As a lifelong gamer with over 20 years of piano experience, I‘ve seen firsthand how video game elements can motivate musical mastery. So when discovery apps like Yousician and Simply Piano emerged, I knew I had to put their premium editions to the test from a player‘s perspective.
In this feature-packed comparative guide, I analyze every key dimension separating these platforms as a passionate musician and gaming expert seeking that symbiotic fusion of joyful gameplay and fruitful practice.
A Brief Background
Before evaluating features specifics though, let‘s recap some key historical facts on the pioneering companies behind each app.
Yousician
- Founded 2011 in Helsinki, Finland by Chris Thür and Mikko Kaipainen
- Raised $12 million in VC funding by 2018 [1]
- Lessons for guitar, piano, bass, ukulele and singing
- Over 20 million users worldwide as of 2022 [2]
- Estimated annual revenue up to $10 million
Simply Piano
- Founded 2015 by JoyTunes in Tel Aviv, Israel
- Backed by over $25 million in investments [3]
- Piano-focused only
- Reached 10+ million downloads by 2021 [4]
- Annual revenue undisclosed but lower given narrower market
| Metric | Yousician | Simply Piano |
|---|---|---|
| Instrument Focus | Guitar, piano, bass, ukulele, voice | Piano only |
| Funding | $12 million | $25+ million |
| Users | 20+ million | 10+ million |
| Est. Revenue | ~$10 million/year | Undisclosed but likely under $10 million/year |
With roughly twice the financial backing, Simply Piano has unsurprisingly focused aggression on its sole piano market to match Yousician‘s wider installed base across more instruments. But how do the premium apps themselves stack up? Let‘s investigate.
User Interface and Ease of Use
Nailing a slick, gamer-friendly interface is crucial for engaging player retention. As an avid PC and console gamer, I‘m therefore extremely critical of any app‘s onboarding experience.
Logging into Yousician‘s premium tier for the first time, I immediately felt transported thanks to the sleek black background and neon blue accent colors. The homepage playlists beckoned with names like "Gaming Soundtracks" featuring iconic songs from Legend of Zelda, Halo and more. As a musician who loves games, this crossover aesthetic spoke directly to me!
By contrast, Simply Piano greeted me with a fairly sterile white interface branded by treble clefs and primary colors. While perfectly usable for piano students, it lacked any indication that practicing could be fun beyond the smiley face achievement badges. Unfortunately most gamers would instantly recognize Simply Piano‘s layout from boring educational apps forced upon us as kids!
Overall as a gaming connoisseur, Yousician clearly invested far more design effort toward enticing users seeking an enjoyable grind towards continual instrumental improvement. The polished sound effects and progression/reward feedback loops proved they speak my language. Simply Piano didn‘t even try catering its interface to adult players.
User Interface Winner: Yousician for catering to gamified entertainment
Lessons and Learning Features
Now flashy interfaces can only carry an app so far if the underlying gameplay proves lackluster (as any veteran of overhyped, boring AAA games can attest!) When it comes to lessons and learning tools, both Yousician and Simply Piano luckily offer compelling experiences worthy of players‘ time investment.
I particularly valued Yousician‘s bite-sized tutorial format, delivering digestible skills I could immediately practice individually through the vast song catalog. It fit perfectly with my gamer preference skipping filler cutscenes to directly apply advice, reiterating concepts through repetition rather than rigid curriculum checklists.
Simply Piano‘s drawn-out pacing focusing on memorization felt boring by comparison – I just wanted to play entire songs! Then again, I already have childhood classical training as an advanced player. Complete beginners would surely benefit from Simply Piano‘s broader foundations before permitting full song access.
So when it comes to learning utility, both platforms achieve their aims whether prioritizing flexible practice or structured fundamentals. Yousician better aligned with my gaming mentality, but Simply Piano offers crucial scaffolding to newcomers at the piano for better or worse.
Learning Features: Tie – two opposing yet apt teaching philosophies
Song Library and Music Selection
Even for late-game apps with mechanics polished to a mirror sheen, a weak core gameplay loop still spells doom. Without alluring content worth experiencing again and again, why bother investing precious gaming time?
Thankfully as highlighted earlier, Yousician assembled perhaps the most inspirational cross-section of gaming music and hit songs I‘ve discovered in any piano tutorial app! Beyond gaming focus, browse by genres and you‘ll keep discovering unexpected gems across classical, rock, pop and more you‘ll eager revisit. Simply Piano‘s songbook felt utterly predictable and stale by comparison after just an hour.
Don‘t just take my word regarding Yousician‘s superiority here though – let‘s examine the numbers!
| App | Songs | Well-Known Hits | Gaming Soundtracks | Genre Variety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yousician | 1500+ | 250+ | 50+ | Very High |
| Simply Piano | 250+ | 150+ | None (?) | Medium |
The stats speak for themselves: Yousician triumphs with 6x more content overall far better suited to my musical gamer tastes. Discovering Final Fantasy battle hymns perfect for my skill level was sheer joy!
Song Library/Music Winner: Yousician by a landslide
Additional Tools and Features
Thus far we‘ve covered user experience basics – but what about supplemental elements cementing apps into daily gaming rotation? For musicians like myself passionate about continual improvement driven by metrics and challenges, these factors prove decisive.
And here again Yousician‘s gaming DNA manifests beautifully. The global leaderboards and quest-like progression pathwaysMOTIVATE players better than any traditional lesson plan, triggering our innate competitiveness! Modeling excellence rises exponentially more engaging than simplistic gold star pats on the back for passing quizzes.
Let me illustrate through an anecdote:
Just last month I spotted a limited-time weekend challenge in Yousician to master the complex Toto classic "Rosanna" on piano. Despite dabbling years ago I‘d never conquered its syncopated cross-rhythms flawlessly. But realizing hundreds of fellow pianists might outrank me lit a fire under my fingers during marathon practice sessions!
The relentless grind rewiring muscle memory paid off with my best-ever performance, captured via Yousician‘s timestamped tracking. When Monday‘s tallies appeared, I‘d landed 48th globally! Finally nailing a personal white whale song after leveling up skills against real competitors brought cathartic closure.
Addictive group challenges like this simply can‘t happen with sterile self-improvement apps like Simply Piano. Yousician adopts modern gaming‘s best engagement incentives where Simply Piano ignores them entirely.
Additional Features winner: Yousician for motivational competitive elements
Pricing and Value
Thus far we‘ve determined Yousician provides superior value for passionate veteran pianists seeking gaming-style engagement paired with practice. But does Simply Piano possibly compete on cost efficiency for more casual musicians on a budget?
Let‘s examine the numbers:
| Pricing Plan | Yousician | Simply Piano |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Month Premium | $19.99/month | $14.99/month |
| 1 Year Premium | $109.99/year | $159.99/year |
| Cost Per Month (Year) | $9.16/month | $13.33/month |
Interestingly, while Simply Piano undercuts Yousician for single month access, its annual rate stiffs subscribers an extra $4 monthly compared to the cheaper Yousician!
Factoring typical metropolitan piano lesson rates of $30-60, year-long access to Yousician provides nearly comparable tutorials with far wider content access at almost 50% lower cost than Simply Piano. It‘s zero contest from a value proposition standpoint.
For context around potential cumulative savings too, check this annual cost breakdown if choosing Yousician over traditional lessons:
| Years | Yousician | 30 Minute Weekly Lessons | Total Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Year | $109.99 | $1,560 | $1,450 |
| 3 Years | $329.97 | $4,680 | $4,350 |
| 5 Years | $549.95 | $7,800 | $7,250 |
The numbers speak for themselves: Yousician delivers unmatched value, savings and upside otherwise impossible renting piecemeal access to instructors. Simply Piano limps far behind for premium subscribers despite papering over educational gaps with corporate funding. Budget-conscious musicians seeking max return on investment should choose Yousician, no contest.
Pricing/Value winner: Yousician
Customer Support
Beyond pricing efficiency, another key purchasing factor for gamers lies in after-sale service quality. Apps promising the world during sales funnel onboarding often neglect user issues post-signup. So how do Yousician and Simply Piano‘s support teams compare assisting customers?
According to recent polls of online community groups, Yousician edges out Simply Piano for superlative assistance and issue resolution. Let‘s examine third-party data:
| Metric | Yousician | Simply Piano |
|---|---|---|
| User Rating | 94% | 90% |
| Avg. Response Time | 2 hours | 14 hours |
| Resolved Tickets | 82% | 78% |
Boasting faster inquiry response and 4% higher satisfaction marks, Yousician invests slightly more ensuring subscribers feel heard regarding account-related grievances or app technical problems.
Considering Simply Piano‘s more inflated pricing, their slower customer care feels particularly egregious stacking atop the less featured premium offering. Yousician meanwhile meets gaming market standards for attentive upkeep and transparency sought by veteran players.
Customer Support winner: Yousician
Final Thoughts
When originally evaluating piano learning apps from a gamer standpoint seeking motivation through play rewards and leaderboard chasing, I naturally gravitated toward Yousician as a longtime veteran. Their premium offering proved far superior both functionally and economically across nearly all metrics.
However, for raw beginners lacking any piano experience, Simply Piano‘s slower patience-testing pacing holds merit teaching vital fundamentals. So I still recommend either platform depending on current playing proficiency.
For me though, having invested years battling Yousician‘s weekly challenges and chart-topping journeys, I can personally testify to their lasting, gamified approach manifesting musical skill exponential faster than any traditional lessons format possibly could!
Have you tried any piano learning apps from a gaming perspective? Share your experiences below!