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Better Ears

better-ears.mamp.info

Free plan macOSiOSAndroid
Visit better-ears.mamp.info
Spec score 9.3 #2 of 40 in Music Learning Apps

What it is

Better Ears is an ear-training and sight-reading app for musicians, students, and teachers, with exercises spanning listening and music reading. Its 15 exercises include rhythm recognition and rhythm reading; rhythm practice can use a count-in, metronome, triplets, and time signatures including 3/4, 4/4, and 5/4. Answers may be sung, played on a real instrument, entered with a virtual keyboard or guitar fretboard, or sent through a MIDI device. Four preset levels are available, and an editor lets users build levels, chords, scales, and chord progressions. The app includes six instruments, supports custom SoundFonts, and the site says Mac can use more than 100 sounds through DLS SoftSynth. It records correct and incorrect answers for each exercise and question. Levels, sounds, and statistics are described as syncing across Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Android, with Dropbox syncing for levels, statistics, and settings. Better Ears runs on Android, iOS, and macOS. Android costs CHF 2.60, paid once; the iPhone and iPad app costs $4.99, paid once. A free Mac Beginner edition and a free macOS trial are listed.

Spec sheet

What it does
Better Ears provides ear-training and sight-reading practice for musicians, students and teachers.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Purpose
Better Ears is an ear-training and sight-reading app for musicians, students, and teachers.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Platforms
The maker lists Mac with Apple silicon and Intel, iPhone/iPad as one universal app, and Android phones/tablets.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Support
The site links to MAMP support and issue reporting; its legal notice lists [email protected] as a contact email.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Headquarters
MAMP GmbH lists In den Niederwiesen 4a, 76744 Wörth am Rhein, Germany.Read 15 Oct 2026 · mamp.info
Answer methods
Users can answer by singing, playing a real instrument, using a virtual keyboard or guitar fretboard, or connecting a MIDI device.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
API and SDK
The public product and store pages describe MIDI, SoundFonts and Dropbox as integrations but do not document a public API or SDK.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Changelog
The App Store history records Dropbox-sync fixes, Apple-silicon optimization, SoundFont support, Dark Mode, pitch-detection improvements and the later rhythm-training release.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Company size and founding
LinkedIn lists MAMP GmbH at 2–10 employees, headquartered in Wörth am Rhein, and founded in 2019.Read 15 Oct 2026 · de.linkedin.com
Custom levels
Four preset levels are provided and users can create unlimited custom levels with the editor.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Custom practice
The app has four preset levels and an editor for creating custom levels, chords, scales, and chord progressions.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Custom sounds
The app includes six sampled instruments and accepts user SoundFonts in .sf2 format.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Exercise coverage
The current product page lists 15 exercises spanning interval, scale, chord, pitch, melodic, tempo, key-signature and rhythm training plus music-reading variants.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Exercises
The app includes 15 exercises covering ear training and music reading, including rhythm recognition and rhythm reading.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Free version limit
The Mac App Store listing says Better Ears Beginner is limited to one level and one instrument and lacks custom exercises and microphone pitch detection.Read 11 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Interface
The maker advertises a redesigned interface, full Dark Mode and clearer music notation on iPhone, iPad and Mac.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Licence
AlternativeTo classifies Better Ears as paid proprietary commercial software with a one-time purchase model.Read 15 Oct 2026 · alternativeto.net
Limit: interface
An Apple reviewer found the exercise-start control unintuitive, requiring trial and error to discover.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Limit: missing practice control
An Apple reviewer wanted the ability to play a piano freely before submitting an answer.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Limit: notation accuracy
Google Play reviewers reported that staff notation was sometimes too imprecise to identify lines and spaces reliably.Read 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Limit: stability
Google Play reviewers reported recurring bugs, crashes and unresolved notation problems.Read 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Mac sound library
The product page says Mac users can access more than 100 sounds through DLS SoftSynth.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Maker legal name
The company imprint identifies the maker as MAMP GmbH.Read 15 Oct 2026 · mamp.info
MIDI
The app can route sound through an external MIDI device and accept control from a connected master keyboard.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Payment data
The privacy policy says purchases are processed through Paddle and that email, location, and payment information are transferred to Paddle.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Praise: breadth
A 2014 Northwest Accordion News article described Better Ears Beginner as a sophisticated ear-training program with exercises for notes, intervals and chords.Read 15 Oct 2026 · nwasnews.com
Praise: learning value
An Apple reviewer called the free beginner edition well made and useful for beginning ear training, while appreciating that it emphasizes learning over flashy presentation.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Privacy and security
The privacy policy says the site uses SSL, only technically necessary cookies, and no analytics or marketing cookies; it identifies DomainFactory as the website host.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Privacy on Android
Google Play's data-safety section says no data is collected and no data is shared with third parties.Read 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Privacy on iOS
Apple's listing says the developer reports that Better Ears Beginner collects no data.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Progress statistics
Statistics record correct and incorrect responses for each exercise and question.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Progress tracking
Better Ears tracks correct and incorrect answers for every exercise and question.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Rating on AppBrain
4.54 out of 5 from 78 ratings for the iPhone app.Read 15 Oct 2026 · appbrain.com
Rating on Google Play
2.5 out of 5 from 44 reviews.Read 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Rhythm practice
Rhythm exercises include count-in, metronome, triplets, and time signatures such as 3/4, 4/4, and 5/4.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Rhythm training
Rhythm exercises support count-in, metronome, triplets, 3/4, 4/4 and 5/4 meters, with microphone clap or tap responses.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Self-hosting
The public product pages describe client apps and cloud Dropbox synchronization, with no self-hosted deployment option documented.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Sounds
It includes six instruments and supports custom SoundFonts; the site also says Mac supports more than 100 sounds via DLS SoftSynth.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Sync
Levels, sounds and statistics are described as syncing across Mac, iPhone, iPad and Android, with Dropbox controls for levels, statistics and settings.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
System requirement
The Mac App Store listing for Better Ears Beginner requires macOS 11.0 or later.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Virtual instruments
Users can answer on virtual piano and guitar-fretboard interfaces.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Voice and instrument input
Built-in pitch detection lets users answer by singing or playing a real instrument.Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Who it is for
The maker describes the app as suitable for musicians, students, and teachers, from beginners to conservatory preparation.Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Wikipedia integration
The app displays a relevant Wikipedia article for the current exercise when available.Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com

Plans and prices

Better Ears Beginner (Mac) Free one level · one instrument · no custom exercises · no microphone pitch detection Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Better Ears Beginner — Mac Free Free version; one level and one instrument; no custom exercises or microphone pitch detection Read 11 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Better Ears — macOS trial Free Free macOS trial; trial duration not stated Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Better Ears macOS trial Free trial duration not stated Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Better Ears — Android 2.60 CHF, paid once Phones and tablets Read 11 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Better Ears (Android) €2.99, paid once phones and tablets · 1,000+ downloads shown Read 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Better Ears — iPhone and iPad $4.99, paid once One universal app Read 11 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Better Ears (iPhone/iPad) $4.99, paid once universal iPhone and iPad app Read 15 Oct 2026 · appbrain.com

Every Better Ears plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • 15 exercises cover listening and music reading.
  • Answers can use instruments, virtual controls, or MIDI.
  • Custom levels, chords, scales, and progressions are supported.
  • Tracks correct and incorrect answers for each question.
  • Available on Android, iOS, and macOS.

Limits

  • Mac Beginner is limited to one level and instrument.
  • Mac Beginner lacks custom exercises and microphone pitch detection.
  • The Android app costs CHF 2.60, paid once.
  • The iPhone and iPad app costs $4.99, paid once.

Who it suits

The maker describes Better Ears as suitable for musicians, students, and teachers, from beginners to conservatory preparation. It suits learners who want to practice through varied answer methods and track responses.

Verdict

Better Ears combines structured exercises, custom practice, and response tracking across several platforms. Check whether the Mac Beginner limits or listed one-time prices fit your needs.

Where Specifiction places it

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