Comparison

Rylo vs CaptionCall

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

Head to head
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.

About

CaptionCall

This app provides real-time, live captions for phone calls, enabling deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to communicate effectively. It offers a free, secure, and private way to make and receive calls with automatic transcription, accessible anywhere with internet service.

Highlights
  • Live call captioning
  • Real-time transcription
  • Customizable display
  • Secure and private
  • Use WiFi or mobile data
  • Voicemail alerts
Features
Read full description

CaptionCall Mobile empowers deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to make and receive phone calls with instant live captions. CaptionCall Mobile offers captioned phone calls in real-time at no cost to qualified deaf and hard-of-hearing users in an easy-to-use mobile app that integrates seamlessly into daily life and work. Why CaptionCall? No more landlines. CaptionCall Mobile goes where you go, allowing you to make and receive captioned calls from your mobile device anywhere with WiFi or mobile data service. Fast, accurate, and easy, CaptionCall automatically transcribes both sides of your conversation in a customizable easy-to-read format, using advanced voice to text for deaf and hard-of-hearing that is 100% private and secure. Accurate call captions appear in real-time for free-flowing, natural conversation. No cost, ever. As an FCC-approved captioned call service, CaptionCall provides 100% no-cost call captioning to those with qualified hearing loss, thanks to a federally-administered fund. GETTING STARTED WITH CAPTIONCALL MOBILE IS EASY: 1. Install the CaptionCall Mobile app 2. Create an account. You must provide accurate account information to meet federal requirements and enable your service. 3. Receive your new CaptionCall Mobile phone number for making and receiving captioned calls. Or you can continue using your existing phone number and automatically forward them to CaptionCall Mobile on your mobile device or tablet for captioning. 4. Tap “Allow” when asked to grant permissions to CaptionCall Mobile. You'll have quick access to your saved contacts, captioned voicemail and voicemail alerts, and can dial and receive calls from any phone number, just like your regular phone. 5. Use CaptionCall Mobile to start making calls with instant live captions. CaptionCall Mobile is exclusively for people with hearing loss who need captions to use the phone effectively in the United States only. CaptionCall and CaptionCall Mobile are available in the United States 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. The CaptionCall phone and app remain the property of Sorenson in order to provide ongoing support, service, and upgrades. Patent information: www.Sorenson.com/Legal. Please report any bugs and feedback to Happy calling! Thanks, The CaptionCall Mobile Team

Screenshots

Rylo4 screens
CaptionCall4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: CaptionCall at free against Rylo's free with in-app purchases. CaptionCall also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.6). Rylo's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs fortnightly) and chart position (#140 vs unranked). On price, review sentiment, 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

CaptionCall holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3.7K and 3.6K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Rylo's written reviews are positive against 74% of CaptionCall's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Rylo ships an update every 5 days, CaptionCall fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Rylo versus CaptionCall: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRyloCaptionCall
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (3.7K ratings)4.8 (3.6K ratings) — better
Positive reviews67.7% of reviews74.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3.7K — better3.6K
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#140 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS16.616.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size105 MB110 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperNagish Inc.MachineGenius

Customer experience

Rylo

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

CaptionCall

All ratings3,565 ratings
Positive96.5%
Neutral1.3%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews159 reviews
Positive74.2%
Neutral6.9%
Negative18.9%

User reviews

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

CaptionCall

From 3.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great captioning quality
  • 🚀 Fast and accurate transcription
  • 🔓 Ability to use own phone number
  • 💡 Saves call transcripts for reference
  • 👍 Helpful for hearing-impaired users

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional dropped calls
  • 🐛 Inconsistent performance
  • 🔒 Privacy concerns with personal data
  • 🐛 Caller ID issues
  • 🐛 Difficulty with voicemail

Bugs and requests

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

CaptionCall

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Login/connection issues
  • Captions not showing up during calls
  • Keypad blocking captions

Requested features

4 requests
  • Automatic language detection and switching
  • Text-to-speech functionality for mute users
  • Customizable tone/volume settings
  • Improved integration with phone dialer

In-app purchases

None

Rylo

No in-app purchases

None

CaptionCall

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Rylo free?
Rylo is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is CaptionCall free?
CaptionCall is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Rylo or CaptionCall?
CaptionCall is rated higher. Rylo averages 4.6 out of 5 from 3.7K ratings, while CaptionCall averages 4.8 from 3.6K ratings.
Do Rylo or CaptionCall have ads?
Neither Rylo nor CaptionCall shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Rylo or CaptionCall?
Rylo ships an update every 5 days, and CaptionCall fortnightly. Most recently, Rylo was updated on September 23, 2026 and CaptionCall on September 24, 2026.

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