Comparison

BrainPOP vs Newsela Student

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

Head to head
About

BrainPOP

This app offers award-winning animated educational videos, interactive activities, and quizzes designed by educators. It aims to transform passive screen time into active, enriched learning experiences for children in grades 3-8 across all subjects.

Highlights
  • Animated educational movies
  • Interactive activities
  • Quizzes
  • Content for grades 3-8
  • All subjects covered
  • Research-backed learning platform
Read full description

Access BrainPOP’s award-winning animated movies, activities and quizzes made by educators and replace your kids’ passive screen time with active, enriched learning. Start your free trial today to access content for grades 3-8 across all subjects. BrainPOP is a research-backed learning platform created by educators that know how kids learn best, and perfect for age-appropriate, independent learning. Start watching, learning, playing and growing with us! Terms of Use: https://www.brainpop.com/about/terms_of_use/ Privacy Policy: https://www.brainpop.com/about/privacy_policy/ User Agreement: https://www.brainpop.com/about/user_agreement/

About

Newsela Student

This app offers engaging articles on diverse topics, each presented at five different reading levels. It includes activities and quizzes to deepen understanding, automatically adjusting difficulty to keep learners challenged and motivated. Students can track their progress and practice vocabulary.

Highlights
  • Leveled articles on any topic
  • Adjustable reading levels
  • Integrated activities and quizzes
  • Offline annotation and submission
  • Real-time progress tracking
  • Vocabulary practice (Power Words)
  • Curated and custom learning sets
Features
Read full description

Connect what’s happening in class to what’s happening in the world around you. Newsela brings authentic, real-world content into the classroom with embedded scaffolds that build knowledge, reading comprehension, and confidence across subject areas. Explore high-interest non-fiction articles, Generation Genius videos, and interactive PhET Simulations. What students can do in this app: EXPLORE HIGH-INTEREST TOPICS Discover fresh content across current events, science, technology, animals, sports, arts, pop culture, engineering, space, and more. READ YOUR OWN WAY Customize the experience with adjustable reading supports like Language Translation and Listen mode. INTERACT WITH ARTICLES Annotate text, take Polls, complete Checks for Understanding, and use Guided Highlighting. STAY ON TRACK View assignments, check due dates, and set up reminders. TAKE ON READING CHALLENGES Pick from a library of interesting articles, build independent reading habits, and earn classroom rewards. Why educators love Newsela: PROVEN SKILL GROWTH Research shows regular Newsela use can lead to up to four (4) additional months of literacy growth. RELEVANT AND TRUSTED Developed by expert learning designers in partnership with trusted publishers to deliver standards-aligned, engaging content each week. What educators are saying: “We need tools that are ever-changing, just like the world.” - New Jersey educator “Gives [students] something they can practice independently.” - Ohio teacher “They are pushing themselves to read at more difficult levels.” - Virginia teacher “They were able to connect to the novel, thereby bringing it to life.” - Michigan educator Since 2013, Newsela has worked toward one mission: Meaningful classroom learning for every student, every day. To get started, download the app and sign in with your school account or learning management system (LMS). Terms of Service: https://newsela.com/legal/terms Privacy Policy: https://newsela.com/legal/newsela-privacy-policy Help Center: https://help.newsela.com/en/

Screenshots

BrainPOP4 screens
Newsela Student4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Newsela Student at none against BrainPOP's 5. BrainPOP's advantage is review sentiment (93% vs 76%). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. BrainPOP sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Newsela Student asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for BrainPOP against 4.7 for Newsela Student. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 34K and 29K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 93% of BrainPOP's written reviews are positive against 76% of Newsela Student's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 13, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
BrainPOP versus Newsela Student: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBrainPOPNewsela Student
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (34K ratings)4.7 (29K ratings)
Positive reviews92.7% of reviews — better75.6% of reviews
Number of ratings34K — better29K
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB38 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBrainPOP®Newsela

Customer experience

BrainPOP

All ratings34,241 ratings
Positive93.5%
Neutral2.9%
Negative3.6%
Written reviews1,055 reviews
Positive92.7%
Neutral2.4%
Negative4.9%

Newsela Student

All ratings28,932 ratings
Positive93.6%
Neutral2.8%
Negative3.6%
Written reviews315 reviews
Positive75.6%
Neutral3.8%
Negative20.6%

User reviews

BrainPOP

From 34K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Fun and educational
  • 🚀 Helpful for learning
  • 👍 Great for kids
  • 👍 Funny and entertaining
  • 👍 Informative videos

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes
  • 💰 Expensive subscription
  • 💰 Limited free content
  • 🙄 Biased or one-sided content
  • 🙄 Lacks detail in some topics

Newsela Student

From 29K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Good app for different reading levels
  • 📚 Variety of informative articles
  • 🎓 Useful for education and learning
  • 🤓 Helps improve reading and vocabulary
  • 🙌 Great resource for teachers and students

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes frequently
  • 🔍 Lack of specific search options
  • 💤 Boring or one-sided content
  • 🤔 Grading system needs improvement
  • 📱 Mobile app issues (login, navigation)

Bugs and requests

BrainPOP

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Login issues
  • Playback problems
  • Syncing issues across devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • More topics and content
  • Lower subscription cost
  • Better organization of content
  • More character diversity
  • Support for older devices

Newsela Student

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login issues on iOS 12
  • Binder page frequently freezes or glitches
  • Inability to see all available article sets
  • Replying and submitting work takes too long

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add word definitions or translations
  • Implement auto-save for writing assignments
  • Introduce a teacher-specific version of the app
  • Expand content to include more global news
  • Improve multitasking and split-screen support

In-app purchases

5 purchases

BrainPOP

Subscriptions5
  • BrainPOP Explorer Subscription$3.991 Month
  • BrainPOP Full Access14 Days trial$15.991 Month
  • BrainPOP Combo Monthly14 Days trial$19.991 Month
Show 2 more
  • BrainPOP Full Access Yearly14 Days trial$129.991 Year
  • BrainPOP Combo Yearly14 Days trial$159.991 Year
None

Newsela Student

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BrainPOP free?
BrainPOP is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Newsela Student free?
Newsela Student is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, BrainPOP or Newsela Student?
BrainPOP and Newsela Student are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 34K and 29K ratings respectively.
Do BrainPOP or Newsela Student have ads?
Neither BrainPOP nor Newsela Student shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BrainPOP or Newsela Student?
BrainPOP ships an update every 2 months, and Newsela Student every 2 months. Most recently, BrainPOP was updated on October 13, 2026 and Newsela Student on October 13, 2026.

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