Noteflight review

Noteflight is an online music notation program with an intuitive workflow and a great selection of editing tools.

Noteflight review
(Image: © Noteflight)

Top Ten Reviews Verdict

Noteflight is easy to use and has unique features for distributing finished arrangements.

Pros

  • +

    Great support for educator platforms

  • +

    Tiered membership, but even Premium is well priced

  • +

    Access to the Noteflight Marketplace

Cons

  • -

    You need an internet connection to use this software

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Noteflight is an online music notation program with an intuitive workflow and a great selection of editing tools. Unlike a lot of the best music notation software, you don't need to download any software or save project files on your computer, making Noteflight a great option for laptops and desktop computers with limited CPU power and storage. Also, you can start a project on your home computer and continue work later on a different computer with internet access. However, it isn’t powerful enough to arrange large scores that include third-party plugins, as the browser gets bogged down, especially if your wireless internet speeds are slow.

Noteflight: What you need to know

This program is simple to set up. It walks you step by step through the process of creating a user account. You tell the software if you are using it to write and arrange or to find music to play as well as what your primary instrument is and what level composer and performer you are. The software saves all this information to your profile.

Noteflight

Noteflight allows you to use MIDI note entry.  (Image credit: Noteflight)

There are three membership levels: Basic, Premium and Learn. The Basic plan is free and allows you to create up to 10 scores, import and export MIDI and MusicXML files, and view and join groups. The Premium version is $8 per month or $50 per year and includes audio recording features, a volume mixer and 85 instrument sounds. When you purchase the Premium plan, you can also create and sell an unlimited number of scores.

Noteflight is the only music notation software we tested with a marketplace. This software is owned by Hal Leonard, the largest songbook publisher in the world, and you can sell and market compositions to its more than 3 million users. In addition, you can purchase scores and edit them to fit your needs. Noteflight charges a 50 percent commission for selling your music, but you can remove the score from the marketplace at any time.

Noteflight offers a marketplace to buy and sell music. 

Noteflight offers a marketplace to buy and sell music.  (Image credit: Future)

Noteflight Learn is designed for educators. It has all the same editing and composition features as the Premium version, plus it integrates with Google Classroom and other popular learning management systems that use the LTI standard, including Blackboard and Canvas. An annual subscription costs $70 for the first 10 students and $2 for each additional student. You get your own private website that students can access from any computer with WiFi. The activity templates allow teachers to quickly create customized assignments for each student, complete with audio recordings and personalized feedback.

Should you try Noteflight? 

Noteflight isn’t powerful enough to produce large arrangements in a commercial capacity. For that, you need a program like Notion or Sibelius. However, it has all the tools you need to create simple and complex scores, and you can use it on any computer with internet access. The online platform also includes a marketplace to sell your compositions and buy arrangements you can edit to fit your needs.

Billy Bommer

Billy Bommer is a former Top Ten Reviews writer who now works as a technical advisor at Best Buy. He's a keen sax player, and lives in Utah. Billy also has a BS from Weber State University in Communications and Media Studies. His areas of expertise are diverse, and he has a particular passion for AV and audio tech.