Comparison

ClearCaptions Mobile vs Rylo

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

Head to head
About

ClearCaptions Mobile

This mobile app provides real-time captions for all your phone calls, ensuring you don't miss any part of the conversation. It's designed for individuals with hearing loss and offers a free service with no contracts or hidden fees. Enjoy captioned voicemails, 3-way calling, and customizable caption display.

Highlights
  • Real-time call captioning
  • Free personal phone number
  • Captioned voicemail
  • 3-way calling
  • Call waiting
  • Adjustable caption font and color
  • Bluetooth support
Features
Read full description

See every word your callers say. From the provider of innovative in-home phone captioning comes this mobile version for individuals with hearing loss. Wherever you go, you can enjoy captioned mobile calls so you’ll never miss a word. This service is available at NO-COST to individuals whose hearing loss inhibits their phone use — no contracts, no fees, no hidden charges. ClearCaptions Mobile gives you the most accurate, near real-time captioning of what your caller says. ClearCaptions is an FCC-certified service made possible through a federally-funded program. Features: • Free account with a personal ClearCaptions Voice phone number for captioned calls • Captions for incoming and outgoing calls • Free voicemail with captions • 3-way calling • Call waiting • Call contacts from iPhone contact list • Call favorites • Call history with saved captioned calls • E911 support • Caption font and color adjustment • Bluetooth® enabled ClearCaptions is available in the United States and its territories only. FEDERAL LAW PROHIBITS ANYONE BUT REGISTERED USERS WITH HEARING LOSS FROM USING INTERNET PROTOCOL (IP) CAPTIONED TELEPHONES WITH THE CAPTIONS TURNED ON. IP Captioned Telephone Service may use a live operator. The operator generates captions of what the other party to the call says. These captions are then sent to your phone. There is a cost for each minute of captions generated, paid from a federally administered fund. No costs are passed along to individuals who qualify for the service.

About

Rylo

This app provides real-time call captioning for phone conversations, making them accessible for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. It also offers live transcription for in-person meetings and supports multiple languages, with a focus on user privacy and community input.

Highlights
  • Real-time call captioning
  • Live in-person conversation transcription
  • Keep existing phone number
  • Save and review transcripts
  • Personal dictionary
  • Type responses
  • Voicemail transcription
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Phone calls made accessible. Rylo provides real-time, AI-powered call captions on every phone call for anyone who is deaf or has hearing loss. Captioned calls are private and accurate. MAKE AND RECEIVE ANY CALL Rylo works like your native phone app, but with speech-to-text call captions. If you prefer to type your responses, you can choose a voice and use our text-to-speech feature. No interpreters. No relay services. No strangers listening in. LIVE CAPTIONS FOR REAL LIFE Our built-in feature, Rylo Live Transcribe, captions in-person conversations instantly: family dinners, doctor's appointments, airports, or anywhere else you don't want to miss a word. YOUR PRIVACY IS PROTECTED Captions are generated with end-to-end encryption. No human involvement. No one reading your calls but you. BUILT FOR THE DEAF COMMUNITY, BY THE DEAF COMMUNITY Rylo was built with direct input from the Deaf and hard of hearing communities. Every feature exists because someone in the community needed it. Accessibility matters. KEY FEATURES ■ Live caption calls with transcripts ■ Live captioning for in-person moments (Rylo Live Transcribe) ■ Personal dictionary for custom words and phrases ■ Quick keyboard responses as needed ■ Visual voicemail ■ Save transcripts privately on your device ■ Multilingual captioning: English, Spanish, French, Japanese, Hebrew, Italian ■ Built-in spam filter and call blocking ■ Profanity blocker ■ FCC certified "Rylo is the true definition of a game-changer. Their goal is to ensure effective and smooth communication." — Verified user "I was able to make a phone call myself. I set up my own appointment. I could clearly read every word the recipient was saying to me. I explained to her I was deaf and I was using closed captioning. It was amazing. Thank you Rylo for allowing me to be more independent." — Verified user Download Rylo. Make calls with confidence. For more: https://rylo.com/ Support: https://help.rylo.com/en/ FEDERAL LAW PROHIBITS ANYONE BUT REGISTERED USERS WITH HEARING LOSS FROM USING INTERNET PROTOCOL (IP) CAPTIONED TELEPHONES WITH THE CAPTIONS TURNED ON. There is a cost for each minute of captions generated, paid from a federally administered fund. There are also eligibility requirements and a cost, paid by a federally administered fund for each minute of IP Relay service. Emergency calling through Rylo works similar to, but not the same as, calling 911 directly through a landline. It is important to keep your Rylo Registered Location updated.

Screenshots

ClearCaptions Mobile4 screens
Rylo4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Rylo at every 5 days against ClearCaptions Mobile's every 2 months. Rylo also leads on review sentiment (68% vs 50%) and chart position (#140 vs unranked). ClearCaptions Mobile's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.6). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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

Rylo holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.8K and 3.7K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of ClearCaptions Mobile's written reviews are positive against 68% of Rylo's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ClearCaptions Mobile ships an update every 2 months, Rylo every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
ClearCaptions Mobile versus Rylo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterClearCaptions MobileRylo
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (1.8K ratings)4.6 (3.7K ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews67.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.8K3.7K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#140 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS12.0 — better16.6
Further details — not scored
Size105 MB105 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperClearCaptions, LLCNagish Inc.

Customer experience

ClearCaptions Mobile

All ratings1,847 ratings
Positive83.3%
Neutral4.8%
Negative11.9%
Written reviews78 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral5.1%
Negative44.9%

Rylo

All ratings3,658 ratings
Positive90.4%
Neutral2.5%
Negative7.1%
Written reviews368 reviews
Positive67.7%
Neutral5.4%
Negative26.9%

User reviews

ClearCaptions Mobile

From 1.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🙌 Helpful for hearing-impaired users
  • 👍 Improves phone accessibility
  • 💯 Life-changing service
  • 🤝 Great customer support

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Unreliable call quality and connectivity
  • ⏱️ Delayed captions and transcription
  • 🤖 Inaccurate automated transcription
  • 🔒 Privacy concerns with caller ID

Rylo

From 3.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Accurate real-time transcription
  • 👍 Helpful for hearing-impaired users
  • 🚀 Seamless phone call experience
  • 👍 Excellent customer support
  • 💡 Innovative solution for accessibility

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Inconsistent call quality and connectivity issues
  • 🐛 Captions not always accurate
  • 🐛 Difficulty with registration and account setup
  • 🐛 Lack of features like call blocking and voicemail management

Bugs and requests

ClearCaptions Mobile

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Frequent app crashes
  • Missed calls and voicemails
  • Issues with password recovery

Requested features

3 requests
  • Ability to save call transcripts
  • Improved compatibility with other devices
  • More language support for transcription

Rylo

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Registration process repeatedly fails
  • Incoming calls not detected by the app
  • Transcription stops working mid-call

Requested features

4 requests
  • Option to save call transcripts
  • Improved noise cancellation and microphone sensitivity
  • Integration with hearing aids and Bluetooth devices
  • Expanded language support

In-app purchases

None

ClearCaptions Mobile

No in-app purchases

None

Rylo

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ClearCaptions Mobile free?
ClearCaptions Mobile is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Rylo free?
Rylo is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, ClearCaptions Mobile or Rylo?
Rylo is rated higher. ClearCaptions Mobile averages 4.4 out of 5 from 1.8K ratings, while Rylo averages 4.6 from 3.7K ratings.
Do ClearCaptions Mobile or Rylo have ads?
Neither ClearCaptions Mobile nor Rylo shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ClearCaptions Mobile or Rylo?
ClearCaptions Mobile ships an update every 2 months, and Rylo every 5 days. Most recently, ClearCaptions Mobile was updated on September 22, 2026 and Rylo on September 23, 2026.

Other comparisons