# The Phonics App — Learn to read with phonics

> Learn to read with a research-led, non-addictive phonics approach. (iPhone/iPad app by Phonics Folk Ltd.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-phonics-app/id6742649576 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Phonics Folk Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1799167050)
- Category: Education, Productivity
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.80/5 from 100 App Store ratings · 36 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 15.6 · 248 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2025-03-09
- Data updated: 2026-08-29
- Monetization: freemium
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-phonics-app/id6742649576/reviews.md

## What is The Phonics App?

This multi-award-winning phonics app can help absolutely anyone learn to read. Join thousands of people around the world learning to read with The Phonics App! 

"We loved The Phonics App, as it has been specifically designed NOT to be addictive, and doesn't rely on dopamine hits for kids' rewards."
- MadeForMums Tech Awards 2025 Editor's Choice.

"A beautifully designed, calm, and research-led approach to early literacy that stands out in a market dominated by highly gamified products"
- Digital Education Awards 2025 Highly Commended

The Phonics App Features:
* Learn the a-z sounds and how to blend 2 and 3 letter words completely free. 
* Subscribe to learn all the other sounds and practise with 400+ words.
* ⁠⁠Video guidance from an expert phonics teacher every step of the way.
* Beautifully simple - just tap the words to hear the sounds they're made of.
* Learn how to pronounce all of the sounds of English (with an English accent).
* ⁠Build up your knowledge of phonics, one sound at a time.
* ⁠Learn how to read and understand common irregular (tricky) words.
* ⁠Informal checks at the end of each section to reinforce your learning.
* ⁠Learn both lower case and capital letters.
* Learn to decode nearly every English word.
* No collectibles, coins or dopamine rewards!

Why did we make this app?

Jonny is a father of two and started making this app to teach his kids to read. It worked really well, so he showed it to Miss Mabel (founder of Reading Roots, community of 750k parents and teachers learning phonics) to see if it would be useful to other people. She said yes, and had a lot of ideas how to make it better! So they spent AGES making 'The Phonics App', and now it's finally ready for you.

We hope it helps you learn to read too!

Miss Mabel & Jonny

Subscriptions in this app follow standard Apple Terms of Use (EULA) which you can read here: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

## Key features

- Learn a-z sounds and word blending
- Expert video guidance
- Simple tap-to-hear sound interface
- Learn English sound pronunciation
- Practice with 400+ words
- Learn irregular (tricky) words
- Informal learning checks

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Access Everything Yearly | $29.99 | per year |
| Access Everything Quarterly | $12.99 | per 3 months |
| Access Everything Monthly | $4.99 | per month |


## Recent user reviews (10 of 36)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-phonics-app/id6742649576/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Thank you

*2026-07-14, version 2.4*

We used the Phonics App to help my daughter with her year 1 screening. It was brilliant and she gained full marks on her assessment. Thank you so much

### 5/5 — Brilliant app

*2026-06-04, version 2.3*

Great app, my 3 year old is reading lots of cvc words now.

### 5/5 — Five stars

*2026-05-09, version 2.3*

Excellent resource for teaching my 3 year old phonics sounds! I’m so happy I found this. We do five minutes at a time just to get familiar. Excited to keep using. Just wanted to share an idea, if we could have an option to open up pictures for each of the letter sounds. So when we see the s and click on it and hear sssss there should be an option to click and see a few things that start with ssss like snake or sand or socks. That would be super cool. Such a great app regardless and great to give screen time while still learning 😍

### 5/5 — Simple & to the point 💕

*2026-03-20, version 2.3*

Love this app as a tool to help our child on his reading journey. We had a previous app that had games and all sorts of flashing lights which I found distracting. I felt like it took a while for us to really dive in and a lot of the time we’d avoid sitting down and using it with him. What I love about this one is that it’s simple and to the point. We can pick it up anytime and practice 5-10 minutes or whatever suits us. I believe these consistent micro sessions add up and have contributed to his overall progress rather than having big one off practice sessions - that we’d ultimately put off. It also helps someone like me who doesn’t need to add to the mental load, I don’t need to think or plan, we just pick it up and ‘do’. 
For context, he is 7 and this has really complimented his reading. We are now going to commence with our 5 year old as she has started showing interest. Thank you!

### 5/5 — A supportive app

*2026-03-16, version 2.3*

My daughter enjoys the phonics app which has in turn helped her confidence both with phonics, words and sounds. There are some sounds which are different to what she does at school but we are mindful of that. The main point is she wants to do it and enjoys the variety and the flexible nature of going through the sections and picking and choosing what she wants to work on. Thank you.

### 5/5 — Filly

*2026-01-16, version 2.2*

This is so helpful thank you

### 4/5 — Very good, but…

*2025-11-21*

The narrator has just the slightest British accent. The phonics on vowels ‘o’ and ‘u’ in particular are slightly off compared to American accents and it causes some confusion with my son.  We worked through it. Overall it’s a very good app. If they fixed those two vowels for American english or gave a couple accent options to choose from I’d give it 5 stars

### 5/5 — Best App

*2025-11-12, version 2.2*

My son has learned how to read. All thanks to the app, it's fantastic, excellent value for the price. And excellent customer service

### 5/5 — Amazing phonics

*2025-10-09, version 2.2*

I really love this app because it helps my child understand phonics really well!

### 1/5 — Adult female Sabina

*2025-08-15*

I love this

**Developer response:** We are so glad to hear you love our app Sabina. Is there any reason you only have us one star? Thanks!

## Frequently asked questions about The Phonics App

### What does The Phonics App do?

The Phonics App is designed to teach users how to read using a phonics-based approach. It focuses on learning individual letter sounds, blending those sounds to form words, and understanding common irregular words. The app aims to help users decode nearly every English word.

### What are the key features of The Phonics App?

Key features include learning the a-z sounds and how to blend 2 and 3 letter words for free. A subscription unlocks all sounds and practice with over 400 words. The app provides video guidance from an expert phonics teacher, a simple tap-to-hear interface, pronunciation of English sounds, and informal checks to reinforce learning.

### How much does The Phonics App cost?

The app offers a free tier where users can learn the basic a-z sounds and how to blend 2 and 3 letter words. To access all sounds and practice with over 400 words, a subscription is required. Subscription details follow standard Apple Terms of Use.

### Who is this app for?

This app is suitable for anyone who wants to learn to read or improve their reading skills. It is particularly beneficial for early learners, but its research-led approach and comprehensive features make it useful for a wide range of ages and learning needs.

### What makes this app different from other reading apps?

This app distinguishes itself by being specifically designed *not* to be addictive, avoiding gamified rewards like collectibles or dopamine hits. It offers a research-led, calm approach to early literacy with expert video guidance, focusing on building reading skills through understanding sounds and blending.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 2.4 — 2026-06-23

Added a new 'swipe along the words' feature to make sounding words out easier for tiny fingers.

### 2.3 — 2026-02-21

Small updates and tweaks to make The Phonics App even better.

### 2.2 — 2025-09-07

Small improvements to make The Phonics App Even better!

### 2.1 — 2025-07-08

Tweaks to make the app even better - The Phonics App is the 'Made For Mums Editor's Choice' in their 2025 Tech Awards!

### 2 — 2025-06-23

New instructions to help you learn to use The Phonics App + tweaks to make The Phonics App even better!

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-29.*