Comparison

PopMath Original vs Learn to Read

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

Head to head
About

PopMath Original

This app offers a playful approach for children to master fundamental math skills. Players pop numbered bubbles to solve equations, with increasing difficulty and new operations introduced as they advance. It provides feedback on performance and allows for focused practice on specific tables or operations.

Highlights
  • Bubble popping math challenges
  • Progressive difficulty levels
  • Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division
  • Practice specific multiplication tables
  • Performance tracking (time, errors)
  • Encouraging feedback messages
Features
Read full description

PopMath is a fun way for kids to practice basic maths. Six pairs of bubbles with numbers float on the screen above beautiful backgrounds. Each bubble contains a number: simply pop the corresponding bubbles! As you progress through levels, numbers increase, and new operators are introduced: subtraction, multiplication and division. Each level shows your time and number of errors, along with an encouraging message, from "well done" to "unbelievable!" You can also pick a specific operator: addition, subtraction, multiplication or division. Numbers go up to 1000 for addition and subtraction, and 20 for multiplication and division. You can also choose to practice a particular table, from 2 to 12! Enjoy and send your feedback laurent@appblit.com

About

Learn to Read

This app offers a guided, co-play experience for parents and children aged 3-8 to learn reading skills. It uses research-backed phonics lessons, interactive storybooks, videos, and games to build foundational reading abilities.

Highlights
  • 99 step-by-step phonics lessons
  • 67 interactive digital storybooks
  • 42 educational videos
  • 3 expert-designed reading games
  • Printable offline activities
  • Family subscription with 3 profiles
  • Ad-free experience
Features
Read full description

Teach your child how to read! Ages 3-8. Reading.com is a fun, co-play experience designed by education experts for you to teach your child to read — with the love, care, and joy only a parent and child can share. RESEARCH-BACKED No cape? No problem. Our program gives you supercharged superparent powers! Reading.com’s research-backed, phonics-based lessons are fully scripted so they don’t require any special training or knowledge for you to become the most powerful teacher your child will ever have. FROM LETTER RECOGNITION TO CONFIDENT READING As your child masters more letters, sounds, and words, they'll unlock a playful world of reading activities including interactive storybooks, videos, digital games, and printable activities. THE MOST MEANINGFUL (TEAM)WORK OF YOUR LIFE Each lesson takes just 15 - 20 minutes to complete and they’re designed for you and your child to go at your own pace. Lessons cover letters, letter blends, long vowel sounds, and digraphs, taking your child from basic alphabetic knowledge to reading at a late 1st grade level. This is the easiest head start you’ll ever give your child! KEY FEATURES - 120 step-by-step phonics lessons for a grownup & child to do together - 84 interactive, decodable, digital storybooks - 42 videos featuring letters, letter sounds, and an exclusive alphabet song - 5 expertly-designed reading games for independent play that practice skills in: letter recognition, letter-phoneme correlation, beginning sounds, vocabulary, letter-writing, spelling - Access to printable games & activities for fun offline reinforcement - One subscription for the whole family with up to 3 profiles - Ad-free Download the app today, help your child learn to read and join other parents raising readers! Privacy Policy: https://www.reading.com/privacy-policy/ Terms and Conditions: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

PopMath Original4 screens
Learn to Read4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Learn to Read at Free against PopMath Original's $3.99. Learn to Read also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.1) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 12 months). PopMath Original's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 18) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 15.0). On review sentiment, ads and device support 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

Learn to Read is free to download; PopMath Original costs $3.99 up front. Learn to Read sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $12.49 per month. PopMath Original asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Learn to Read holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Learn to Read has 71K ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of PopMath Original's written reviews are positive against 81% of Learn to Read's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PopMath Original ships an update every 12 months, Learn to Read every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on September 16, 2026 and September 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
PopMath Original versus Learn to Read: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPopMath OriginalLearn to Read
Price$3.99Free — better
Rating4.1 (11 ratings)4.7 (71K ratings) — better
Positive reviews73.7% of reviews81.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1171K — better
Update frequencyEvery 12 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank—#15 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS10.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB252 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAppBlit LLCTeaching.com

Customer experience

PopMath Original

All ratings11 ratings
Positive72.7%
Neutral9.1%
Negative18.2%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive73.7%
Neutral15.8%
Negative10.5%

Learn to Read

All ratings70,642 ratings
Positive92.7%
Neutral3.3%
Negative4.1%
Written reviews704 reviews
Positive81.0%
Neutral3.7%
Negative15.3%

Bugs and requests

PopMath Original

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Learn to Read

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Occasional app crashes or freezes
  • User data loss after app updates
  • Inability to redeem promo codes

Requested features

5 requests
  • Option to learn cursive writing
  • More independent practice games and activities
  • Ability to jump to appropriate lesson level
  • Support for multiple languages or accents
  • Printable resources like flashcards or worksheets

In-app purchases

None

PopMath Original

No in-app purchases

9 purchases

Learn to Read

Subscriptions9
  • Learn to Read (Monthly)7 Days trial5 variants$12.491 Month
  • Learn to Read (Monthly)2 variants$12.491 Month
  • Monthly (With Free Trial)$12.491 Month
Show 6 more
  • Monthly Subscription$12.491 Month
  • Learn to Read (Monthly)7 Days trial$12.991 Month
  • Learn to Read (Monthly)7 Days trial$14.991 Month
  • Learn to Read (Monthly)7 Days trial$17.991 Month
  • Learn to Read (Yearly)7 Days trial$66.991 Year
  • Learn to Read (Yearly)7 Days trial2 variants$74.991 Year

Questions

Is PopMath Original free?
PopMath Original costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Learn to Read free?
Learn to Read is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PopMath Original or Learn to Read?
Learn to Read is rated higher. PopMath Original averages 4.1 out of 5 from 11 ratings, while Learn to Read averages 4.7 from 71K ratings.
Do PopMath Original or Learn to Read have ads?
Neither PopMath Original nor Learn to Read shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PopMath Original or Learn to Read?
PopMath Original ships an update every 12 months, and Learn to Read every 5 days. Most recently, PopMath Original was updated on September 16, 2026 and Learn to Read on September 27, 2026.

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