App-based music learning keeps undercutting traditional lessons on price, and the latest example is flowkey: a one-year Classic Plan is currently $29.97, down from a regular $189, per PCWorld.

The value proposition targets the pain points of private instruction. Weekly piano lessons lock students into fixed time slots and a recurring bill that can run far beyond $30 a month, let alone a year. flowkey instead offers self-paced learning on an iPad or other device, with a library of more than 1,000 classical pieces to work through.

Apps like flowkey typically listen to playing through the device microphone or a connected keyboard and give real-time feedback, letting learners practice whenever they want. The obvious trade-off is the absence of a human teacher who can correct posture, technique, and bad habits before they set in — something software still handles imperfectly.

At roughly $2.50 a month over the year, though, the discounted plan prices itself as a low-risk entry point for beginners, or a practice supplement for students who already take occasional lessons.