ChordU vs Tonaly

ChordU identifies chords in audio and aligns them with musical notation. Users can also find a song on YouTube, copy its link and search for it in ChordU. A song may have simplified, advanced, bass or edited chord arrangements, as well as treble-clef and bass-clef note versions. Chord diagrams cover guitar, piano, ukulele and mandolin. On the website, users can obtain PDF chord and note sheets, MIDI files and synthesized notes in WAV format. MusicOnly mode provides controls for vocals, bass, drums and other instruments, and can export a mixed audio download. Local music uploads and MusicOnly for those uploads require Premium; Premium also permits chord downloads without a stated monthly limit. The Free plan has limited access, while Premium costs $5.00 per month. ChordU is available on Android, iOS and the web. Its terms limit song and chord use to personal, non-commercial purposes.

Tonaly is a songwriting and practice app that uses the circle of fifths to help musicians find chords, write songs, and learn scales. It highlights chords in a key, suggests progressions, supports borrowed chords and extensions, and helps develop melody ideas for hooks, basslines, or solos. Musicians can practice scales, progressions, and solos with key changes and stepwise difficulty increases. A progression generator, chord audio playback, and chord chart export are also available. Users can export MIDI and PDFs or share song links for collaboration; MIDI export to Ableton, Logic, or GarageBand is listed. Tonaly is available for iPhone, iPad, and Mac, with iOS 16.0, iPadOS 16.0, and macOS 13.0 or later required. Its Mac Pro features include MIDI drag and drop, Core MIDI output, keyboard commands, and lead sheets. The Mac page says iCloud supports working across devices. Tonaly has a free plan and free trial. US App Store purchases include $3.99, paid once for 80+ Scales, $5.99, paid once for PDF lead sheet export, $9.99, paid once for Supporter, $39.99 a year, and $79.99, paid once for Lifetime.