Frequently Asked Questions

Using the tool

Is Chord to MIDI free?

Yes. Every feature is free to use, and from 30 November 2026 Adsterra's banner ads will be shown on the tool, guide, FAQ and about pages (if you decline cookies, you see A-ADS's ads, which use no cookies); until then there are no ads. Remove Ads (₩6,600 including VAT) is a one-time purchase that keeps ads away while you're signed in to your account.

Do I need an account?

No. You can type, play, download and import without signing in. Signing in (with Google, Kakao, Naver or email) is only needed to buy Remove Ads or to restore it on another device or browser, and your first sign-in creates an account.

Are my MIDI files or progressions uploaded?

No. Your MIDI files and chord progressions are processed on your device and never uploaded. An account is created when you sign in; payment records exist only if you buy Remove Ads.

The chord engine runs in your browser as WebAssembly, your settings and favorites are saved only in your browser, and share links keep the progression after the # in the address, which browsers never send to a server. See the Privacy Policy for details.

Where are my favorites kept?

Only in this browser (localStorage). The four favorites keep each progression as you typed it and its tempo, but they aren't saved to your account or sent to a server, so they don't follow you to another browser or device. Clearing this site's data in your browser deletes them. To take a progression elsewhere, use Copy link or Copy text.

Can I transpose a progression?

Yes. Transpose, after the favorites in the transport bar, moves every chord up or down by semitones, up to eleven either way. Only the roots and bass notes change, spelled for the new key, and ↺ gives back the progression as you typed it. Press Generate to make the transposed MIDI clip. The Guide has examples.

Which DAWs and apps can I use the MIDI files with?

Any DAW or music app that can import a standard MIDI file (.mid). Download the file and import it into your project. You can also wait for the download to finish, then drag the completed file from Chrome's Downloads button at the top right, or from Finder on macOS, into your DAW. For Cubase 15 on macOS, drop the saved file onto a MIDI track.

Dragging the web clip directly into a DAW depends on the receiving app; use the downloaded-file workflow for Cubase 15. Chrome on macOS also lets you drag the web clip to Finder or the desktop to save it first.

The file holds the tempo, a 4/4 time signature and one track of block chords set to the General MIDI acoustic grand piano, and you can play it with any instrument.

Why is my chord reported as unknown?

Chord to MIDI only accepts chords it knows and reports anything else by name instead of guessing, so the clip isn't generated until every chord is understood. Common causes:

The root isn't a letter from A to G, such as the German H. Write B instead.
A length is attached without a space. Write Am(x2) or Am x2, not Amx2.
The note after a slash isn't a note name, as in C/H.
Lowercase roots are joined by a bare hyphen. Write am - dm, not am-dm.
The chord type isn't one the engine knows. The Guide lists every chord type and the other spellings it accepts.

What does Unit do?

Unit sets the length of one step in your progression. With Bar, each chord without a multiplier lasts a bar of four beats; with Beat, one beat. C G Am F is four bars with Bar and one bar with Beat. Beat is handy for fast changes and for chords that don't fill whole bars. When you import a MIDI file, Unit also decides whether the progression is written in bars or in beats.

Can I write in 3/4 or another time signature?

Bars in Chord to MIDI are four beats long, and the MIDI file is marked 4/4. For other meters, set Unit to Beat and give each chord its length in beats: C(x3) G(x3) Am(x3) F(x3) is four bars of 3/4. The timing is right, though the file itself is still marked 4/4. When you import a file in another time signature, its bars are counted in 4/4 and a warning tells you so.

Why does an imported MIDI file look different from what I played?

The importer writes a chord chart, not a note-for-note transcription. Timing is rounded to a grid, a gap shorter than one unit belongs to the chord before it, melody notes far above the chords are left out, a chord played again within the same bar (or beat, with Unit set to Beat) stays one chord, and chord names, slash chords included, are spelled the way a chart in the song's key would write them. If the file changes tempo, the tempo at the first chord is used.

To change the result, try another Grid step, switch Unit, or tick and untick parts under Read chords from. The Guide explains each option.

Does it work on phones and tablets?

Yes. Typing, playback, import and download all work in mobile browsers. On iPhone and iPad, Safari saves a downloaded .mid file to the Files app (in the Downloads folder unless you've changed it), and you can open or share it from there. Dragging the clip out of the page needs Chrome on a computer.

Does it work offline?

Not as an offline app. You need a connection to open the site, and the piano sound is downloaded the first time you play something. Once the page has loaded, generating, playback and import all happen on your device, and your music isn't sent anywhere.

Can I use the MIDI files in my own songs?

Yes. The progressions you type and the MIDI files you make with Chord to MIDI are yours to use, commercial releases included. See the Terms of Service.

Remove Ads and your account

What does Remove Ads include?

Remove Ads is a one-time purchase of ₩6,600, VAT included. It hides any banner ads on Chord to MIDI whenever you're signed in to the Chord to MIDI account you bought it with, on any device or browser, and the ad code isn't even loaded. It applies from the moment you buy it until the service ends, with no time limit. It isn't a subscription, and all the tool's features are the same with or without it.

You pay through Toss Payments by card or with an easy-pay service (간편결제). Your card details go to Toss Payments, not to us.

How do I restore my purchase on another device?

Sign in to the same account on the account page, with any sign-in method linked to it (Google, Kakao, Naver) or with your confirmed email. Your Remove Ads status, purchase date and receipt are shown there, and that browser shows no ads either.

Why do I confirm an email before buying?

Toss Payments sends the receipt to it, and it is your way back into the account if you lose your Kakao, Naver or Google sign-in. We email you a link: open it in a browser signed in to the account. If you signed in by email, it is confirmed already. We use the address only for receipts, to sign you in and for important notices such as the service ending, never for advertising. An email belongs to one account only, and you can change it on the account page.

Yes. Under Sign-in methods on the account page you can link Google, Kakao and Naver to the same account. A Google, Kakao or Naver account can be linked to one account here only, and accounts are never merged because their email addresses match. Once your email is confirmed you can also remove a method.

Choose "Continue with email" and enter your confirmed email: the link we send signs you in to the same account, with Remove Ads. If you can't use that mailbox either, email contact@cultureand.tech with your order number and proof of payment (a card statement or the receipt). Once we have checked them we can move Remove Ads to a new account of yours (one with a confirmed email) by its Account ID; we refuse requests we can't verify.

Can I get a refund?

Yes. Within 7 days of payment you get a full refund on request, whatever the reason and even if you've already used it. After that, we refund within 30 days of payment if the service is defective and can't be fixed, and within the periods set by law if it isn't provided as described.

Email contact@cultureand.tech with your order number (shown on the account page) and your confirmed email address, or request it on the account page. We cancel the payment through Toss Payments within 3 business days of receiving your request. See the Refund Policy for the details.

How do I delete my account?

Open the account page and choose to delete your account. Your sign-in and account details and the sign-in methods linked to it are deleted. Korean e-commerce law requires payment records to be kept for 5 years, so we keep them pseudonymized, with your account identifier and receipt email replaced by values from which they can't be recovered, and delete them when that period ends.

Deleting your account also removes Remove Ads from it, and it can't be restored later: signing in again with the same Kakao, Naver or Google account or email creates a new account without it. If you're within 7 days of buying and want a refund, ask before you delete.