Comparison

Five Star Study App vs Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts

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

Head to head
About

Five Star Study App

Organize your notes and schedules to enhance your study sessions. This tool allows you to manage your academic life efficiently, enabling you to study effectively from any location.

Highlights
  • Note organization
  • Schedule management
  • Study anywhere
  • Study anytime
  • School year tool
Features
Read full description

Organize your notes and schedules with the Five Star® Study App and study anywhere, anytime.

About

Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts

Access your Pearson eTextbooks, video explanations, and study tools in one app. Features include audiobook narration, note-taking, flashcards, and search functionality to enhance your learning experience.

Highlights
  • eTextbook access
  • Video explanations
  • Audiobook feature
  • Note-taking and highlights
  • Searchable content
  • Flashcard creation
Features
Currently charting
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The Pearson+ mobile app provides you access to all your Pearson eTextbooks in one place, as well as curated bite-sized video explanations of complex topics for your toughest college courses. Get started by logging in with the same username and password you created via the web-based version of Pearson+. Feature highlights: -- Anytime, anywhere access to eTextbook content and embedded media assets -- Short video explanations of complex topics to help you succeed in the classroom -- Ability to easily create and refer to your notes and highlights within the eTextbook  -- Have your eTextbook read aloud to you with our audiobook feature (available for most eTextbooks) -- Search across all the content in the eTextbook to easily find exactly what you need -- Create your own flashcards or use pre-built ones to help you study -- Personalize the reading experience to best meet your needs For bug reports or general feedback, please reach out to us at PearsonPlusFeedback@pearson.com.

Screenshots

Five Star Study App4 screens
Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts at 4.8 against Five Star Study App's 2.9. Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts also leads on ratings volume (63K vs 448) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 weeks). On price, 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

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

Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts has 63K ratings behind it against 448, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 24% of Five Star Study App's written reviews are positive against 31% of Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Five Star Study App ships an update every 6 weeks, Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Five Star Study App versus Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFive Star Study AppPearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.9 (448 ratings)4.8 (63K ratings) — better
Positive reviews23.8% of reviews31.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings44863K — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
Best chart rank—#198 — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.616.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size204 MB550 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperACCO Brands USA LLCPearson Education, Inc.

Customer experience

Five Star Study App

All ratings416 ratings
Positive43.5%
Neutral11.8%
Negative44.7%
Written reviews223 reviews
Positive23.8%
Neutral17.9%
Negative58.3%

Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts

All ratings63,257 ratings
Positive96.6%
Neutral1.7%
Negative1.6%
Written reviews416 reviews
Positive31.5%
Neutral13.5%
Negative55.0%

User reviews

Five Star Study App

From 448 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Quick scanning
  • 📁 Organized note-taking
  • 🔋 Helpful for studying
  • 💡 Integrates with Google Drive

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Scanning issues
  • 🔍 Poor image quality
  • 🤯 Buggy and crashes often
  • 🤔 Confusing flashcard feature

Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts

From 63K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Convenient access to textbooks
  • 🎧 Useful audio feature
  • 📚 Helpful study tools (flashcards, quizzes)

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy highlighting and page navigation
  • 📱 Poor usability on mobile devices
  • 🔍 Lack of search and page number features
  • 💰 Expensive for limited functionality

Bugs and requests

Five Star Study App

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App gets stuck on loading screen
  • Scans not saving properly
  • Camera not working
  • Flashcards not functioning as expected

Requested features

4 requests
  • Handwriting to text conversion
  • Ability to edit scanned notes
  • Better iPad support
  • More customization options

Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Textbooks failing to load or display properly
  • Audio playback issues and lack of syncing
  • Inconsistent behavior when switching apps or rotating devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved highlighting and annotation tools
  • Better syncing between devices and web version
  • Page number support
  • Split-screen and landscape mode on tablets

In-app purchases

None

Five Star Study App

No in-app purchases

None

Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Five Star Study App free?
Five Star Study App is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts free?
Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Five Star Study App or Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts?
Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts is rated higher. Five Star Study App averages 2.9 out of 5 from 448 ratings, while Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts averages 4.8 from 63K ratings.
Do Five Star Study App or Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts have ads?
Neither Five Star Study App nor Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Five Star Study App or Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts?
Five Star Study App ships an update every 6 weeks, and Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts fortnightly. Most recently, Five Star Study App was updated on October 29, 2026 and Pearson+ | Study Prep & eTexts on November 3, 2026.

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