Best LilyPond Alternatives in 2026
Updated
20 apps from music notation software ranked against LilyPond on the same published basis.
- 1LilyPond vs Fender Notion
- 2LilyPond vs Flat
- 3LilyPond vs Dorico
- 4LilyPond vs MuseScore Studio
- 5LilyPond vs Noteflight
- 7LilyPond vs TuxGuitar
- 8LilyPond vs ScoreCloud
- 9LilyPond vs Sibelius
- 10LilyPond vs DomiSol
- 11LilyPond vs Denemo
- 12LilyPond vs Crescendo Music Notation Software
- 13LilyPond vs iWriteMusic
- 14LilyPond vs Guitar Pro
- 15LilyPond vs MC Musiceditor
- 16LilyPond vs Launchpad
- 17LilyPond vs Harmony Assistant
- 18LilyPond vs capella
- 19LilyPond vs SmartScore
- 20LilyPond vs Pizzicato
- 21LilyPond vs music21
LilyPond alternatives compared
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fender Notion | 8.1 | Free plan | Free | Web, Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android |
| 2 | Flat | 8.1 | Free plan | — | Android, iOS, Mac, Web, Windows |
| 3 | Dorico | 8.0 | Free plan | Free | iOS |
| 4 | MuseScore Studio | 7.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 5 | Noteflight | 7.7 | No | $4.08/mo | Web |
| 7 | TuxGuitar | 7.6 | Free plan | Free | Android, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 8 | ScoreCloud | 7.4 | Free plan | $5.99/mo | Web, Windows, Mac, iOS |
| 9 | Sibelius | 7.1 | No | — | iOS, Mac, Web |
| 10 | DomiSol | 7.1 | Free plan | $10/mo | Android, API, iOS, Web |
| 11 | Denemo | 6.6 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| 12 | Crescendo Music Notation Software | 6.6 | No | $80/mo | Windows, Mac, iOS, Android |
| 13 | iWriteMusic | 6.6 | Free plan | Free | iOS, Android, Mac |
| 14 | Guitar Pro | 6.3 | No | $69.95/mo | Windows, Mac, iOS, Android |
| 15 | MC Musiceditor | 6.1 | Free plan | Free | Windows, Linux |
| 16 | Launchpad | 6.1 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, self-hosted, Web |
| 17 | Harmony Assistant | 6.0 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| 18 | capella | 5.9 | No | — | Windows, Mac |
| 19 | SmartScore | 5.8 | No | $49/mo | Windows, Mac |
| 20 | Pizzicato | 5.8 | No | — | Windows, Mac |
| 21 | music21 | 5.8 | No | — | Web, Windows, Mac, Linux |
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Questions about LilyPond alternatives
What is the best alternative to LilyPond?
Fender Notion, number 1 in music notation software with a score of 8.1 out of 10. The others here: Flat, Dorico, MuseScore Studio and 16 more.
What is the best free alternative to LilyPond?
Fender Notion is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 10 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How are these alternatives ranked?
Ranked free-and-open first: a usable free tier and open-source code, then the platforms it runs on and its documentation.