Sometimes you're on the go and have a great idea for a song.
You then want to could record it, write down lyrics, or draw some further inspiration to work on the idea more.
Note: This article includes affiliate links where the author may receive a commission.
Here are 5 songwriting apps that can help you make note of and build on your ideas.
1. Suggester
Suggester is a tool to help musicians create better songs and chord progressions.
Basically, the app helps you write better songs by suggesting chords that will work well with the ones you have.
Once you've generated a list of suggestions, you can just tap to hear them. Tapping the suggested chords in different patterns can help you put together new awesome chord progressions on the go.
With the free version, you can access any major scale suggestions. To unlock all of the scales is $5.99 one time.
2. Evernote
Evernote is an awesome note-taking app that stores your notes in the cloud.
While you could stick to the notes app on your Android or iOS device, this ties you to the operating system you're using now and makes it hard to change.
If you use Evernote to make note of your new song, chord progression, or lyric ideas, they're stored in the cloud and are easily accessible if you change from iOS over to Android.
Evernote offers 60MB of notes each month for free, but if you want more you can upgrade to one of their paid plans - plus ($34.99/year) or premium ($69.99/year).
3. Hum
Hum combines note-taking and recording into a single app, making it easy to capture all of your songwriting ideas. Hum a tune or write down lyric ideas all in the same app. You can even sync everything with Dropbox.
For Hum, there is no free version. The app costs $2.99 one time.
4. NanoStudio
NanoStudio is a recording studio on the go. It includes a virtual analog synth, sample trigger pads, a sequencer, a sample editor, a mixer, and multiple effects to choose from to use in your song.
It has almost everything you'll need to master your songs on the go, or just record some new ideas.
You can even share your work by emailing it to your friends or band members from within the app.
The app is $6.99 on the app store. With this version, you can record up to 6 instruments at once. You can upgrade to record up to 16 instruments for an additional $4.99.
5. Songwriter's Pad
Songwriter's Pad is a songwriting app that focuses mainly on creation through lyrics.
The app has powerful idea generating tools such as the ability to search for rhyming words and a keyword based phrase generator.
You can also record with the app, add chord notation to your lyrics, and takes notes all in a nicely organized user interface.
The app is $9.99 on the app store with in-app purchases available for additional features.