The Best Apps to Learn Songs by Ear in 2026

Disclosure: I build StemConsole, one of the tools below. Details read from each vendor’s own pages in September 2026. Plans change, so confirm current terms before you pay.

The four things a learn-by-ear app has to do

1. Isolate the part. A bass line under a busy mix, or a piano voicing behind a vocal, is the hardest thing to hear. AI stem separation solves this; older tools use EQ or phase tricks that work less well.
2. Loop it. Set an A and B point around one phrase and let it repeat, so you hear it twenty times in a minute.
3. Slow it down with the pitch locked. At 60 to 70% speed, fast runs separate into single notes and still match your instrument’s tuning.
4. Check it. A spectrum view, chord detection or tab tells you whether you heard it right. Treat automatic chords as a starting point, not the answer.

At a glance

Details read from each vendor’s own pages in September 2026. Where a vendor does not publish a detail, the table says so.

The apps, one by one

1. StemConsole: hear the part on its own, in the browser

StemConsole is the tool I built. It splits a song into stems with AI and opens them in a live mixer, so you solo the bass, the vocal or, with Full Separation, the guitar or piano, and hear it without the rest of the band on top. Pick your instrument under I’m practising and press Hear my part. Loop the phrase with a free A/B loop. With Pro, slow it to 60 or 70% with the pitch locked, or move it to a key that suits your hands. When you have it, Play with the band mutes your part so you can play it with the record.

Splitting, the live mixer, Hear my part, Play with the band and a basic A/B loop (with a free account) are free. Speed, key change, named loops, count-in and tap tempo are Pro. The plans are summarised at the end of this page, and the demo song unlocks every tool, so you can try them before you upload anything.

Where others win: no YouTube link import, no chord detection, no native phone app, and the slowest speed is 50%. Uploads are MP3, WAV, FLAC, OGG, M4A, AAC or WMA up to 200 MB.

2. Transcribe!: the transcriber’s workbench

Transcribe! is desktop software for Windows, Mac and Linux, built for exactly this job. It slows audio from one-twentieth speed to double speed, shifts pitch up to three octaves, loops sections, and shows a spectrum on a piano keyboard with note and chord guessing. Its only isolation is a phase-reverse karaoke effect, so busy mixes stay hard to hear. It costs $39 as a one-off licence for up to three computers, with a 30-day free trial.

Official reference: Transcribe! overview.

3. Moises: stems, chords and speed in one app

Moises runs on the web, desktop, iPhone and Android and combines AI stem separation with chord detection, speed, pitch, loops and a metronome. Its chord finder shows chords with transpose and capo modes; the free plan covers the first minute of each song, and Premium and Pro unlock the whole song. Prices appear after login. See StemConsole vs Moises.

Official reference: Moises chord finder.

4. Capo: chord detection on Apple devices

Capo runs on Mac, iPhone and iPad and is built for learning by ear from your own music files. It detects 168 chord types, slows down, loops and changes pitch, shows a spectrogram, and on Mac transcribes notes and exports MIDI and lead sheets. It works offline. The Free Edition has no time limit but does not save your chord and marker edits; the full app is a yearly App Store subscription.

Official reference: Capo.

5. Chordify: chords for a song in the browser

Chordify shows the chords of a song as it plays, in the browser. The free version has a daily limit on songs; Premium adds tempo change, loops, transpose, a digital capo and uploading your own files. It gives you chords, not the individual parts, so it suits rhythm players and singers accompanying themselves.

Official reference: Chordify.

6. Anytune: slow down and loop on Apple devices and Android

Anytune runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Android and is built around slowing down and looping with flexible marks. Pro+ adds ReFrame, which focuses on a frequency range to bring a part forward, and the Android app offers AI separation with paid credits. There is no web version. See the Anytune alternatives.

Official reference: Anytune.

7. AudioStretch: extreme slow-down on a phone

AudioStretch on iPhone and Android slows audio all the way down to a frozen note, shifts pitch up to 36 semitones either way, loops, and shows a spectrum keyboard for spotting notes. It also works with video. There is a free Lite version on iPhone and a paid full version.

Official reference: AudioStretch.

8. Songsterr: when you would rather read tab

Songsterr is a tab site and app for web, iPhone and Android, with tabs synced to playback. The free version pauses tab playback after ten bars; Plus adds the original audio in sync, speed control, loops, and soloing or muting tab tracks. It is learning from notation rather than by ear, but it is a fast way to check a part you have worked out.

Official reference: Songsterr Plus.

How to learn a part by ear

I have spent 20 years mixing and mastering records and a decade teaching audio. Here is how the main tools compare, and who each one suits.

1. Sing it first. If you can hum the phrase, you can find it on your instrument. If you cannot, loop it until you can.
2. Isolate the part. Solo the stem, then keep a little of the full mix underneath so you still hear where it sits against the chords.
3. Loop two bars at a time. Start the loop half a bar early to catch the pickup, and chain loops so the joins are clean.
4. Slow it down, not too far. 60 to 70% separates fast notes without making the part unrecognisable. Go back to full speed as soon as the notes are right.
5. Find the first note, then the shape. Get the starting note right, then listen for direction and intervals rather than guessing every note.
6. Play it with the record. Mute the part and play along at full speed. That is the test that matters.

Which should you pick?

• You struggle to hear the part under everything else: StemConsole or Moises, for AI stems.
• You transcribe seriously on a computer: Transcribe!.
• You mainly need the chords: Moises, Capo or Chordify.
• You practise from your phone: AudioStretch, Anytune or Moises.
• You want a check against notation: Songsterr.

More: learn a song by ear in StemConsole, learn any bassline by ear, transcribe a bass line and the best apps to slow down music.

Try every practice tool on the demo song first: open the demo. No upload, no account and nothing to install.

StemConsole plans: free covers vocal removal and a 4-stem split (vocals, drums, bass, other), 5 splits a month, the live mixer, a basic A/B loop, a saved library and share links. Pro is US$6.99 a month or US$49 a year and adds 6 stems with guitar and piano, WAV, 100 splits a month, and the practice room: speed from 50% to 150% without changing pitch, key change up to 12 semitones, multiple named loops, tap tempo and count-in. A US$1.99 credit buys one 6-stem split with MP3 downloads and basic A/B looping. WAV, speed, key change and multiple named loops require Pro.

Frequently asked questions

Dan Murtagh is a Melbourne mixing and mastering engineer with 20 years making records and a decade teaching audio. He built StemConsole as a practice tool for his students. More about Dan.

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