Comparison

First Letters and Phonics vs First Words Phonics Pro

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

Head to head
About

First Letters and Phonics

This app helps young children learn letter shapes, names, and sounds through interactive matching and songs. It features delightful illustrations and engaging audio to develop pre-reading skills and fine motor control.

Highlights
  • Letter shape recognition
  • Letter name identification
  • Phonics sound learning
  • Alphabet Song (two versions)
  • Word association with letters
  • Fine motor skill development
Features
Read full description

Match the letters and listen to the song! First Letters teaches the youngest iPhone kids about letter shapes, letter names and phonics. The game includes two original renditions of the Alphabet Song by popular children's musician Debi Derryberry. Toddler tested and approved, First Letters keeps the littlest kids entertained and engaged while developing important pre-reading skills. Educational: - learn to recognize letters, both uppercase and lowercase - learn the names of letters - learn the sounds that letters make (phonics) - develop fine motor skills - learn words that begin with each letter Entertaining: - a beautiful picture for each letter of the alphabet - a cute voice saying each letter, phoneme, and word - two versions of the Alphabet Song: one using letter names and one using phonics First Letters features great music and the voice of popular kids' entertainer Debi Derryberry. Find out more about Debi's songs, live shows, and kid's games at www.mybabybanana.com. First Letters is the best way for your child to learn their letters. Filled with delightful illustrations and fun songs, it's full of fun and learning! If your child is old enough to ask for your phone, they're old enough for First Letters!

About

First Words Phonics Pro

This educational app teaches children reading and spelling through synthetic phonics. It offers two learning levels and various hint options to customize difficulty, making learning engaging with colorful visuals and sound effects.

Highlights
  • Synthetic phonics learning levels
  • Learn words and spelling
  • Letter recognition and matching
  • Interactive exploration interface
  • Child-friendly user interface
  • Engaging artwork and sound effects
  • 121 words in 5 categories
Features
Read full description

"First Words for Kids" includes all 121 words across Animals, Vehicles, Shapes and Colours, Household Items and Numbers. Everything is included with no in-app purchases needed. Three hint settings (colour hints, letter hints, and combined hints) together with five difficulty settings let you fine-tune the challenge as your child grows. The thumbnail navigation lets children explore all words freely, with no time pressure and no countdowns. Used by parents and educators. Featured by Apple on the US App Store in Games/Educational and Games/Kids. ________________________________ SYNTHETIC PHONICS "First Words for Kids" uses synthetic phonics to help children learn to read by linking each letter and letter combination to its sound, then showing how those sounds blend into full words. This is the evidence-based approach recommended by national literacy frameworks in the UK, the US and Australia. Two phonics levels are included: Synthetic Phonics Basic: introduces blending using simple, single-sound phonemes. Designed for children who are just starting out. Synthetic Phonics Advanced: introduces graphemes (letter groups that represent one sound), digraphs (two letters that together make a new sound), and letters with more than one sound. For children ready for a bigger challenge. The app was designed with children who have autism and speech delay in mind. No timers. No pressure. A clean interface that moves at the child's pace. ________________________________ THE MISSION ReadnLearn exists because of Marios. Aris's son has autism and speech delay. Every design decision in every ReadnLearn app comes from watching Marios learn. What works for him works for every child who learns differently. readnlearn.com/the-mission-autism-educational-tools/ ________________________________ FEATURES ● All 121 words across 5 categories, fully included ● Letter sounds through two levels of synthetic phonics, plus letter names ● Learn words and how to spell them ● Recognise upper and lowercase letters and match them to words ● Three hint settings to control how much support the child receives ● Six difficulty settings that grow with the child ● Thumbnail navigation so children can explore all words freely ● Tap any image to hear its sound and name ● Interface designed for small fingers ● Colourful artwork with animations and sound effects ● Studio recordings of all letters, words and spelling ● No timers. No pressure. No ads. No in-app purchases. ● Flight Mode reminder for uninterrupted offline use ________________________________ KNOW WHAT'S INSIDE We follow the Know What's Inside best practices for children's apps, set by Moms with Apps. ________________________________ DISCLOSURE At ReadnLearn, children's privacy and safety come first: ◇ Does not collect or share personally identifiable information ◇ No social network links or social features ◇ No ads ◇ No in-app purchases ◇ Feedback and Tell a Friend buttons are behind a parental gate ◇ More Games button and page are behind a parental gate Privacy policy: readnlearn.com/kids-learning-apps/privacy/ Support: readnlearn.com/kids-learning-apps/#support ________________________________ IF THIS APP HELPED YOUR CHILD Leaving an honest review helps other families with autism, speech delay and learning differences find this app. And if there is something you want added or changed, tell us. Every piece of feedback shapes the next update. app-feedback@readnlearn.com ________________________________ ABOUT ReadnLearn ReadnLearn was founded by Aris Karavias, a children's illustrator and educational app developer with 27 years of experience and 25 published educational apps. His son Marios has autism and speech delay. Every design decision in every app comes from watching Marios learn. The apps have been downloaded over a million times across six languages. Questions or feedback: app-feedback@readnlearn.com Support: app-support@readnlearn.com readnlearn.com

Screenshots

First Letters and Phonics4 screens
First Words Phonics Pro4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: First Words Phonics Pro at every 2 months against First Letters and Phonics's every 23 months. First Words Phonics Pro also leads on iOS requirement (9.0 vs 12.2). First Letters and Phonics's advantage is price ($1.99 vs $4.99) and review sentiment (79% vs 67%). On rating, ratings volume, 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

First Letters and Phonics costs $1.99 and First Words Phonics Pro $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

First Words Phonics Pro holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 44 and 22 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 79% of First Letters and Phonics's written reviews are positive against 67% of First Words Phonics Pro's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

First Letters and Phonics ships an update every 23 months, First Words Phonics Pro every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
First Letters and Phonics versus First Words Phonics Pro: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFirst Letters and PhonicsFirst Words Phonics Pro
Price$1.99 — better$4.99
Rating4.1 (44 ratings)4.3 (22 ratings) — better
Positive reviews78.9% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings44 — better22
Update frequencyEvery 23 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.29.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB84 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLearning Touch LLCRead 'n' Learn

Customer experience

First Letters and Phonics

All ratings44 ratings
Positive77.3%
Neutral4.5%
Negative18.2%
Written reviews38 reviews
Positive78.9%
Neutral5.3%
Negative15.8%

First Words Phonics Pro

All ratings22 ratings
Positive81.8%
Neutral4.5%
Negative13.6%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

None

First Letters and Phonics

No in-app purchases

None

First Words Phonics Pro

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is First Letters and Phonics free?
First Letters and Phonics costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is First Words Phonics Pro free?
First Words Phonics Pro costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, First Letters and Phonics or First Words Phonics Pro?
First Words Phonics Pro is rated higher. First Letters and Phonics averages 4.1 out of 5 from 44 ratings, while First Words Phonics Pro averages 4.3 from 22 ratings.
Do First Letters and Phonics or First Words Phonics Pro have ads?
Neither First Letters and Phonics nor First Words Phonics Pro shows ads.
Which is updated more often, First Letters and Phonics or First Words Phonics Pro?
First Letters and Phonics ships an update every 23 months, and First Words Phonics Pro every 2 months. Most recently, First Letters and Phonics was updated on November 10, 2026 and First Words Phonics Pro on November 1, 2026.

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