Comparison

Sheet Music Scanner vs IMSLP

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

Head to head
About

Sheet Music Scanner

Instantly listen to scanned sheet music with this app. It recognizes musical notation and plays it back on your device with various instruments and adjustable speeds. Learn music by hearing it come alive from the page.

Highlights
  • Scan printed sheet music with camera
  • Playback from photo library or PDF
  • Tap to play specific measures
  • Recognizes melody, harmony, and rhythm symbols
  • Supports multiple instruments and voices
  • Adjustable playback speed
  • Export as MIDI, MusicXML, and audio
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Scan sheet music and instantly listen with music with Sheet Music Scanner. Sheet Music Scanner makes it easy for you to scan or upload printed sheet music. Listen to the music printed on the page in a number of different formats and instruments, directly on your device. Ever wanted to know how that interesting-looking piece of sheet music actually sounds? Now you can know instantly. Just point your iPhone or iPad at the sheet and let it play the notes for you. Listen to the notes and help yourself learn along the way. Sheet Music Scanner lets you scan and playback from any part of the song, just tap the measure and listen to your sheet music. You can even choose the instrument, pick the speed and enjoy! Download Sheet Music Scanner and scan your sheet music today! 2 for 1 universal iOS app: iPhone / iPod touch and iPad - you get Sheet Music Scanner for all your iOS devices for the price of one. SHEET MUSIC SCANNER FEATURES - Scan the whole sheet instantly using your built-in camera - Scan and playback from any image in your Photo library or from a PDF * - Playback from anywhere in the song - simply tap the measure, the notes and symbols are highlighted as they're played - Reads and recognizes the following symbols of musical notation pertaining to melody, harmony, and rhythm: treble, bass, and alto (viola) clefs, notes, duration dots, rests, accidentals, note ties, triplets and other tuplets, repeat signs * - Support for voices played in tandem, e.g. both piano hands at the same time, or all the choir voices - Support for playing individual staffs separately, e.g. right or left piano hand - Support for multiple pages - Accommodates speeds between 50 and 330 beats per minute - Cloud synchronization. Access your music library on any iPhone, iPad, or Mac with iCloud Drive. * Some limitations apply - please see at the bottom of the page. EXPORT OPTIONS - Export as MIDI, MusicXML, audio (M4A / AAC, MP3, WAV), PDF to cloud storage, directly to other apps or via AirDrop - All major cloud storages supported: iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, One Drive, etc. Note that the appropriate cloud storage client app has to be installed for this to work. INSTRUMENTS - Accordion, Acoustic Bass, Alto Sax, Bagpipes, Banjo, Bass Guitar, Celeste, Cello, Choir, Clarinet, Double Bass, Flute, French Horn, Guitar - Classical, Clean, Distortion, Glockenspiel, Harp, Mandolin, Marimba, Oboe, Organ (Percussive, Pipe, Reed, Rock, Tonewheel), Piano, Recorder, Tenor Sax, Trombone, Trumpet, Tuba, Vibraphone, Viola, Violin, Xylophone - Supports actual instrument pitch for transposing instruments - Change your pitch standard based on instrument, from standard 440Hz to 380-480 Hz SUBSCRIPTIONS - The subscription 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. Limitations - Reads printed sheet music, not handwritten or mimicking handwriting, tablatures, etc. - Reads standard oval note heads only, no special symbols like shape notes. - The following symbols are not currently supported: codas, percussion notation, dynamics, double sharps, double flats, and grace notes. These are planned to come in the future updates. - Use high-quality printed sheet music and take photos under good enough light, when scanning from your camera, for optimal results. For scanning from a file, the recommended resolution is 300 DPI or 8-12 MPx per page. - Some older prints and unusual fonts may not be recognizable. If you experience any problems, please contact support at support@sheetmusicscanner.com Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

IMSLP

Access a vast digital library of classical music scores on your iOS device. Enjoy full access to commercial recordings, instant downloads, and new uploads with a membership subscription. Support the music community while exploring a comprehensive collection.

Highlights
  • Browse IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library
  • View musical scores
  • Access commercial recordings
  • Instant downloads
  • Access new uploads instantly
  • Membership subscription benefits
Features
Read full description

Browse IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library and view scores from the comfort of your iOS device. IMSLP Membership Subscription Length of subscription: 1 month. Benefits include: • Full access to commercial recordings • Access all features in this app • No waiting for downloads • Access new uploads instantly • Knowing that you helped keep IMSLP running and serving the music community Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal. Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user’s Account Settings after purchase. 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 Service and Privacy policy - https://imslp.org/wiki/IMSLP:Terms_of_Service_and_Privacy_policy_(app)

Screenshots

Sheet Music Scanner4 screens
IMSLP4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: IMSLP at freemium against Sheet Music Scanner's subscription. IMSLP also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 3 weeks) and review sentiment (70% vs 61%). Sheet Music Scanner's advantage is ratings volume (6.5K vs 514) and chart position (#127 vs unranked). On price, rating, ads 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

Both are free to download. Sheet Music Scanner sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and IMSLP sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $3.99 per month. 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 — 4.5 for Sheet Music Scanner against 4.6 for IMSLP. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sheet Music Scanner has 6.5K ratings behind it against 514, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 61% of Sheet Music Scanner's written reviews are positive against 70% of IMSLP's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sheet Music Scanner ships an update every 3 weeks, IMSLP every 10 days. Both last shipped on October 29, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Sheet Music Scanner versus IMSLP: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSheet Music ScannerIMSLP
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (6.5K ratings)4.6 (514 ratings) — better
Positive reviews61.0% of reviews70.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings6.5K — better514
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFreemium — better
Best chart rank#127 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size77 MB232 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperApp Sub 1 LLCProject Petrucci LLC

Customer experience

Sheet Music Scanner

All ratings6,456 ratings
Positive88.8%
Neutral4.0%
Negative7.2%
Written reviews539 reviews
Positive61.0%
Neutral8.5%
Negative30.4%

IMSLP

All ratings507 ratings
Positive88.4%
Neutral3.7%
Negative7.9%
Written reviews298 reviews
Positive70.1%
Neutral11.4%
Negative18.5%

User reviews

Sheet Music Scanner

From 6.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Game changing app
  • 👍 Helpful for learning music
  • 💡 Useful for singers and musicians
  • 🚀 Accurate scanning and playback
  • 👍 Great value for the price

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Misses notes, rhythms, and symbols
  • 🐛 Struggles with complex music
  • 🔒 Requires subscription to fully use
  • 🐛 Inconsistent performance

IMSLP

From 514 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Integrated IMSLP library
  • 👍 Well-made app
  • 👍 Game changer for musicians
  • 👍 Indispensable for professionals and amateurs
  • 👍 Fantastic offering

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes when zooming in and annotating
  • 💰 Money grabbing with constant subscription prompts
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
  • 🐛 Annotation issues and lost data
  • 🐛 Battery drain on iPad

Bugs and requests

Sheet Music Scanner

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Misses key signatures and accidentals
  • Struggles with handwritten or low-quality sheet music
  • Separates hands/voices incorrectly in multi-staff scores

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add ability to manually edit scanned music
  • Improve support for repeats, codas, and complex rhythms
  • Allow selecting/isolating individual instrument/voice parts
  • Add count-in and metronome features
  • Improve export options (e.g. separate instrument tracks)

IMSLP

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Crashes when opening scores
  • Scores disappearing from library
  • Login issues and lost data
  • Incompatibility with older devices after updates
  • Annotation issues causing loss of data
Show 1 more
  • Inability to edit file information after import

Requested features

11 requests
  • Predictive text for score annotations
  • Ability to restore original zoom settings
  • Metric to indicate device performance during page turns
  • Folder-like organization system
  • Color wheel and custom pen/highlighter options
Show 6 more
  • Ability to rename music files
  • Different color folder options
  • Split view support
  • Easier way to import scores from other sources
  • Instrumentation information for scores
  • Sorting by instrumentation

In-app purchases

13 purchases

Sheet Music Scanner

Subscriptions13
  • Notation Scanner$4.991 Month
  • Notation Scanner$9.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner$14.991 Year
Show 10 more
  • Notation Scanner$17.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner7 Days trial$22.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner1 Month trial$22.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner$22.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner14 Days trial$22.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner$24.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner2 variants$29.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner$34.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner7 Days trial$34.991 Year
  • Notation Scanner7 Days trial$44.991 Year
1 purchases

IMSLP

Subscriptions1
  • Membership Subscription$3.991 Month

Questions

Is Sheet Music Scanner free?
Sheet Music Scanner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is IMSLP free?
IMSLP is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sheet Music Scanner or IMSLP?
IMSLP is rated higher. Sheet Music Scanner averages 4.5 out of 5 from 6.5K ratings, while IMSLP averages 4.6 from 514 ratings.
Do Sheet Music Scanner or IMSLP have ads?
Neither Sheet Music Scanner nor IMSLP shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sheet Music Scanner or IMSLP?
Sheet Music Scanner ships an update every 3 weeks, and IMSLP every 10 days. Most recently, Sheet Music Scanner was updated on October 29, 2026 and IMSLP on October 29, 2026.

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