolyPad does not.
Which is updated more often, ChordPolyPad or Piano Chords Master?
ChordPolyPad ships an update every 2 months, and Piano Chords Master every 6 weeks. Most recently, ChordPolyPad was updated on November 1, 2026 and Piano Chords Master on October 24, 2026.

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