Comparison

Bubbles & Friends vs Build Fluency

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

Head to head
About

Bubbles & Friends

This app offers a safe, ad-free learning experience for preschoolers, blending interactive books, games, and videos to build confidence and school readiness. It focuses on developing early math, reading, and social-emotional skills through play and music.

Highlights
  • Interactive educational games
  • 300+ interactive books
  • Educational videos and songs
  • Early math and reading skill development
  • Social-emotional learning
  • Ad-free and safe environment
  • COPPA-compliant
Read full description

Start your child’s learning journey with Bubbles and Friends, a safe, ad-free preschool learning app designed to help children build confidence, curiosity, and school readiness through play. Created by The Learning Experience, a trusted leader in early childhood education, Bubbles and Friends blends expert-backed curriculum with music, storytelling, and interactive learning adventures that help children develop essential early learning skills while having fun. With 300+ interactive books, educational games, videos, and songs, children can explore at their own pace while building structure, independence, and a love of learning. LEARNING GAMES THAT BUILD EARLY MATH AND READING SKILLS Children strengthen foundational preschool and kindergarten readiness skills through hands-on educational games designed to support cognitive development and problem-solving. Kids practice: • Counting and number recognition • Patterns, shapes, and early math concepts • Phonics and letter sounds • Early reading and literacy development • Critical thinking and STEM skills • Memory, focus, and independent learning Each activity supports toddler learning and preschool education milestones through guided play that feels fun, rewarding, and confidence-building. INTERACTIVE BOOKS THAT SUPPORT LANGUAGE AND READING DEVELOPMENT Read along with Bubbles and Friends through engaging digital storybooks that help children develop vocabulary, comprehension, and listening skills. Interactive reading features help children: • Strengthen language development • Improve reading comprehension • Build storytelling and imagination skills • Encourage independent reading confidence • Support early childhood literacy growth Perfect for toddlers, preschoolers, and early readers beginning their reading journey. EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS AND MUSIC THAT REINFORCE LEARNING THROUGH MOVEMENT Join Bubbles and Friends on playful educational adventures that combine music, movement, and storytelling to support whole-child development. Children learn: • Social-emotional skills and friendship building • Emotional awareness and self-expression • Creativity and imaginative play • Motor skill development through music and dance • Curiosity, exploration, and discovery learning Music-based learning helps improve memory retention while encouraging active participation and joyful learning. STRUCTURE THAT SUPPORTS ROUTINES, PROGRESS, AND SCHOOL READINESS Bubbles and Friends helps families create healthy learning routines that support independence and developmental growth. Activities grow with your child, reinforcing key academic and social milestones that prepare them for kindergarten and beyond. A SAFE, AD-FREE LEARNING SPACE FOR KIDS Families can feel confident knowing Bubbles and Friends provides: • COPPA-compliant child privacy protection • 100% ad-free preschool learning • Age-appropriate preschool content • Safe independent exploration for children • Trusted early childhood curriculum FOR THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE FAMILIES Enrolled families can stay connected to their child’s classroom through built-in communication and center connection tools: • Receive photos, daily activity tracking, and progress updates • Follow classroom milestones and growth • Get real-time announcements and reminders • Access to secure entry for safe, streamlined check-in WHY PARENTS CHOOSE BUBBLES AND FRIENDS Bubbles and Friends blends trusted preschool curriculum with joyful educational entertainment. Through games, books, music, and interactive play, children build kindergarten readiness, social skills, and early academic foundations in a safe, structured environment designed for growing minds. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Build Fluency

This app helps you move beyond simple recognition of information to true understanding. Practice explaining concepts in your own words, either by writing or speaking, to build mental maps and strengthen recall. It's designed to help you think more clearly and speak with greater confidence.

Highlights
  • Practice explaining concepts
  • Written or spoken responses
  • Structured feedback
  • Build mental maps of subjects
  • Strengthen knowledge recall
  • Develop connected understanding
Features
Read full description

Most studying stops at recognition. You may remember a term or follow a definition, yet still struggle to explain the idea clearly in your own words. Fluency is designed to close that gap. The app helps you build a mental map of a subject by practicing explanation. Respond to prompts in writing or out loud, get structured feedback, and develop the kind of understanding that makes ideas easier to remember, use, and express. Fluency is built on two simple principles: - The best way to retain knowledge is to put it into your own words - The best way to understand something is to explain it to someone else Each session helps you: - Clarify what you actually understand - Notice gaps or weak connections in your thinking - Strengthen recall through active explanation - Build a clearer sense of how concepts fit together Over time, Fluency helps you map the territory of a domain. Instead of isolated definitions, you build connected understanding: concepts, vocabulary, and relationships that make the subject make sense as a whole. Domains include: - Economics - Psychology - Game Theory - Political Thought - Western Philosophy Whether you are studying for class, deepening your understanding, or following your curiosity, Fluency helps you move from recognition to real fluency, so you can think more clearly, explain ideas more effectively, and speak with greater confidence.

Screenshots

Bubbles & Friends4 screens
Build Fluency4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Build Fluency at 100% against Bubbles & Friends's 54%. Build Fluency also leads on update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 weeks) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Bubbles & Friends's advantage is ratings volume (13K vs 1) and iOS requirement (13 vs 15.0). 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. Bubbles & Friends sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Build Fluency sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Build Fluency holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bubbles & Friends has 13K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 54% of Bubbles & Friends's written reviews are positive against 100% of Build Fluency's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Bubbles & Friends ships an update every 3 weeks, Build Fluency every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Bubbles & Friends versus Build Fluency: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBubbles & FriendsBuild Fluency
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (13K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews53.9% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings13K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size89 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperThe Learning ExperienceFOHBOH IO LLC

Customer experience

Bubbles & Friends

All ratings12,370 ratings
Positive95.2%
Neutral1.8%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews243 reviews
Positive53.9%
Neutral10.7%
Negative35.4%

Build Fluency

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Bubbles & Friends

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login and account issues
  • Disappearing photos and lost data
  • Inconsistent check-in/check-out time tracking
  • Compatibility problems with certain devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Allow two-way communication between parents and teachers
  • Provide more detailed information on child's activities, meals, and naps
  • Improve notification settings and customization
  • Add ability to view historical data and reports
  • Integrate payment and account management features

Build Fluency

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Bubbles & Friends

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly1 Month trial$2.991 Month
  • Premium Annual$19.991 Year
5 purchases

Build Fluency

One-time5
  • Unlock Economics$9.99
  • Unlock Game Theory$9.99
  • Unlock Political Thought$9.99
Show 2 more
  • Unlock Psychology$9.99
  • Unlock Western Philosophy$9.99

Questions

Is Bubbles & Friends free?
Bubbles & Friends is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Build Fluency free?
Build Fluency is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Bubbles & Friends or Build Fluency?
Build Fluency is rated higher. Bubbles & Friends averages 4.8 out of 5 from 13K ratings, while Build Fluency averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Bubbles & Friends or Build Fluency have ads?
Neither Bubbles & Friends nor Build Fluency shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Bubbles & Friends or Build Fluency?
Bubbles & Friends ships an update every 3 weeks, and Build Fluency every 6 days. Most recently, Bubbles & Friends was updated on November 1, 2026 and Build Fluency on October 31, 2026.

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