The Songwriting App Built for the Moment Inspiration Strikes
Song Cage is the songwriting tool for everything that happens before you hit record. Start anywhere: a chord progression, a melody, a line of lyrics. The rest follows. Experiment freely, learn music theory as you go, and get the song idea down before it fades.
or use it free in your browser
or use it free in your browser
14 days of Pro free, no card · or own the desktop app + DAW plugin for $79, yours to keep $79 once, yours for life · free 14-day trial, no card · no subscription $79 once, yours for life · free 14-day trial, no card · no subscription Free on the App Store · no card, no subscription Free on Google Play · no card, no subscription
Watch the walkthroughWatch how Song Cage works
A two-and-a-half minute walkthrough: a melody in Wander mode, chord suggestions ranked against the notes, lyrics with rhymes and the Explore panel, all on a single canvas.
You're using three tools to do one job, and losing ideas in the gaps
You figure out the chords
Built for recording or scoring, not songwriting. No lyric tools, no chord theory suggestions, no way to understand why a progression works or where it could go next.
You capture the idea
The words land in one place, the melody in another, the chords somewhere else. You come back two days later and the magic is gone, because nothing was connected.
You search for the right word
Switching apps mid-session kills flow. By the time you find the rhyme and get back, you've lost the thread of where the song was going.
Song Cage is the songwriting tool that replaces all three: a chord palette with guitar and piano voicings, a lyric workspace with built-in rhyme finder, and music theory that connects them, all on a single DAW-style canvas built to capture song ideas fast.
Capture your song idea. Then give it everything.
Song Cage has two moves: capture the idea before it fades, then develop it with tools that understand your song.
Capture it
Start anywhere: a chord progression, a melody, a line of lyrics. No setup, no required order. Just get the idea into the canvas before it disappears.
Chords and melody, wired together
Start with chords and lock your melody to the progression. Notes snap to chord tones as you write. Start with a melody and the chord palette reshapes around it, surfacing the chords that fit what you've already played. Change either one and the other responds.
Lyrics wired to rhythm and meaning
Write lyrics first and build the rhythm and melody around them. Syllables sit on beat positions, each one carrying its own pitch. Or lay down chords and a melody first and write words that land exactly where they need to. Click any word for rhymes, slant rhymes, and synonyms grouped by syllable count.
Theory that shows you where to go
Every chord available in your key: diatonic, borrowed, secondary dominants, with extensions that improve voice leading. A modulation panel that maps pivot chord routes between any two keys. You don't need to know the theory to use it, and you'll learn it just by writing.
Everything a songwriter needs.
Nothing they don't.
See Every Chord Under Your Fingers
Guitar and piano chord voicings for every songwriter: exact fingering diagrams for open positions, barre chords, capo-adjusted shapes, and jazz voicings. Switch to Piano mode for keyboard-based songwriting. Whether you play guitar, piano, or both, Song Cage meets you where you are.
- Full fretboard diagram for every chord
- Multiple positions per chord (open, bar, jazz)
- Capo-friendly transposition
- Input notes directly on the guitar scale
Know Where the Song Can Go Next
A chord progression builder with the music theory built in: pick your key and instantly see every chord available to you, from diatonic chords to borrowed chords and secondary dominants. No music theory book required. Song Cage surfaces the right harmonic choices so you can focus on writing.
- Roman numeral labels for every chord’s function
- Borrowed chords from five parallel modes
- Secondary dominants with resolution arrows
- Modulation panel: pivot chords to any key
- Chord extensions: maj7, sus2, add9, and more
- Related keys map (circle of fifths visual)
Your Whole Song on One Canvas
A DAW-style song timeline for melody and lyrics: drag chord blocks, arrange sections, and see your full song structure at a glance. Verse, chorus, bridge, all laid out and in sync with your lyrics. Record audio directly in the app to capture the moment as it happens.
- Drag-to-rearrange chord and lyric blocks
- Verse / Chorus / Bridge section structure
- Sheet view and Timeline view, switch anytime
- Undo / redo, unlimited history
The Right Word, Without Leaving the Line
A lyric writing app with rhyme suggestions built in: type freely in the lyric workspace, then click any word to instantly see rhymes, slant rhymes, synonyms, and semantic suggestions. No more switching tabs to RhymeZone mid-session.
- Perfect rhymes + slant rhymes by syllable count
- Synonyms for fresher word choices
- Semantic drift: thematically related words
- Verb/Noun generator from any root word
How Song Cage compares to other songwriting tools
Every other tool handles a piece of the songwriting process. Song Cage handles all of it (chord progressions, music theory, lyrics, and a rhyme finder) on one connected canvas. See how it stacks up.
| Song Cage | DAWs (Logic, GarageBand) | Hookpad | Guitar Pro | Notes App | RhymeZone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In-key chord palette | ✓ | Chord Track (Logic) | ✓ | Library only | – | – |
| Context-aware chord suggestions | ✓ | – | Basic | – | – | – |
| Guitar & piano voicings | ✓ | – | – | ✓ | – | – |
| Melody input & snap to chords | ✓ | MIDI / audio (Logic) | ✓ | – | – | – |
| Modulation panel & pivot chords | ✓ | – | – | – | – | – |
| Learn why chords work | ✓ | – | Separate book | – | – | – |
| DAW-style drag & drop canvas | ✓ | ✓ | Limited | – | – | – |
| Lyric writing workspace | ✓ | – | Basic | – | ✓ | – |
| Rhyme finder & word tools | ✓ | – | – | – | – | ✓ |
| Speed-first idea capture | ✓ | Heavy UI | Moderate | Heavy UI | Text only | – |
| Collaboration & sharing | ✓ | File export only | – | File sharing | ✓ | – |
| Price | $9/mo ($7/mo annual) or $79 one-time (desktop + plugin) | Free–$200 | $7.99 + $14.99 AI | ~$70 one-time | Free | Free |
What songwriters are saying
I used to keep Guitar Pro, a notes app, and RhymeZone open simultaneously. Song Cage replaced all three. The modulation panel alone saved my last EP. I had no idea how to get from Dm to F# until it just showed me the pivot chords.
The Word Tools are genuinely better than anything I've used. Slant rhymes grouped by syllable count means I'm never forcing a lyric to fit the rhythm, it just flows. This is the first songwriting tool that understands how lyrics actually work.
As a guitarist who's terrible at notation, this is everything. I can see the actual chord shapes, drag the blocks around like a DAW, and the borrowed chord library showed me colour I didn't know I had access to. Subscribed in 20 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write chord progressions for beginners?
Song Cage is built for exactly this. Pick a key and the app shows every chord that fits (diatonic, borrowed, and secondary dominants) with guitar fretboard diagrams or piano voicings so you can actually play them. Tap any position on the timeline and the chord palette ranks suggestions based on the chord before it, the chord after it, and the melody notes at that beat, so you’re not guessing, you’re choosing from what actually works in context. Every chord is labeled by function, so you learn why it works as you use it. Start with a melody instead and the palette reshapes around what you’ve already written. No music theory knowledge required: you pick it up naturally just by writing.
Is there an app to write songs with chords and lyrics together?
That’s exactly what Song Cage does. Write lyrics in a familiar notepad-style sheet view with chords above the words, or switch to the DAW-style timeline where every syllable sits on the beat grid and carries its own melody note. Both views share the same data. Click any word to see rhymes, slant rhymes, and synonyms instantly, or open the Explore tab to break through writer’s block by following chains of semantically related words or generating unexpected pairings with the Word Collider. Change a chord and the melody guidance updates. Move a lyric block and its rhythm, syllable splits, and pitches move with it. Everything stays connected because it was never separate to begin with.
What’s the best app to capture song ideas fast?
Song Cage is built for exactly that moment: guitar in hand, idea in your head. Open the app, pick a key, and you’re writing in seconds. Start anywhere (a chord progression, a melody, a line of lyrics) with no required order and no setup screen. Record audio directly in-app so the melody doesn’t disappear. Capture chords on the timeline with guitar or piano voicings, write lyrics in the sheet view, and sketch a melody with notes that snap to chord tones. Everything you put down is connected, so when you come back later the idea is still whole, not scattered across three different apps.
Do I need to know music theory to use Song Cage?
Not at all. Song Cage teaches you as you write. Hover over any suggested chord and the app explains why it works: “Classic ii-V-I cadence,” “borrowed from Aeolian,” or “part of the I-V-vi-IV pop progression,” along with voice leading smoothness and how many of your melody notes are chord tones. The modulation panel shows named routes between keys with pivot chords and cadential patterns. You’re not memorizing theory from a textbook, you’re seeing it applied to your own song in real time. Over time you’ll need the suggestions less. That’s not a problem. That’s the point.
Is there a desktop app for Mac or Windows?
Yes. Song Cage Desktop is a native app for macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel) and Windows. It lives in your dock or taskbar, opens in one click, and works fully offline: write on a plane or anywhere without Wi‑Fi. It costs $79 once with a 14-day free trial, no subscription, and it’s free for current Pro and Band subscribers. Sign in and your songs sync with the web app automatically. Get the desktop app →
Is there a Song Cage app for iPhone and Android?
Yes, and it’s free. The Song Cage idea-capture app is on the App Store and Google Play, and it works fully offline with no account: record a melody, sketch lyrics, or build a chord idea the moment it strikes. The full editor lives on the web and desktop, where you turn those sketches into finished songs. Add Pro or Band to sync your captures across every device. More about the mobile app →
Does Song Cage work inside my DAW?
Yes. The Song Cage Plugin puts the same chord palette, lyric editor, and word tools inside Logic Pro, Ableton Live, FL Studio, Cubase, Reaper, GarageBand, and Studio One. It ships as AU and VST3 on macOS and VST3 on Windows, and it generates MIDI: chords and melody stream to your own instruments in sync with the host transport. Songs save inside your DAW project. It comes with the $79 one-time purchase alongside the desktop app, free for current Pro and Band subscribers, with a 14-day free trial. Get the plugin →
Does Song Cage use AI to write songs?
No. Song Cage is a song maker with no AI. There’s no prompt-to-song, no AI-written lyrics, and no model-generated melodies. Every suggestion in the app comes from music theory: chord rankings score against harmonic context and voice leading, modulation routes walk a graph of pivot chords, and the word tools are dictionary lookups grouped by syllable count. Even Auto Chords, the one-click harmonize button, is a deterministic rule-based scorer rather than a generative model. The creativity stays with you. Read more about the no-AI philosophy →
Own it once, or sync it everywhere
Start free on the web, or capture on the go with the free iPhone and Android apps. Own the native Mac or Windows app outright, or add a plan when you want cloud sync and collaboration.
Yours to keep, with free v1.x updates. No subscription.
14-day free trial · macOS & Windows
Start free, then add Pro or Band only when you want cloud sync across devices and collaboration.
Or skip the trial and go Pro from day one
Cancel anytime. Nothing is ever deleted. No hidden fees, ever.
Start writing your next song, for free
Song Cage is free to start. No credit card, no setup, no friction. Join the songwriters already capturing ideas faster with chords, lyrics, and music theory in one place.
Free on iPhone and Android. Capture anywhere, sync to every device.
14 days of Pro free · No credit card · Cancel any time Free 14-day trial · $79 once, yours for life · included free with Pro or Band Free 14-day trial · $79 once, yours for life · included free with Pro or Band