notei vs Sibelius
Sibelius is Avid's professional scorewriter, with a free entry edition, Sibelius First, and paid Artist and Ultimate tiers; notei is a music notation editor that runs in the browser, with a music theory assistant that reads your score. pick Sibelius for publication-grade engraving, a large sound library and native mobile apps. pick notei if you want to write in any browser, a Chromebook included, and get plain-language help with the music as you go.
every fact about the other programs was checked against the vendor's own pages on .
notei publishes this page, and notei is our product. every fact about Avid's program below links to the Avid page it comes from, and the "where Sibelius is better" list is taken from Avid's own pages.
- Avid's scorewriter: professional engraving, a large sound library and native mobile apps.
- notei: in the browser, with an assistant that reads your score.
- its First edition is free; notei has a free plan too.
the short version
Sibelius is built for people who produce finished scores and parts: engravers, arrangers, teachers with a whole department on one system, and composers scoring to picture. notei is built for writing the music in the first place and understanding it while you do. if you already own Sibelius and print for publishers, keep it. if you mostly sketch, arrange for your own group or learn as you write, notei covers that without an install.
side by side
each cell on the right links its source. avid.com shows prices in the visitor's local currency (we saw US dollars), and prices change, so confirm them on avid.com before you buy.
| what we compared | notei | Sibelius |
|---|---|---|
| runs in the browser / install required | runs in your browser at app.notei.co, with nothing to install. | a desktop install plus mobile apps, with no browser-based editor listed. Avid's Cloud publishing lets others view and play a score in any browser. (source) |
| free tier and its limits | free forever: the full editor, real-instrument playback, MusicXML and MIDI export, and up to 10 scores in the cloud. PDF has a watermark, assistant credits are limited each month, and WAV is on paid tiers. you need a free account. | Sibelius First is free and needs an Avid account; the download includes a 30-day Sibelius Ultimate trial. Avid's own pages give different staff limits: up to 8 staves on the comparison page, up to 4 on the mobile page. (source) |
| price of the paid tier | notei+ is $9/month and full score $18/month; students pay half ($4.50 and $9). this is early pricing and may change. | avid.com lists Artist at $99/year (up to 24 staves), Ultimate at $199/year and the Ultimate perpetual bundle at $899, in USD before tax. prices vary by region; check avid.com. mobile-only starts at $4.99/month in-app. checked on . (source) |
| AI assistant or AI features | a built-in assistant that reads your open score. it answers theory questions, makes plain-language edits, and can harmonise, arrange or vary a line as editable notes. harmonise, arrange, extend, vary and feedback on your writing are on notei+ and full score only. | AI chord suggestions generate and complete chord symbols; on mobile it suggests the most likely chord from the surrounding harmony. no general AI assistant is listed. (source) |
| playback quality | sampled real instruments on every plan, the free one included. | Ultimate has a 35 GB sound library or your own VST3/AU instruments. the comparison page lists 900 MB of high-quality samples for First, Mobile and Artist. Espressivo adjusts rhythm and swing for a human feel. (source) |
| MusicXML import / export | opens MusicXML and MuseScore files as editable scores; MusicXML export is free on every plan. | imports and exports MusicXML. Avid's comparison page lists opening MusicXML and MIDI files for the free Sibelius First, MusicXML import only for Sibelius Mobile, and MusicXML and MIDI import and export from Sibelius Artist up. (source) |
| MIDI import / export | opens MIDI files as editable scores; MIDI export is free on every plan. | imports and exports MIDI; MIDI keyboard input. Avid's comparison page lists opening MIDI files for the free Sibelius First and MIDI export from Sibelius Artist up. (source) |
| PDF export | PDF export on every plan, with a watermark on free and without one on paid plans. | exports PDF (score and parts). Avid's comparison page lists PDF export under Sibelius Ultimate, and not under Sibelius First or Artist. (source) |
| collaboration | no shared editing yet. your scores sync across the devices you sign in on. | Avid's Cloud publishing lets collaborators view and play scores in any browser. Sibelius Cloud Sharing holds 10 scores on First, 20 on Artist and unlimited on Ultimate. simultaneous co-editing is not listed. (source) |
| mobile / Chromebook support | works on a Chromebook, a school laptop, a Mac, a Windows PC or a tablet, because it runs in the browser. there is no native mobile app. | mobile apps for iPad, iPhone, Android and Chromebook (Android 10+); the mobile app starts at the free Sibelius First tier. (source) |
where Sibelius is better
Sibelius has been a standard in professional notation for a long time, and several of its strengths are outside what notei tries to do.
- professional engraving: publication-quality scores, premium fonts, house styles, automatic part generation.
- native mobile apps on iPad, iPhone, Android and Chromebook alongside desktop.
- a large Ultimate sound library (35 GB) plus third-party VST3/AU instruments.
- video sync and timecode support for scoring to picture (Ultimate).
- education content: 1,700+ built-in projects and worksheets.
each point comes from the vendor's own pages, linked under sources at the end of this page.
if your work ends in a publisher's engraved score, or you need video sync to write for film, Sibelius Ultimate is the stronger tool.
where notei is different
the biggest difference is the assistant. Sibelius's AI features suggest and complete chord symbols. notei's assistant answers questions about the score you have open, in plain language, on every plan, and on notei+ and full score it can harmonise, arrange, extend or vary a line as notes you can edit.
notei also runs anywhere a browser does, with nothing to install and nothing to activate. Sibelius covers phones, tablets and Chromebooks with its mobile app instead, and its desktop editions are installs. notei's free plan has no staff limit to work around; it keeps up to 10 scores in the cloud, and the paid plans have no score limit.
notei has no shared editing, no video sync and no engraving controls on the scale of Sibelius's house styles. it is the lighter tool, on purpose.
moving a score from Sibelius to notei
export the score from Sibelius as MusicXML, then open that file in notei. MIDI works too, but it carries only notes and timing, not the notation. notei's import and export have these limits today.
- opening a MusicXML file: the importer reads no tuplets, no ties and no unpitched drums; every import opens at 120 BPM; a minor key arrives under its relative major's name.
- saving as MusicXML: export writes no ties and no tempo.
- PDF export: watermarked on Free; clean on notei+ and full score.
- scores kept in your account: Free keeps up to 10 scores in the cloud; paid tiers have no limit.
after importing, play the score back once and read it against the original, with most attention on tied notes, triplets and the tempo marking.
common questions about notei and Sibelius
is Sibelius free?
its entry edition is. Sibelius First is free with an Avid account, with a staff limit that Avid's pages give as 8 on the comparison page and 4 on the mobile page. Sibelius Artist and Ultimate are paid subscriptions, and Ultimate is also sold as a perpetual licence.
does Sibelius run in a browser?
no browser-based editor is listed. Avid's Cloud publishing lets other people view and play a score in a browser, but writing happens in the desktop or mobile app. notei's editor itself runs in the browser.
can I open Sibelius files in notei?
export them from Sibelius as MusicXML first, then open the MusicXML file in notei. notei opens MusicXML, MIDI and MuseScore files, and the import limits are listed above, so check ties and tuplets after the import.
which is better for students?
it depends on what the school uses. Sibelius has 1,700+ built-in teaching projects and runs on Chromebooks through its Android app. notei runs in any browser with nothing to install, students pay half price on its paid plans, and its assistant explains the theory behind what a student writes.
sources
Sibelius facts, from the vendor's own pages:
- avid.com/sibelius
- avid.com/sibelius/comparison
- avid.com/sibelius/for-mobile
- avid.com/sibelius/first
- my.avid.com/get/sibelius-first
- resources.avid.com/SupportFiles/Sibelius/2024.3/Sibelius_Reference.pdf
notei facts, from notei.co:
Sibelius and Avid are named here only to compare the products, and notei is not affiliated with either. Dorico, MuseScore, Flat and others are on the music notation software alternatives page, and Steinberg's editor has its own page: notei vs Dorico.
other comparisons: notei vs MuseScore, notei vs Flat, notei vs Noteflight, notei vs Dorico and the Finale alternative guide, all on the notation software alternatives hub. related guides: write sheet music online, music notation on a Chromebook.