Is Yousician better than Simply Piano?

If you're looking for something that's as fun as possible while still progressing, and you're willing to determine what you need to work on, then Yousician would probably be the best option, instead of Simply Piano.

reddit.com - My thoughts on apps (as a complete beginner): Simply Piano, Yousician ...

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So I was trying to find out which app would be the best for an absolute beginner. There's a lot of discrepancies out there on what is the best to use. And quite honestly, it depends. I have my recommendation down below, if you're anything like me.

Disclaimer:

This is intended for people who can not start with a teacher right away. Whether it's due to finances, a global pandemic, time, or just want to see if the piano is something that could be of interest. A teacher will be the best route for learning piano inside and out. This has been discussed ad nauseam. This is for those who can't, or would like to use an app for whatever reason. I am also not affiliated with any of these apps in any way.

Notes / Background:

I am a complete beginner. I have never touched a piano in my life.

I plan on learning piano first, and moving onto Synth as well.

I bought a used (barely) Yamaha P45 to learn on for $240. I wanted to go with a Roland FP-30, but the price for the Yamaha was too good to pass up for a complete newbie like myself. I plan on upgrading later, potentially to a Roland RD-800, FA 08, or RD-2000 successor since they'll likely be out by the time I'm ready to move up.

I tested via Desktop or Android, depending on what was available.

I spend way too much time researching & testing things before making a decision. I have a USB B to USB C cable I'm using for MIDI support. Here is the one I bought. There is likely something similar out there for Apple devices, as well. Honestly, don't even bother trying without a MIDI connection. Nothing more frustrating than getting correct notes / chords labeled as wrong due to the mic not being 100% accurate. I tested out the Premium versions / Free trials of all of these apps extensively (minus the PC options)

Simply Piano (iOS, Android):

Out of the four Android options, this was the one I already had a negative pre-conceived opinion based off what I read on here, and the ads. By god... the ads are some of the most deceitful out there. But I'm not giving my feedback on the ads, but the app itself. To cut to the chase, this was the one I ended up settling on for my journey to learn Piano. Despite putting a massive amount of time into all of the apps, this was the one I ended up progressing the quickest with / avoiding walls. The pacing feels slow, but the more hours I put into, the more I appreciate it as I get into more complicated moves (for a beginner like myself).

Yousician (PC, iOS, Android):

I wanted this one to be it. This was the most fun of all of them I tested. And it's also the most feature-rich from what I could see. This is the most gamified approach, has a great social option. You can't help but want to top other scores and your own, has multiple branches for knowledge, pop, and classical, depending on which you would like to learn. It has a workouts section to work on specific areas you know you need improvement on. It has a great song selection. Honestly, in the end it came down to Yousician and Simply Piano for me. And ultimately, I went with Simply Piano due to the simplicity and direction. With Yousician, you decide what you need to work on in many cases. I haven't explored all the workouts, but I'm sure they're good at helping you improve. Yousician's Premium Plus is also about $90 more than a year of Simply Piano ($179.99 vs $89.99), but the price didn't impact my decision. They were 1a and 1b, but based on progressing & having stuff stick --- that's what led me to Simply Piano over Yousician.

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Piano Academy (iOS, Android):

Piano Academy has the most potential in my opinion. It was actually the one I started with, and I was progressing smoothly with it (before getting a MIDI cable). Eventually it had issues knowing when I hit the right note via mic input. The teaching is solid, the lessons & instructions were good. But I ran into a couple issues that eliminated this from being an option. Lack of content. I was progressing smoothly, but it stops after lesson 22. I can't speak to how in-depth they get, but with the way I was moving along, I think I would hit the level cap and then be waiting on new lessons. MIDI cable was giving me static via phone when hitting bass keys. I don't believe you can turn this off On Android at least (unsure about iOS), I don't see a way to sync / save your progress. I uninstalled an re-installed the app to try and fix the static issue, but all my progress was lost.

Flow Key (PC, iOS, Android):

The BEST for learning technique & theory from what I saw. Also the most dry of these 4 apps. This is another one I wanted to win, but it's not what I see myself looking forward to sitting down and testing as much. They have courses for multiple stages, but it progresses at a pretty quick pace. Which was good for a long time. But eventually I hit a snag, and that's where it gets very repetitive. You'll have to spend some time practicing on your own or repeating the same lessons until you're ready to move on. If you can see yourself having the discipline to do this, I would suggest going with Flow Key. Flow key is also the best of these 4 for learning & practicing songs.

Music Marvel (PC, iPad):

Tested briefly via PC (2-in-1 computer, so easy to put on the keyboard). Lots of lessons, reading materials. Looks like you can learn quite a bit. If I had an iPad, I would give it more of a consideration. But the convenience of putting my phone down and getting started, instead of grabbing my computer won me over with the apps. I could see myself using my computer sometimes, but not all the time.

Playground Sessions (PC, iPad):

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This is the only one I did not test. Considered it, but the only option for the trial was to pay upfront and then call then because of their money-back guarantee. I wasn't willing to deal with the hassle of that.

Other Options considered, but not yet explored:

YouTube videos

Physical Teacher (maybe post-pandemic)

Artistworks.com

My Recommendation / TLDR:

If you made it this far, thanks for reading. After extensively testing all of the apps (minus Playground Sessions), my recommendation would be this. Start with Flow Key. Do as much as you can with it whether in the free version (through Intermediate Piano Playing) or free trial. Once you hit that block, you should at least know some basic theory / technique. Once that's done, I would move over the Simply Piano and begin your journey. If you're looking for something that's as fun as possible while still progressing, and you're willing to determine what you need to work on, then Yousician would probably be the best option, instead of Simply Piano. If you have any questions at all, please feel free to ask. Happy Learning!

UPDATE 12/6/2021:

Going to disappoint a lot of people here by saying progress hasn't made huge strides, and I shifted it up a bit from when I initially posted. Time has been tough to come by. I still practice occasionally, but I have had quite a lot on my plate the last year, and actually eliminated a few hobbies (photography as one) for the time being. I still practice on occasion, but I settled somewhere completely different than my initial post.

Where I settled:

I Signed up for Black Friday pricing on Yousician last year (and again this year) for $69.99 I believe for the annual plan. I also had Flow Key for the last year thanks to BF 2020 pricing. But forgot to renew this year. I couldn't get over the watered down covers in Simply Piano after a while. And it started to feel a bit too toned down. Yousician is the one that gets me to jump in, even if it's just to play around for a bit. And Flow Key I LOVE their sheet music selection. The best workouts are the ones that you actually do, so based on that.... Yousician is my winner since the gamification of it helps me actually spend time in it (change from colors to actual notes, though!). And Flow Key for the sheet music.

reddit.com - My thoughts on apps (as a complete beginner): Simply Piano, Yousician ...

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