Geoboard, by MLC vs ScratchUP
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Geoboard, by MLC
Explore mathematical concepts like perimeter, area, and fractions by stretching virtual bands around pegs to form shapes. This open-ended educational tool is ideal for elementary and middle school learners, offering multiple board types and drawing tools for interactive discovery.
- Create line segments and polygons
- Multiple board types (square, rectangular, circular)
- Shape duplication and transformation
- Fill shapes with transparent color
- Display grid lines with numbering
- Drawing and annotation tools
- Save and share work
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Geoboard is a tool for exploring a variety of mathematical topics introduced in the elementary and middle grades. Learners stretch bands around the pegs to form line segments and polygons and make discoveries about perimeter, area, angles, congruence, fractions, and more. This virtual version of the manipulative is an open-ended educational tool, ideal for elementary classrooms and other learning environments. FEATURES • Create line segments and polygons by stretching bands around the Geoboard’s pegs. • Choose from 8 different band colors. • Fill individual shapes with a transparent color, or use the Fill All button to toggle all the bands between filled and unfilled. • Switch between the standard 25-peg square board, a rectangular board with 150 pegs, or a circular board with 13 pegs. The circular board enables explorations with angles, fractions, and time measurement. • Duplicate shapes then move, rotate, or flip them to explore symmetry and congruency. • Change the color of selected bands. • Display grid lines with or without numbering to more easily calculate area and identify shape locations. •Hide and reveal work with resizable covers to create your own problems and model strategies. • Use the drawing tools to annotate work and show understanding. • Add equations, expressions, and descriptions with the math text and writing tools. • Share your work by saving an image or providing a share code to others. MORE APPS For more Geoboard resources and other apps, visit:www.mathlearningcenter.org/apps LEARN MORE To learn about Bridges in Mathematics, an elementary curriculum that employs visual models such as the geoboard, please visit: www.mathlearningcenter.org/bridges/overview ABOUT US This app is brought to you by The Math Learning Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to K-12 math education since 1976. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Geoboard app was made possible by a generous donation from Dr. David Moursund. This app was crafted by Clarity Innovations. We help improve teaching and learning by creating solutions that match promising technologies with the needs of education. Visit us at: www.clarity-innovations.com
ScratchUP
This app allows users to learn, teach, and play with code. It offers a variety of features for creating educational activities, including sensor integration, machine learning capabilities, and math tools. Compatible with Scratch files, it provides an offline coding experience for students and educators.
- Scratch file compatibility (.sb2, .sb3)
- Sensor event integration (touch, keyboard, camera, Bluetooth)
- Machine learning for object and sound recognition
- Body detection, Handpose, and Facemesh
- QRCode scanner
- Math tools for learning
- Offline app functionality
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ScratchUP is the perfect app for students, teachers, and anyone who wants to learn coding. Use it in the classroom or at home to create interactive projects, explore programming concepts, and design educational activities with endless possibilities. Scratch-compatible: open and save .sb2 and .sb3 files with ease. Build richer projects by combining touch events, keyboard input, camera features, and Bluetooth sensor data. A fullscreen offline app packed with powerful features: - Virtual keyboard for managing key events - Bluetooth connection to devices such as micro:bit - Body Detection, Hand Pose, and Face Mesh powered by machine learning - QR code scanner - Train your own object recognition models with machine learning - Import Teachable Machine models to recognize objects and sounds - Built-in math tools for easier learning - Control the front and back cameras directly in code - New Function extension for creating more advanced programs - New option to hide blocks in the interface and in scripts for a cleaner workspace - Native iPadOS export to share projects instantly via AirDrop or email - Export scripts as images to easily add them to worksheets, lessons, or other documents Code, learn, teach, and play — all in one app. Enjoy!
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Geoboard, by MLC at Free against ScratchUP's $0.99. Geoboard, by MLC also leads on ratings volume (17 vs 4). ScratchUP's advantage is update cadence (every 4 months vs every 39 months). On rating, review sentiment, 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
Geoboard, by MLC is free to download; ScratchUP costs $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 3.9 for Geoboard, by MLC against 4.0 for ScratchUP. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 17 and 4 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 81% of Geoboard, by MLC's written reviews are positive against 75% of ScratchUP's.
Geoboard, by MLC ships an update every 39 months, ScratchUP every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Geoboard, by MLC | ScratchUP |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $0.99 |
| Rating | 3.9 (17 ratings) | 4.0 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 81.3% of reviews — better | 75.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 17 — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Every 39 months | Every 4 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPad | iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 476 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | The Math Learning Center | Ulrich PICAUD |
Customer experience
Geoboard, by MLC
ScratchUP
In-app purchases
Geoboard, by MLC
No in-app purchases
ScratchUP
No in-app purchases
Questions
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Is ScratchUP free?
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