Comparison

O'Reilly vs Clefmap

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

Head to head
About

O'Reilly

Access a vast library of tech books, videos, and courses to build in-demand skills. Stay current with the latest in programming, AI, cloud, and more. Learn on the go with offline downloads and progress syncing.

Highlights
  • Thousands of books, videos, and courses
  • Content on programming, AI, cloud, DevOps, cybersecurity
  • Audiobooks for multitasking
  • Live events and on-demand training
  • Playlists for content organization
  • Offline downloads and progress syncing
  • AI-powered search and overviews
Features
Read full description

Build the skills you need for the job you have—or the one you want. With the O’Reilly app paired with a membership, you’ll get access to thousands of books, videos, and courses trusted by tech practitioners around the world. Whether you’re a developer, data professional, or technology leader, O’Reilly helps you stay ahead in a rapidly evolving industry. Here are just a few ways you can use the O’Reilly app to learn today’s most critical skills: • Explore the latest in programming, AI, cloud, DevOps, and cybersecurity, with content from the people actually putting the technology to work—plus in-depth content on leadership, soft skills, and much more. • Discover best-selling titles and early releases from leading publishers, all in one digital library built for technology professionals. • Listen to thousands of audiobooks to keep the learning going while you multitask. • Watch live events and training sessions, or dive into 5,000+ courses on-demand. • Use playlists to save and organize content you’re exploring, and share them with your friends and coworkers. • Learn on the go, anywhere, with downloadable content and progress syncing across devices. • Quickly find the resources that will help you solve the problems you encounter in your day-to-day work with AI-powered search, plus AI overviews (with citations) to get up to speed on the basics. Powerful tools to support your learning: • Recommendations based on your interests and history • Playlists to organize the content you want to learn • Deep search to find answers fast across 75K+ titles, 3.7K+ audiobooks, 30K+ hours of video, and much more • Highlights and notes to capture key ideas • Adjustable reading settings including font size and night mode • Playback speed controls for faster learning Get started with one of our most popular skills: • AI and machine learning • Software development and programming • Data engineering and data science • Cloud, DevOps, and infrastructure • Cybersecurity • Product management and leadership The O’Reilly app works best with a membership. Learn more at oreilly.com.

About

Clefmap

Learn to read music through interactive games and structured lessons. Progress from basic notes to complex concepts like scales and chords with a focus on connecting written notation to sound. Offers a comprehensive practice mode and helpful tools for musicians of all levels.

Highlights
  • 12 units and 71 lessons
  • 10 question types
  • 12 real tunes to play
  • Daily personalized practice
  • Reading speed trainer
  • Practice mode with full control
  • Playable piano and tools
Features
Read full description

Clefmap teaches you to read sheet music the way a language course teaches a language: short rounds, in order, until the notes stop needing to be worked out. Twelve units take you from the five lines of the staff through the treble and bass clefs, the grand staff, accidentals, ledger lines, key signatures, rhythm, intervals, scales and chords, and finish with reading at speed. Every lesson is generated fresh, so a replay is never the same drill twice. Answers you miss come back around before the lesson ends. The staff is engraved with real music notation, and every note you hear is a recorded piano. Tap a wrong answer and you hear what you chose, then what it should have been. That connection between the written note and its sound is the whole point, and it is built into every question. WHAT IS INSIDE • 12 units and 71 lessons, unlocked in order, with three stars per lesson • Ten kinds of question: name the note, find it on the staff, play it on the keyboard, name a highlighted key, intervals, key signatures, note values, tap a rhythm to the metronome, ear training and written theory • Twelve real tunes to read and play, from Hot Cross Buns to Ode to Joy: hear one, play it note by note on the keyboard, then play it in time against the click. Each finished unit earns the next • A daily practice built from your own results, with your weakest note coming back until it sticks • Reading Speed: a timed minute that gives you a number you can watch climb • Practice mode with full control over clef, range, accidentals and key, including a continuous-scroll reading drill • Tools: a playable piano that names the chords you hold, a metronome, a note explorer, and a reference library covering every note in four clefs, all 15 key signatures, scales, chords, intervals, symbols and note values • Streaks with freezes, a weekly goal, levels and achievements, and a summary after every lesson that shows exactly what to work on • Home and Lock Screen widgets, optional reminders that name the note you keep missing, Shortcuts, opt-in iCloud sync and opt-in Game Center • Plug in a MIDI keyboard and answer by playing the note ONE PRICE, NO SUBSCRIPTION Units 1 to 3, the piano, the note explorer and practice on the treble and bass clefs are free. One purchase unlocks the rest of the course and every practice option, for good. There are no hearts, no energy, no ads and no account. Clefmap runs on iPhone and iPad, works offline, and sends nothing to us. Your progress stays on your device unless you switch on iCloud sync, and then it stays in your iCloud.

Screenshots

O'Reilly4 screens
Clefmap4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: O'Reilly at none against Clefmap's 1. O'Reilly also leads on ratings volume (34K vs 1). Clefmap's advantage is update cadence (daily vs fortnightly) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Clefmap sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. O'Reilly asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Clefmap holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: O'Reilly has 34K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

O'Reilly ships an update fortnightly, Clefmap daily. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
O'Reilly versus Clefmap: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterO'ReillyClefmap
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (34K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews46.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings34K — better1
Update frequencyFortnightlyDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.517.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size65 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperO'Reilly Media, Inc.OLIVER JAMES MORRIS

Bugs and requests

O'Reilly

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Frequent crashes and freezes
  • Unreliable downloads and offline access
  • Login issues and loss of progress
  • Inconsistent behavior across updates

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved bookmarking and note-taking
  • Customizable text formatting and layout
  • Better search and content discovery
  • Seamless sync across devices

Clefmap

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

O'Reilly

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Clefmap

One-time1
  • Full Course: All 12 Units$8.99

Questions

Is O'Reilly free?
O'Reilly is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Clefmap free?
Clefmap is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, O'Reilly or Clefmap?
Clefmap is rated higher. O'Reilly averages 4.7 out of 5 from 34K ratings, while Clefmap averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do O'Reilly or Clefmap have ads?
Neither O'Reilly nor Clefmap shows ads.
Which is updated more often, O'Reilly or Clefmap?
O'Reilly ships an update fortnightly, and Clefmap daily. Most recently, O'Reilly was updated on November 4, 2026 and Clefmap on October 31, 2026.

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