# PitchMe vs EarMaster

> The textbook of ear training software: a large, structured curriculum covering intervals, chords, scales, rhythm, melodic dictation and sight-singing, on desktop and mobile.

**Short answer.** Choose PitchMe if you want the specific skill of hearing notes and chords by their function in a key, trained in short daily rounds on your phone, without paying a subscription to start. Choose EarMaster if you need a full aural curriculum — rhythm, dictation and sight-singing included — for an exam or a degree, you want to sing and play your answers, and you will sit down at a desktop to work through it.

EarMaster is made by EarMaster ApS (https://www.earmaster.com/). Facts
last verified 2026-08-25.

"Not found" means we could not find the feature when we reviewed the app on 2026-08-25, not that it certainly does not exist. Apps change, and we do not track every release. Each app links to its own site — check anything that matters to your decision at the source.

All product names, trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners. PitchMe is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any of the products compared here. They are named only to identify them.

## How each one teaches

- **PitchMe** — Establishes a key, then asks what you heard inside it:
  scale degrees, chord functions as Nashville numbers, notes within a sounding
  chord, and whether a note is in tune. Difficulty escalates by level rather
  than by setting.
- **EarMaster** — Course-based drilling across a very wide syllabus, with microphone and MIDI input so you can sing or play your answers rather than tapping them.

## What EarMaster does well

- By far the widest coverage of anything here. Rhythm training, melodic and rhythmic dictation, and sight-singing are all things PitchMe does not do at all.
- Sing-and-play input via microphone and MIDI is a genuinely different exercise from multiple choice, and it is the right tool if you are preparing for a conservatoire aural exam.
- Runs on Windows and macOS as well as iOS and Android, with progress synced across them.
- Guided courses and workshops give you a syllabus rather than a pile of settings.

## Where EarMaster stops

- Much of the drilling is abstract: name the interval, name the chord quality. That builds a labelling skill that transfers to real music more slowly than functional, in-key hearing does.
- No intonation training in cents.
- It is study software rather than a game: no daily loop and no leaderboard.
- Pricing is subscription-based, so the cost recurs. Check their site for current terms.

## Side by side

| What it trains | PitchMe | EarMaster |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Trains notes in a key** | Yes — Every mode establishes a key first, then asks what you heard inside it, labelled as scale degrees or solfège. | Partial — Includes functional and scale-degree work, but much of the syllabus is abstract interval and chord-quality identification. |
| **Trains chords by function** | Yes — Chords are drilled as Nashville numbers — the 1, 4, 5, 6, then the 2, 3 and 7 — with inversions and non-diatonic chords unlocking later. | Partial — Extensive chord identification, mostly by quality and inversion rather than by role in a key. |
| **Trains hearing inside a chord** | Yes — A dedicated Harmony mode plays a chord and asks which note inside it you heard, including complex chords. | Partial — Chord and progression dictation, rather than picking a single note out of a sounding chord. |
| **Trains intonation in cents** | Yes — A dedicated Intonation mode asks whether a note is in tune, tightening from 15 cents to 5 cents as you improve. | No — No cents-level tuning drills. |
| **Removes crutches on a schedule** | Yes — Levels unlock a second octave, inversions, complex chords and extra scale degrees, and take the reference note away at level 3. | Yes — Guided courses set the order and the difficulty. |
| **Built around a daily habit** | Yes — Rounds run about a minute, with three lives, a combo multiplier and optional daily reminders. | No — Designed as study software for longer sittings. |
| **Leaderboards** | Yes — Global leaderboards and shareable scores. | No — No leaderboards. |
| **Price** | Free to download; optional subscription. No ads. | Subscription, with in-app purchases for individual courses. See their site for current pricing. |
| **Platforms** | iOS and Android. | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. |

## Frequently asked questions

### Is PitchMe an alternative to EarMaster?

For relative pitch, yes; for a full aural syllabus, no. EarMaster covers rhythm, dictation and sight-singing, which PitchMe does not do at all. PitchMe goes deeper on one thing: hearing notes and chords by their function in a key, plus intonation, in short daily sessions on a phone. Musicians preparing for a graded aural exam often want EarMaster. If playing by ear is the goal, we think functional training is the more direct route.

### Is PitchMe cheaper than EarMaster?

PitchMe is free to download on iOS and Android with an optional subscription, and it has no ads. EarMaster is sold as a subscription, with additional in-app purchases for individual courses — check their site for current pricing. If cost is the deciding factor, PitchMe costs nothing to start.

## Other comparisons

- [PitchMe vs Functional Ear Trainer](https://pitchme.moosedev.app/compare/functional-ear-trainer): The free, single-purpose app that made functional ear training popular: a cadence establishes the key, then you name the scale degree you heard.
- [PitchMe vs Tenuto](https://pitchme.moosedev.app/compare/tenuto): A clean, offline toolkit of about two dozen customisable music theory and ear training drills from the makers of musictheory.net, sold once rather than rented.
- [PitchMe vs Perfect Ear](https://pitchme.moosedev.app/compare/perfect-ear): A broad, long-established Android-first trainer covering intervals, scales, chords, rhythm, solfège, note reading and custom exercises, free with ads and a premium tier.
- [PitchMe vs ToneGym](https://pitchme.moosedev.app/compare/tonegym): A browser-based, heavily gamified ear training platform aimed at producers, with a daily workout of short games, weekly contests and a large community.
- [All comparisons](https://pitchme.moosedev.app/compare): the full matrix across every app above.

## Download PitchMe

- [PitchMe on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/sg/app/pitchme-train-relative-pitch/id1281567190)
- [PitchMe on Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.moosedev.pitchme)