Is Gig Friend's Hobby Plan Enough for Your Band?

The Hobby Plan: What You Actually Get

Choosing a subscription for any music tool feels like a gamble. You do not want to overpay for features you will never use, but you also do not want to hit a wall two months in and realize you need to upgrade. The Gig Friend Hobby Plan sits in the middle of our pricing tiers, and for a lot of bands, it is the sweet spot. But is it enough for yours?

Let us break down exactly what the Hobby Plan includes, walk through some real scenarios, and help you figure out whether it fits or whether you should be looking at a different tier.

What the Hobby Plan Includes

At $30 per month, the Hobby Plan gives you:

• 20 songs in your library
• 3 bands you can create or join
• 2 editors per band (members who can add and edit songs, not just view)
• Unlimited gigs and sets — no cap on how many gigs you schedule or setlists you build
• 10 AI credits per month for stem splitting, lyric extraction, and other AI-powered features
• Full access to all core features: song section mapping, waveform editor, teleprompter, drag-and-drop setlists, and band collaboration

The unlimited gigs and sets part is important. Some tools limit the number of setlists you can create, which is absurd when you are a gigging band building fresh sets every week. We do not do that on any paid plan.

Scenario 1: The Acoustic Duo

Profile: You and a mate play acoustic covers at pubs and restaurants. You have a core repertoire of about 15 songs that you rotate through, learning a couple of new ones each month and retiring older ones.

Does the Hobby Plan work? Absolutely. With 15 active songs and a maximum of 20 in your library, you have room to breathe. You are in one band, well under the 3-band limit. The 2-editor cap means both of you can add songs and build setlists. And 10 AI credits is more than enough to split a few stems each month when you are learning new songs.

Verdict: The Hobby Plan is perfect for this scenario. You could even stay on it comfortably for years without needing to upgrade.

Scenario 2: The 4-Piece Cover Band

Profile: A classic pub and club cover band. You have built up a repertoire of 25 songs, with plans to add more. The guitarist and singer manage the song library, while the bassist and drummer mostly just need to view setlists and access material.

Does the Hobby Plan work? This is where it gets tighter. With 25 songs in your repertoire, you are over the Hobby Plan’s 20-song limit. You have a couple of options:

1. Trim the library. If there are 5 songs you rarely play, remove them to stay within 20. You can always re-add them later.
2. Upgrade to Ultimate. If 25 songs is a floor, not a ceiling, and you plan to keep growing, the Ultimate Plan removes the song limit entirely.

The 2-editor limit is likely fine here. Typically it is one or two people who actually manage the library while the rest of the band just needs access to the material.

Verdict: The Hobby Plan works if you are disciplined about keeping your library lean. If your repertoire is growing beyond 20 and you do not want to manage it, upgrade.

Scenario 3: The Multi-Band Musician

Profile: You play in two bands and occasionally dep for a third. Your main band has 18 songs, your side project has 12, and the dep band sends you material as needed.

Does the Hobby Plan work? The 3-band limit fits perfectly. But the 20-song limit is shared across all your bands. If Band A has 18 songs and Band B has 12, that is 30 songs total — well over the Hobby Plan’s cap.

Now, some of those songs might overlap between bands. If both bands play the same arrangement of a song, it only counts once. But if the arrangements are different (which they usually are), they are separate entries.

Verdict: For multi-band musicians, the Hobby Plan is often too restrictive on song count. Check our pay-as-you-go vs. subscription breakdown to see whether PAYG or Ultimate makes more sense for your volume.

Scenario 4: The Seasonal Rotator

Profile: Your wedding/function band has a large total repertoire of 40+ songs, but you only keep about 15-18 active at any time. You rotate songs in and out seasonally — summer party anthems give way to Christmas classics, and so on.

Does the Hobby Plan work? This is a smart way to use the Hobby Plan. The 20-song limit applies to what is in your library at any given time, not a lifetime total. If you are disciplined about archiving songs you are not currently performing and only keeping your active set loaded, 20 slots is workable.

The workflow looks like this: as the season changes, remove the songs you are shelving and add the ones coming into rotation. Your setlists from previous gigs remain in your gig history, so you never lose track of what you played where.

Verdict: The Hobby Plan works well for seasonal rotators who manage their library actively. It requires a bit more housekeeping than having unlimited songs, but it saves you $35 per month compared to Ultimate.

Tips for Maximizing the Hobby Plan

Keep Your Library Lean

Think of your 20 song slots as your “active repertoire.” If you have not played a song in three months and have no plans to, remove it. You can always add it back.

Use AI Credits Strategically

Ten AI credits per month is enough if you are intentional. A stem split costs one credit. Lyric extraction costs one credit. If you are learning two or three new songs a month and want both stems and lyrics for each, that is six credits — well within your budget.

If you need more in a specific month (say you are overhauling your entire setlist), unused credits do not roll over, but you can always grab additional credits through our pay-as-you-go option without upgrading your whole plan.

Let the Right People Edit

With 2 editors per band, choose wisely. Usually it is the musical director or bandleader and one other organized member. Everyone else in the band gets full read access — they can view songs, see setlists, and use the teleprompter on stage. They just cannot add or modify songs.

Build Setlists Freely

Since gigs and sets are unlimited, take full advantage. Build a setlist for every gig, even if it is similar to the last one. Having a record of what you played at each venue is invaluable when you get rebooked and want to mix things up. Our guide to building the perfect setlist covers the strategy side.

When the Hobby Plan Is Not Enough

There are clear signs it is time to upgrade:

• You are constantly at 20 songs and juggling what to remove
• You are in more than 3 bands or regularly dep for multiple acts
• You need more than 2 editors per band (large function bands with 7+ members who all need edit access)
• 10 AI credits feels tight every month
• You are treating music as a primary income and the organizational overhead of managing limits is costing you time

If any of these sound familiar, read our breakdown of when to upgrade to the Ultimate Plan. At $65 per month, it removes every limit and gives you 50 AI credits — and for a working musician, that is less than you earn from a single gig.

The Bottom Line

The Gig Friend Hobby Plan is genuinely enough for a lot of bands. If you are an acoustic duo, a small band with a focused repertoire, or a seasonal rotator who manages their library actively, $30 per month covers everything you need with room to spare.

The key question is whether your song count and band count fit within the limits. If they do, you are set. If they do not, our other plans — including pay-as-you-go — have you covered.

Start with the Hobby Plan and see how it fits. You can always upgrade later, and we will never lock you out of your existing data. Check out the plans and sign up here.