Comparison

Smart Phonics vs First Phonics

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

Head to head
About

Smart Phonics

This educational series systematically introduces basic phonics skills to young learners of English as a Foreign Language. It equips children with essential reading and writing tools through engaging stories and songs that incorporate common sight words.

Highlights
  • Systematic phonics introduction
  • Basic reading and writing tools
  • Sight words integration
  • Phonics stories and songs
  • Five-book series
Features
Read full description

Smart Phonics is an easy-to-teach phonics series developed for elementary school children learning English as a Foreign Language. Throughout the five books series, basic phonics skills are introduced in a simple and systematic way while providing children with efficient tools for basic reading and writing. Smart Phonics also introduces a great number of common sight words embedded in fun phonics stories and songs. In this way, children can run sight words naturally and effortlessly.

About

First Phonics

This educational app helps young children learn English phonics through interactive games, animations, and storybooks. It covers alphabet sounds, word recognition, and reading skills across multiple levels.

Highlights
  • Alphabet letter sound videos
  • Phonics word flashcards
  • Interactive skill-building activities
  • Chants and songs for practice
  • Review games
  • Alphabet tracing
  • Phonics storybooks
Features
Read full description

*Spotlight on First Phonics* ■ Overview From learning the alphabet letters to reading stories! Bricks Spotlight on First Phonics, a program designed for children studying English for the first time, has a mobile app which makes it easy and fun to study phonics. With animations, chants, games, storybooks, and a variety of other components, children can study phonics in ways which cater to a multitude of learning styles. *Visit the Bricks website below for further information. https://www.hibricks.com ■ Features Student Book: Level 1 to Level 5 1. - Sound: Learning the alphabet letter sounds through videos - Flashcard: Learning phonics words through sounds and images - Activity: Building phonics skills through various activities - Chant: Practicing letter-sound recognition skills through singing chants - Game: Playing games to review letters and sounds 2. - Alphabet Chant: Learning the alphabet letters and sounds through a video - Alphabet Tracing: Learning to write each letter of the alphabet by tracing it Storybook: Level 1 to Level 5 1. Story: Reading a collection of stories with phonics words 2. Song: Viewing story animations and joining along with songs ■ How to acquire and apply: 1. Install the app and download the appropriate level. 2. Click on the level, and children can learn phonics with the multi-content provided.

Screenshots

Smart Phonics4 screens
First Phonics4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Smart Phonics at 46% against First Phonics's 9%. First Phonics's advantage is update cadence (every 11 days vs every 5 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Smart Phonics ships an update every 5 months, First Phonics every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on June 8, 2026 and September 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Smart Phonics versus First Phonics: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSmart PhonicsFirst Phonics
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (7 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews46.3% of reviews — better8.7% of reviews
Number of ratings7 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 11 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS10.0 — better11.0
Further details — not scored
Size474 MB506 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developere-future Co., Ltd.Bricks Education

Customer experience

Smart Phonics

All ratings7 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews41 reviews
Positive46.3%
Neutral17.1%
Negative36.6%

First Phonics

Written reviews23 reviews
Positive8.7%
Neutral13.0%
Negative78.3%

In-app purchases

None

Smart Phonics

No in-app purchases

None

First Phonics

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Smart Phonics free?
Smart Phonics is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is First Phonics free?
First Phonics is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Smart Phonics or First Phonics have ads?
Neither Smart Phonics nor First Phonics shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Smart Phonics or First Phonics?
Smart Phonics ships an update every 5 months, and First Phonics every 11 days. Most recently, Smart Phonics was updated on June 8, 2026 and First Phonics on September 7, 2026.

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