Writing piano music by hand takes hours. A piano sheet music maker does the engraving for you, so the time you spend is on the music, not on lining up beams and stems. Flat is one of these tools and runs entirely in your browser. This article covers how to write your first piano score, what to keep in mind when notating for piano specifically, and how to share what you've made.
Writing your first piano score in Flat
Open Flat, sign in, and start a new score. When you pick piano from the instrument list, Flat sets up the grand staff for you: treble clef on top, bass clef on the bottom, connected with a brace. You don't configure anything. Click any rest and either type the note name, click the staff position, or tap the on-screen piano keyboard. Note durations sit in the top toolbar. Chords are built by holding Shift and stacking pitches. The step-by-step tutorial covers the rest if you want a fuller walkthrough.
Piano-specific features that matter
A piano score isn't just notes on two staves. Here's what Flat gives you for the things pianists actually need to write:
- Independent voices per staff. A piano part usually has a melody in one hand and a different rhythm in the other. Flat supports up to four voices per staff so a sustained whole note in the left hand can sit under a running eighth-note line above.
💡 How voices work in Flat. - Pedal markings with playback. Sustain pedal shapes harmony as much as the notes do. Flat supports both the traditional Ped/* style and the bracketed line style, and the playback actually sustains the notes between the start and end marks.
💡 Pedal markings in Flat. - Fingering numbers. If you're writing for students or for yourself across difficult passages, add 1–5 fingerings above any note.
💡 How to add fingerings. - Chord symbols. Lead-sheet style chord symbols (Cmaj7, F♯m, Bb7) sit above the staff and follow your style preferences (m vs −, maj vs △). Useful for pop, jazz, and worship piano arrangements.
💡 Chord notation in Flat. - MIDI keyboard input. Plug in a USB or Bluetooth MIDI keyboard and play directly into the score instead of clicking notes one by one. Flat splits the input automatically across the two staves.
💡 MIDI input setup. - Arpeggios and ornaments. Rolled chords, mordents, turns, and trills are one click each and play back correctly.
💡 Arpeggio markings.
Sharing and exporting your piano score
When the score is ready, click Share for a public link, invite collaborators by email for real-time editing, or open the export menu to download as PDF, MIDI, or MusicXML. PDF is what most pianists want for reading from a stand or tablet. MIDI moves the score into a DAW if you're producing the track. MusicXML lets another notation tool open the file without losing anything. A piano teacher reviewing a student's arrangement can open the same score live and leave comments, and the student sees the edits appear in real time.
Find inspiration in the Flat community
Flat hosts more than 100,000 user-published scores, with piano among the most popular instruments. Browse the community scores to see how other composers voiced a chord, paced a phrase, or used the pedal — it's often faster than staring at a blank staff. You can clone any public score into your own account and start editing from there.
Why Flat for piano
Most piano notation tools require an install and a learning curve before you write a single note. Flat opens in your browser, the grand staff is ready as soon as you create the score, and the playback uses studio-recorded piano samples rather than a generic MIDI sound. Real-time collaboration lets a teacher, co-arranger, or producer work in the same score with you without sending files back and forth.
Ready to write your first piano piece? Try Flat for free!
FAQ
How do I write piano sheet music online for free? Sign up for a free Flat account, create a new score, choose piano, and start entering notes. The free tier covers personal use, including PDF export and public sharing, with no install or credit card required.
Is Flat free for piano composers? Yes. The free plan includes the grand staff, playback, PDF export, and public sharing. Paid plans add more instruments, private scores, and advanced features, but the free plan is enough for most personal piano writing.
Can I export my piano score to PDF? Yes. Open the score, click Export, and choose PDF. The export uses the same engraving as the editor view and works on the free plan. MIDI and MusicXML are also available.
Does Flat support two-handed piano notation with separate voices? Yes. The grand staff appears automatically when you choose piano, and each staff supports multiple independent voices. You can write a melody in the right hand with a different rhythm in the left without any setup.
Can I collaborate with someone on a piano score in real time? Yes. Share the score with another Flat user and you can both edit it at the same time, seeing each other's cursors. This is useful for teachers reviewing student work or co-arrangers in different cities.