# Chord Tracker vs Tone Scan

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Chord Tracker at none against Tone Scan's 4. Chord Tracker also leads on rating (3.6 vs 3.2) and ratings volume (171 vs 6). Tone Scan's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Tone Scan sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Chord Tracker asks for nothing beyond the download.

Chord Tracker holds the better App Store score, 3.6 against 3.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chord Tracker has 171 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 49% of Chord Tracker's written reviews are positive against 50% of Tone Scan's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Chord Tracker ships an update every 5 months, Tone Scan every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Chord Tracker | Tone Scan |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[3.6 (171 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chord-tracker-us/id992502589/reviews)** | [3.2 (6 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tone-scan/id1435240826/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **171** | 6 |
| Positive reviews | 48.7% of reviews | **50.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 months** | Every 7 months |
| Monetization | **Ad-supported** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 175 MB | 4 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.5** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Yamaha Corporation of America](https://appshunter.io/developer/408058585) | [Openchord Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1435193332) |

## What reviewers say

### Chord Tracker

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chord-tracker-us/id992502589)

This app analyzes audio songs from your device's music library to display chord symbols on screen. It offers graphical piano keyboard and guitar tab views to aid practice and performance. It's designed to help musicians play along with their favorite tunes.

**Highlights:** Audio song analysis, Chord symbol display, Graphical piano keyboard, Guitar tab display, Practice and performance aid

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🎯 Accurate chord recognition for most songs
- 💰 Free app with powerful features
- 🎸 Works well for learning guitar and piano
- ⚙️ Customizable chord display and transposition
- 🎵 Tempo adjustment without pitch change

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🚫 Limited music source compatibility (iTunes/Apple Music only)
- 🐛 Recent update removed real-time microphone chord detection
- 📁 Difficult to import local audio files
- ⚠️ DRM-protected songs don't work
- 🔌 No Bluetooth speaker output support

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when detecting chord sections
- Audio playback out of sync with score on iPad Pro
- Black screen with only alphabet visible on some devices
- Songs disappear from User Songs after import
- Cannot load songs from local device files

**Requested features**

- Restore real-time microphone chord detection
- Support for Spotify and Google Play Music
- Local file import from device storage
- Bluetooth speaker output support
- Print or export chords as PDF


### Tone Scan

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tone-scan/id1435240826)

Analyze live or recorded audio to reveal musical details like pitch, timbre, and tonal balance. This app offers three live scans to help you understand sound more deeply, simplifying tasks like instrument tuning and learning songs by ear.

**Highlights:** Chromatic spectrum analysis, Polyphonic tuner, Note mix for tonal balance, Pitch recognition, Timbre analysis, Instrument tuning, Chord and key spelling

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Audio Free Trial | Free | one-time |
| Unlock Audio | $4.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Chord Tracker free?

Chord Tracker is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Tone Scan free?

Tone Scan is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Chord Tracker or Tone Scan?

Chord Tracker is rated higher. Chord Tracker averages 3.6 out of 5 from 171 ratings, while Tone Scan averages 3.2 from 6 ratings.

### Do Chord Tracker or Tone Scan have ads?

Chord Tracker shows ads; Tone Scan does not.

### Which is updated more often, Chord Tracker or Tone Scan?

Chord Tracker ships an update every 5 months, and Tone Scan every 7 months. Most recently, Chord Tracker was updated on November 1, 2026 and Tone Scan on November 2, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*