Comparison

CalmusNotation vs Notation Pad Pro

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

Head to head
About

CalmusNotation

Create and visualize musical compositions using AI-powered graphical notation. This app leverages advanced AI, inspired by NASA's Lisp programming, to generate original music based on user input and can display music from other compatible apps for live performance.

Highlights
  • AI-powered music composition
  • Graphical notation display
  • Real-time performance visualization
  • Lisp-based AI engine
  • User input-driven music creation
  • Integration with CalmusComposer and CalmusPlay
Read full description

Graphical Notation is an app for music creation and graphical notation using Artificial Intelligence. The coreof Graphical Notation is the CalmusAI brain where the modern composing methods are programmed into the brain using Lisp programming language. NASA has historically used Lisp for artificial intelligence and autonomous systems, most notably in the 1990s Remote Agent project, the first AI system to control a spacecraft. CalmusNotation does not collect or use any musical material from the internet but creates new music based on the input from the user. In addition - CalmusNotation can also receive composed music from CalmusComposer and CalmusPlay - and present the music as graphical notation for live performance - in real-time. CalmusComposer composes music with Artificial Intelligence and can send the musical result to GraphicalNotations to be presented for life performance. CalmusComposer is connected to GraphicalNotation through WiFi local network - by selecting CalmusNotation in Settings. GraphicalNotation is connected to CalmusComposer, through WiFi local network - by selecting the MacOS device in the settings of GraphicalNotation. CalmusNotation needs Internet connection.

About

Notation Pad Pro

Compose, edit, and playback musical scores with lyrics. This app allows users to create music compositions using touch gestures and supports a wide range of notation elements. It's suitable for both beginners learning music theory and experienced musicians for songbooks or complex scores.

Highlights
  • Compose and edit sheet music
  • Write and integrate lyrics
  • Playback scores with high-quality sound
  • Export to MusicXML, MIDI, PNG, and PDF
  • Support for up to 8 staves
  • Over 100 musical instruments
  • Multi-voice support
Features
Read full description

A great sheet music notation app on iOS. For any music lover, Notation Pad gives you the ability to read, compose, edit, playback scores and write lyrics. With it you can be a talented composer and great musician anywhere. As long as you have a little knowledge of sheet music, you can write music composition simply by touch and move. You could use it as your songbook or scoresheet. It is also designed for a beginner who wants to learn music score, music notes and tablature. It can handle ensemble, choir or symphony score, also it supports for a single track piano score. With the help of it you could easily record the flashes of inspiration wherever they strike. Are you ready to compose music in a simple way? ----------------------- Features: -Export/Import the industry-popular MusicXML file format, allowing for exchanging sheet music with other software (Finale, Sibelius, Encore, MuseScore, etc). -Export MIDI file. -Export PNG image and PDF document. -High quality sound for playback. -Support editing up to 8 staff at the same time. -Support over 100 kinds of musical instrument. Piano, organ, guitar, violin, sax, flute, brass, bass, etc. -Support multi-voice. -A great lyric app. ----------------------- Supported notation: *A variety of music note types, from whole note to 128th note and dotted note *Chord, staff, track *Treble, alto and bass clef *Edit lyrics *A variety of time signatures *All standard key signatures *Adjustable tempo *All accidentals (sharps, flats, double sharps, double flats, and naturals) *Tie, slur, and tuplet *Many types of ornament *A wide range of dynamics -------------------------- - Terms of use: https://service.notationpad.com/terms_service.html

Screenshots

CalmusNotation4 screens
Notation Pad Pro4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Notation Pad Pro at 61% against CalmusNotation's 0%. Notation Pad Pro also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (159 vs 5). CalmusNotation's advantage is price (Free vs $149.00) and rating (4.4 vs 4.2). On ads, in-app purchases and device support 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

CalmusNotation is free to download; Notation Pad Pro costs $149.00 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

CalmusNotation holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notation Pad Pro has 159 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 0% of CalmusNotation's written reviews are positive against 61% of Notation Pad Pro's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CalmusNotation ships an update every 4 months, Notation Pad Pro every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on June 5, 2026 and August 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
CalmusNotation versus Notation Pad Pro: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCalmusNotationNotation Pad Pro
PriceFree — better$149.00
Rating4.4 (5 ratings) — better4.2 (159 ratings)
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews61.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings5159 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.611.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size294 MB165 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperErki-tonlist sf嵩 张

Customer experience

CalmusNotation

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative50.0%

Notation Pad Pro

All ratings159 ratings
Positive81.1%
Neutral5.7%
Negative13.2%
Written reviews135 reviews
Positive61.5%
Neutral13.3%
Negative25.2%

In-app purchases

None

CalmusNotation

No in-app purchases

None

Notation Pad Pro

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is CalmusNotation free?
CalmusNotation is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Notation Pad Pro free?
Notation Pad Pro costs $149.00, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, CalmusNotation or Notation Pad Pro?
CalmusNotation is rated higher. CalmusNotation averages 4.4 out of 5 from 5 ratings, while Notation Pad Pro averages 4.2 from 159 ratings.
Do CalmusNotation or Notation Pad Pro have ads?
Neither CalmusNotation nor Notation Pad Pro shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CalmusNotation or Notation Pad Pro?
CalmusNotation ships an update every 4 months, and Notation Pad Pro every 3 weeks. Most recently, CalmusNotation was updated on June 5, 2026 and Notation Pad Pro on August 23, 2026.

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