Octotune FAQ
Short answers to the questions people ask most about Octotune, the piano app for iPhone, iPad and the web. For the details of devices and keyboards, see How Octotune works. For children, see Octotune Kids. For data, see Privacy.
If your question isn't here, the reading-music guides may answer it.
Still stuck, or found something that doesn't work? Write to hello@octotune.com.
Questions
What is Octotune?
Octotune teaches you to read sheet music at the piano, on iPhone, iPad and the web. It has a 12-unit path for adults, a Kids mode for children from 2½, and a library of 124 pieces. Download and get started on iPhone or iPad, or play in your browser.
Is Octotune free?
The app download and learning path are free: the whole path for children and grown-ups, placement and practice, Kids mode, the children's songs, the songbooks and ten first classical pieces, syncing, and two players (you and one child). You can start with no account or payment details. Octotune Plus adds the whole classical library, your own MIDI and MusicXML files, recorded instruments and room for more than two players, up to six. The founding US prices are $7.99 a month or $59.99 a year, with a 14-day trial on the yearly plan for eligible subscribers. The App Store shows your local price and trial eligibility before purchase; web prices are in US dollars, plus tax where it applies. Cancel any time. A Plus piece can also be unlocked with 50 earned pearls. Kids mode never shows a price.
Do I need to make an account?
No account is needed for the free lessons, songs and games. Your progress starts on your device. A grown-up can choose to sign in with Google or Apple for progress sync, Plus and account features. Use the same Octotune account in the browser and in the iPhone or iPad app to carry your progress and Plus access between them.
Do I need a MIDI keyboard?
No. You can play on the on-screen piano or on your computer keys (the home row is the white keys). A MIDI keyboard or a digital piano with USB makes it feel like real playing, and it is what the path is designed around.
What kind of keyboard do I need?
Any keyboard or digital piano that connects to a computer as a MIDI device, usually by USB. The path uses the notes from low C to high C (C2 to C6), which is 49 keys; 61 keys or more is more comfortable, and a full 88 is needed for some of the classical pieces. Touch-sensitive keys let the app hear loud and soft.
Does Octotune work on an iPad or iPhone?
Yes. Octotune is available on the App Store for iPhone with iOS 17 or later and iPad with iPadOS 17 or later. The app is currently in English. Start with the on-screen piano; an iPad gives you more room for music and keys. You can also play in Safari with the on-screen piano. For a MIDI keyboard, our current recommendation is Chrome, Edge or Firefox on a supported computer. iPhone and iPad setup and help.
How do I install the iPhone or iPad app?
Open Octotune on the App Store, choose Get, then open the app and choose Get started. A grown-up sets up a child's player. The download and learning path are free; Octotune Plus is optional. Getting started covers requirements and your first few minutes.
Will installing the app bring my browser progress with it?
Not automatically. If your progress is only stored in your browser, a grown-up should sign in there first and let it sync, then sign in to the same Octotune account in the app. Keep the original browser data or a backup until you have checked your players and progress in the app.
How do I restore Octotune Plus on iPhone or iPad?
As a grown-up, sign in to the Octotune account used for Plus, open the Plus panel and choose Restore Purchases. Use the Apple Account that made the App Store purchase. If you bought Plus on the web, sign in to the same Octotune account before considering another purchase. Purchase and restore help.
How do I cancel an App Store subscription?
On your iPhone or iPad, open Settings, tap your name, then Subscriptions and choose Octotune. Canceling stops renewal. Deleting the app or your Octotune account does not cancel the subscription. Web purchases are managed through the web billing provider. Purchase terms.
Why is there no sound on my iPhone or iPad?
Check the ring/silent switch. Like a game's sound, Octotune plays alongside your music and stays quiet when the phone is on silent. A grown-up can turn on “Play sound when the phone is on silent” in the settings. In the browser, the first tap on the screen is what turns the sound on.
Does it work on Android?
Yes. Chrome on Android can use a MIDI keyboard plugged in by USB (with an adapter for the phone or tablet's socket), as well as the on-screen piano.
Does it listen through the microphone? Can I use my acoustic piano?
Not yet. Octotune doesn't use the microphone yet, so it can't hear an acoustic piano today. It needs a MIDI keyboard or digital piano, the on-screen piano, or your computer keys. Listening to an acoustic piano through the microphone is coming.
Which browsers work?
Chrome, Edge and Firefox can use a MIDI keyboard; Firefox asks for permission first. Safari runs the app with the on-screen piano and computer keys, but without MIDI.
What age is Kids mode for?
From about 2½ to 6. The first units need no reading and no finger numbers: high and low, loud and soft, a steady beat, the black keys. Then colored circles, then the staff.
Does Octotune talk to my child?
No. Octotune has no voice, in Kids mode or anywhere else. Instructions are shown: a drawn hand demonstrates, the key lights up, an arrow points the way after a wrong key. The words on screen are for the grown-up.
Can two children use it on one device?
Yes. Up to six players can share Octotune, each with their own book: their own place on the path, their own pearls and their own avatar. A grown-up adds them and looks after them. Two players, you and one child, are free for good; the third to the sixth come with Octotune Plus. A player already added stays yours, whatever the plan. If the grown-up signs in, every player's progress is kept in their account and follows them to other devices.
How long is a lesson?
A sitting takes three to six minutes for an adult, and about two minutes for a child. A unit is planned as about a week of short sittings.
I can already read music a little. Can I skip ahead?
Yes. On the adult path, a short placement test lets you jump to any unit. Score 85% and the units before it are marked done; otherwise it suggests where to start.
Where do the songs come from?
The 15 children's songs are public-domain tunes in Octotune's own arrangements. The 109 classical pieces are public-domain works typeset by volunteers of the Mutopia Project, each credited with its typesetter and license (public domain, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
Are there pop songs?
No. The library holds only music that is free to share. With Octotune Plus you can open your own MIDI or MusicXML files in Songs; they stay on your device.
Can I print the sheet music?
Octotune shows the music on screen and doesn't print it. The Mutopia Project, which typeset the classical pieces, offers free printable PDFs of them.
Does Octotune work offline?
Open Octotune online first and try the lesson, song and instrument you want to use. Then check them with your device offline before relying on them away from a connection. Sign-in, syncing and purchases need internet. On iPhone and iPad, you can download the App Store app; in a supported browser, you can also install the web app.
Where is my progress saved?
On the device where you play: the downloaded app's storage, or your browser's storage when you play on the web. You can save a backup file from the settings and restore it later. If a grown-up signs in, a copy is kept in that Octotune account and synced between devices. Use the same account in the browser and the app.
Is there a streak? Can I turn it off?
Adults get a small daily goal. The streak is off until you turn it on in the settings, and the same switch turns it off again. Children never see a streak or a timer.
Does Octotune show ads or track me?
No. There are no ads and no analytics or tracking code. Children are never asked for anything. The privacy page lists the few outside services the app does use: Google's Firebase Hosting, which serves the app; if a grown-up signs in, Google's or Apple's sign-in, and RevenueCat, which says whether the account has Octotune Plus; and Stripe or Apple, only when a grown-up buys Plus.
Does Octotune replace a piano teacher?
No. It is a patient practice partner for reading and playing notes, and it can't see your posture or hand shape. Many learners use it between lessons, or to get started before finding a teacher.
Can I share progress with a piano teacher?
Yes. A grown-up can make a one-page practice report for any player, over the last 7 or 30 days or since the last report: days practiced, minutes at the piano, where they are on the path, pieces with their tempo marks, and the notes that are strong or need work. It is made on your device and Octotune sends it nowhere. You share it yourself, if you choose: by your device's share sheet, as copied text, printed, or saved as a file.
Can a piano teacher use Octotune with students?
Yes, with adult students for now. A teacher starts a free studio on the web, invites students with a link or QR code, assigns pieces and publishes courses. A public teacher page can show their free course listings and booking link. Students choose what their teacher sees of their practice, with sharing off until they turn it on. Children can't join a studio yet; a parent can share a child's practice report instead. See the teaching guide for the setup steps.
What does a teacher see in a studio?
Only what each student switches on, with the name and avatar they chose. Never their email or account, never other students' progress, and never a ranking: students are listed A to Z. A student who leaves takes it all with them at once.
Why is it called Octotune?
An octopus has eight arms, an octave has eight notes, and the app has eight instruments to play: piano, music box, marimba, bells, kalimba, harp, steel drum and xylophone.
Is Octotune related to Splatoon?
No. Octotune, the piano app at octotune.com, is not affiliated with Nintendo or with the Splatoon 2 soundtrack album Octotune (2018).