Comparison

i Can Spell with Phonics LITE vs P21

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

i Can Spell with Phonics LITE

This app helps young children learn to spell by breaking words into phonetic chunks and sounding them out. It uses vibrant photos and meaningful sentences to reinforce learning, offering a fun and independent way for kids aged 5-7 to build spelling success.

Highlights
  • Phonic chunk breakdown
  • Words in sentence context
  • Vibrant photos
  • Independent learning design
  • Reward games
  • Customizable word lists
Features
Read full description

Free "LITE" version includes 40 words. Full version teaches 150 sight words with regular spelling. Easy to use – Top quality recorded speech – Educationally sound – It gets results! Breaks words into "phonic chunks" and sounds them out. Words are taught in meaningful sentence context with vibrant photos. It's like training wheels for spelling success! Ages 5 to 7, plus Remedial, ESL and Special Needs. Designed for children to use independently – Hours of learning fun. Begin learning two letter words, CVCs, short vowel sounds and simple rimes, before moving on to consonant blends, common digraphs, including: sh, ch, th, ck, oo, ee, ow, ou, ay, ai, oa, and r-controlled vowels: ar, ir, or, er. i Can Spell with Phonics provides an easy introduction for beginning spellers, with no irregular words, no typing, and no spelling tests (these will be introduced in our later apps!) TO PLAY... Simply tap "PLAY" and pick one of the five words to start (from easy to hard). Or pick a word list from 1 to 15, CVC words, a short vowel or digraph, or pick your own "My Words" list. Each 10-word-lesson is made up of three activities, followed by a reward game. Activity 1: Tap on the "phonic chunks" to build and sound-out each spelling word. Activity 2: Name the pictures: Drag the vowels, beginning letters, rimes or digraphs to complete the words. (This may be completed strategically, or by trial and error.) Activity 3: More "phonic chunks", but this time the spelling words are put in context, with engaging sentences and vibrant photographs. Reward Game: Choose between "Match the Pairs", "Word Search", "Fish Food" and "Space Rescue". NO ADS – NO IN-APP PURCHASES – NO WORRIES! All links and app settings are placed behind a parental gate. VOICE OPTIONS: American, British and Australian English TEACHERS: If you find the reward arcade games too distracting for your classroom, these may be turned off (in "Settings"), enabling students to play word games only. Please visit our developer website (link found at the bottom of this page) to view videos, get the app guide, and free worksheets! SYNTHETIC OR ANALYTIC PHONICS? Our apps systematically break words into phonemes and sound them out. The whole word and phonics are presented together. Neither is given priority, because the phonemic and visual aspects are BOTH important when learning to read and spell. i Can Spell with Phonics teaches spelling through immersion and repeated exposure both visually to the correct spelling, as well as hearing and actively sounding out the words. Phonics is taught explicitly, and the words are also placed in meaningful sentence context. The words included are phonemically regular sight words, however the vocabulary is not limited to the extent required by most "synthetic phonics" programs, which tend to dictate a specific order in which to introduce phonemes. If required, teachers can pick their own words for the lesson using "My Words" (words must be chosen from the 150). We use a traditional pronunciation of "w" and "y" ("wuh" and "yuh"). Our apps are designed to be highly educational, fun to play, and also take into consideration the needs of struggling literacy learners. A GREAT START... Whether you are buying this app for your four year old who has already mastered the sounds of the alphabet, or for your eight year old who still struggles to read, i Can Spell with Phonics will provide them with intensive phonics practice which is easy, fun and effective.

About

P21

This educational app supports a four-level phonics series for young learners. It offers audio tracks, videos, flashcards, and games to help children build foundational skills in phonological awareness, reading, and spelling.

Highlights
  • Audio tracks from student books
  • Educational videos
  • Keyword flashcards
  • Phonics games
  • Progress tracking
Features
Read full description

P21 is a four-level phonics series for young learners. With the P21 App, you can listen to audio tracks from the P21 student books, watch videos in each unit, review keywords with flashcards, and play interesting phonics games. It contains all of the resources you need when learning phonics using the P21 series. Through the P21 series, children are able to build solid foundations in phonological awareness, oral language, phonics, reading, and spelling. The Alphabet, Short Vowels and Special Letters, Long Vowels and Blends, and Controlled Vowels and Digraphs are covered in the series. With P21 and the P21 App, your 21st century kids will become experts in the sounds of English.

Screenshots

i Can Spell with Phonics LITE4 screens
P214 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: P21 at 5.0 against i Can Spell with Phonics LITE's 2.0. P21 also leads on update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 5 months). i Can Spell with Phonics LITE's advantage is iOS requirement (6.0 vs 11.0). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

P21 holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

i Can Spell with Phonics LITE ships an update every 5 months, P21 every 6 weeks. Both last shipped on November 2, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
i Can Spell with Phonics LITE versus P21: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameteri Can Spell with Phonics LITEP21
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS6.0 — better11.0
Further details — not scored
Size81 MB226 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMichael HarveyCAVES BOOKS LTD.

Customer experience

i Can Spell with Phonics LITE

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

P21

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

i Can Spell with Phonics LITE

No in-app purchases

None

P21

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is i Can Spell with Phonics LITE free?
i Can Spell with Phonics LITE is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is P21 free?
P21 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, i Can Spell with Phonics LITE or P21?
P21 is rated higher. i Can Spell with Phonics LITE averages 2.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while P21 averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do i Can Spell with Phonics LITE or P21 have ads?
Neither i Can Spell with Phonics LITE nor P21 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, i Can Spell with Phonics LITE or P21?
i Can Spell with Phonics LITE ships an update every 5 months, and P21 every 6 weeks. Most recently, i Can Spell with Phonics LITE was updated on November 2, 2026 and P21 on November 2, 2026.

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