DuetStudio
DuetStudio gives private music teachers web-based tools for scheduling lessons, keeping notes, assigning practice, invoicing, and sharing a student portal.
What DuetStudio is
DuetStudio gives private music teachers web-based tools for scheduling lessons, keeping notes, assigning practice, invoicing, and sharing a student portal. Teachers can schedule one-off or recurring lessons, track attendance, manage cancellations, and send automatic morning-of email reminders. Lesson notes can be shared with students and parents or kept private. Students use an emailed magic link, without a password, to see lessons, assignments, practice logs, and shared notes; they can also record practice time and track completion. Online invoice payments use Stripe, and teachers can list Venmo, Zelle, or Cash App details. DuetStudio says it takes no share of lesson payments. The free plan includes manual invoicing. The Organization plan is marked “Coming soon.” DuetStudio works on phones and tablets as a responsive web app, but has no native mobile app. Student imports are not available, so students must be added manually.
Good
- Supports recurring lessons and attendance tracking
- Lesson notes can be shared or kept private
- Student portal works through an emailed magic link
- Stripe invoice payments and manual payment details
- Responsive web app works on phones and tablets
Watch out
- No native mobile app
- Student records must be added manually
- Organization plan is marked “Coming soon”
Who it suits
The free plan may suit hobby teachers and college students teaching on the side, while Pro is aimed at full-time solo teachers. The Organization plan is intended for multi-teacher studios and small academies, though it is marked “Coming soon.”
Verdict
DuetStudio brings lesson administration and student practice tracking into a single web app, with a free plan and additional Pro features. Consider the lack of student imports and native mobile apps if those matter to your workflow.
Plans and prices
From DuetStudio's own pricing page, checked 15 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | unlimited students · recurring lessons · notes · assignments · portal · invoices · reminders · for good |
| Pro | $12 a month | everything in Free · card payments · automatic invoicing · signed policies · music library · custom branding · monthly |
| Pro annual | $120 a year | Pro features · 5 GB music library · paid yearly; 2 months free |
| Organization | $208 a year | Everything in Pro for every teacher · teacher and admin roles · roster assignment · studio dashboard · 7-month reports · audit log · billing modes · public studio profile · 50 GB shared music library · coming soon · billed annually · min 2 seats |
The facts
Each one read from DuetStudio's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- API and SDK
- The public integrations page documents calendar and payment connections but provides no API or SDK details.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Automatic invoicing
- Pro can send invoices automatically on the teacher’s chosen schedule.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Calendar integrations
- Google Calendar, Apple Calendar and Outlook subscriptions are listed as Free integrations.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Cancellation behavior
- Canceling Pro returns an account to Free while retaining students, lessons and invoices.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Criticism: perceived redundancy
- A Reddit commenter criticized the product as another app that teachers might not need, reflecting skepticism about adding another tool.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Data and tracking
- DuetStudio says it does not use third-party analytics, advertising trackers, or marketing cookies, and does not sell user data.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Founder background
- In a Reddit launch post, the maker says the product creator is a percussionist who taught lessons through college.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Import limitation
- Student import from another tool is not yet available; the support page says it is on the roadmap and students can currently be added manually.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- The maker describes Free as suited to hobby teachers and college students teaching on the side, Pro to full-time solo teachers, and Organization to multi-teacher studios and small academies.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Invoices
- Free invoices can display Venmo, Zelle, Cash App or PayPal payment details.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Lesson digest
- The service sends a daily email digest containing the day’s lessons.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Lesson notes
- Teachers can write lesson notes and pair them with practice assignments.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: missing makeup credits
- The maker confirmed in Reddit comments that makeup credits were not implemented.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: missing messaging
- The maker confirmed in Reddit comments that parent messaging was not implemented.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Listed employee
- LinkedIn lists Jason Guzman among DuetStudio employees.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Mobile access
- DuetStudio is a responsive web app that works on phones and tablets, and the support page says there is no native mobile app yet.checked 3 Oct 2026
- Music library
- Pro includes a 5 GB library for sharing sheet music.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Original project scope
- The maker says DuetStudio was originally built for a small group of friends and later grew into a larger project.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Payment fees
- DuetStudio says it takes no share of family payments; Stripe’s standard processing rate applies to Pro card payments.checked 15 Oct 2026
The company
- Company description
- LinkedIn describes DuetStudio as a free studio-management platform for independent private music teachers.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Company size
- LinkedIn lists DuetStudio at 2–10 employees.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Ownership
- LinkedIn identifies the company as privately held.checked 15 Oct 2026
Money
- Early free-tier limit
- The Reddit launch post described an early Free tier as supporting up to 30 active students and unlimited inactive students.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Organization plan
- The Organization plan adds multi-teacher management, studio reporting, an audit log, billing controls, and a shared music library, and the page labels it “Coming soon.”checked 3 Oct 2026
The full review of DuetStudio
DuetStudio is a browser-based administration hub for private music teachers, combining calendars, lesson records, student practice and billing. It suits independent instructors who want a student-facing workflow without per-student limits; larger teams and teachers migrating an existing roster face more constraints. The strongest case is its unusually broad free plan, while its paid tiers add automation and reporting rather than basic access.
Overview
DuetStudio puts recurring studio tasks in one web app: schedule lessons, record attendance, write notes, assign practice, issue invoices and let students follow their work. A student portal opens through an emailed magic link, so students and parents do not need to remember a password. Teachers control sharing note by note, keeping sensitive observations private while publishing useful guidance.
That model works well for a solo studio starting from scratch. There is no student import yet, so moving a roster from another system means entering each student manually. The responsive interface works on phones and tablets, but teachers wanting a dedicated mobile application will not find one.
Key features
Scheduling and records
The week calendar supports one-off and recurring lessons, attendance, cancellations and automatic morning-of email reminders. Notes attach directly to lessons, with separate private and shared visibility. This gives teachers a practical record of teaching while allowing families to see only intended material.
Practice and student access
Students see upcoming lessons and assignments in the portal, log practice time and mark work complete. The arrangement makes practice accountability part of the same workflow as lesson administration rather than a separate messaging routine.
Invoicing and payments
Free users create invoices manually. Pro adds automatic invoicing, online card payments through Stripe and automatic receipts. Teachers can also display Venmo, Zelle or Cash App details, and DuetStudio says it takes no share of lesson payments. That flexibility helps teachers who use several payment habits, though card processing still runs through Stripe.
Security and privacy
DuetStudio describes HTTPS/TLS, Supabase Auth, row-level security and environment-separated API keys for protection. It says it uses no third-party analytics, advertising trackers or marketing cookies and does not sell user data. Support is available through the contact page or [email protected].
Pricing
Free
Free costs nothing and allows unlimited active and inactive students. It includes scheduling, the calendar, lesson notes and assignments, the student portal with practice tracking, a notebook, manual invoicing, email notifications and reminders. This is a substantial fit for hobby teachers and college students teaching on the side, especially when automation and card receipts are not priorities.
Pro
Pro costs $120 a year, billed annually ($10.00/month equivalent). It includes everything in Free plus online card payments with automatic receipts, practice analytics, repertoire tracking, automatic invoicing, a music library, a public booking and lead-capture page, and custom branding. Full-time solo teachers are the natural audience: the annual commitment buys less clerical work and better visibility into student progress.
Organization
Organization costs $208 a year, billed annually, with a minimum of two seats, and is marked coming soon. Every teacher receives Pro features, alongside teacher and admin roles, roster assignment, a studio dashboard, seven-month reports, an audit log, billing modes, a public studio profile and a 50 GB shared music library. Multi-teacher studios and small academies should view it as the intended destination, not an immediately available operating plan.
Platforms
DuetStudio runs on the web and adapts to phones and tablets. There is no native mobile app, so mobile use depends on the browser experience.
Who it's for
Choose it if you are an independent music teacher who wants unlimited students, structured practice follow-up and optional payment automation in one place. Free is particularly well matched to side-teaching and hobby studios; Pro makes more sense for a full-time solo practice that needs automatic invoices, analytics or public booking. A team studio should wait for Organization, while anyone requiring roster migration or a native app should look elsewhere.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Unlimited students on Free: growing studios are not forced into a per-student upgrade.
- Controlled note sharing: private teaching observations can remain separate from family-facing guidance.
- Integrated practice tracking: assignments, practice logs and completion live alongside lessons.
- Flexible payments: Stripe cards plus displayed Venmo, Zelle and Cash App details cover different payment preferences.
- Privacy-conscious approach: no advertising trackers, marketing cookies or sale of user data is stated.
Cons
- Manual migration: students from another tool cannot be imported yet.
- No native app: phone and tablet access is browser-based.
- Key automation is paid: automatic invoicing, analytics, repertoire tracking and public booking require Pro.
- Organization is not ready: multi-teacher controls are tied to a plan marked coming soon.
Alternatives
For a wider category comparison, see Music Lesson Scheduling Software.
Adagio is a freemium option on Android, iOS and the web, and comes from the nonprofit team behind Musopen.org; pick it when broad device coverage matters.
Nova Music offers iOS and web access with a free tier capped at 10 students and includes group lessons, messaging and 100 MB storage; it suits a small roster seeking those communication tools.
OPS is for musicians needing score-library and setlist management, with a free organization tier for up to 20 pieces, three setlists and two accounts.
Clefwise provides iOS and web plans, including a free three-student tier with scheduling, invoicing, online payments and a parent portal.
CogNote is a self-hosted, freemium project built by a working piano studio; choose it when hosting control is more important than a managed service.
Harness is a web-based freemium manager whose Hobby plan supports up to five students and includes a family portal plus financial tracking.
Shinnpad offers an always-free web Studio plan for up to 10 students, with roster, campuses, manual payments and a read-only parent portal.
Trio is a web freemium service limited on Free to one teacher, 10 students, 50 SMS reminders and 25 AI credits per month, with online payments excluded.
Verdict
DuetStudio is a strong choice for solo private teachers who want unlimited students and a coherent lesson-to-practice workflow at no cost, with Pro available for automation and business-facing features. Look elsewhere if importing an existing roster, using a native mobile app or managing multiple teachers today is essential.
