Comparison

Reading Machine vs DyslexiaBuddy

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

Head to head
About

Reading Machine

This educational app helps beginning and struggling readers learn new words by breaking them down into letters and sounds. It acts as a personal reading tutor, guiding users to decode unfamiliar words independently, enhancing confidence and reading enjoyment.

Highlights
  • Word decoding with phonics
  • Personalized reading tutor
  • Supports over 5,000 words
  • Text-to-speech engine
  • Book suggestions for readers
  • Full decoding support for early reader titles
Features
Read full description

Used by teachers, parents, and learners since 2010, Reading Machine is now available for free! This app for beginning and struggling readers is still 100% satisfaction guaranteed. If you have any technical issues with the app, or if the app does not meet your expectations for any reason, please email us so we can address your needs and strengthen our support for more readers and a better world. Email: diana@dianasharp.com or support@sharpcuriosity.com Reading Machine helps readers learn new words by seeing and hearing how the letters and sounds in a word go together. The app is perfect for times when readers can’t or don’t want to ask someone else for help on unfamiliar words. Like a personal reading tutor, the app guides readers into figuring out a new word based on the word’s letters and sounds. Readers can use the app while they read traditional books or other printed material. They can also use the app alongside e-books, websites, and other digital material on the iPad. The app is a fun addition to parent-child reading time, and it also works well for older readers who do not like to ask for help on words when they read independently. Developing readers of any age can gain self-confidence as they figure out new words on their own with the app’s support. Videos of how the app works are available at www.sharpcuriosity.com. Created by a parent, learning scientist, and reading researcher, the app’s underlying dictionary is powered by a real human voice with support for over 5,000 words, plus a text-to-speech engine for pronouncing all other words. As readers advance from simple to more complex words, the app dictionary provides tailored decoding support for each word, ranging from individual phonemes and letters, to multi-letter sounds, syllables, prefixes, suffixes, root words, and whole words within compound words. The app also includes suggestions for parents about fun books to get at the library or bookstore to match readers’ interests and skill levels. • The Reading Machine is like a secret decoder ring for unlocking printed words. Use it paired with real books – books you already own or books you’ve borrowed from the public library.  Or use it on the iPad alongside e-books or web pages. • Great for early or struggling readers. • Lets you have more fun reading with your child because your child can use the Reading Machine to figure out words instead of having to ask you for help. • Best for children who already know the sounds that go with each letter and can read some words, but still need help reading sentences and books. • Comes with full decoding and phonics support for all the words in over 125 well-loved early reader titles.  Older readers can even use the app with the first chapter of Harry Potter. • The app provides lists of suggested titles (“Book Sets”) for readers with different interests and skill levels.  This is a great guide for finding books your reader will enjoy. These books are easy to find for free at your public library.  Or head to your favorite bookstore.  • All the words in over 125 books, listed in the Book Sets, have phonics support provided by the app, with clear pronunciation recorded by a natural, human voice.  • For any word not in the app’s dictionary, readers can hear the whole word pronunciation with text-to-speech voice.  So they are never stuck on any word. • Among the words that have phonics and decoding support are the 300 most frequent words in the English language, which cover 65% of all English reading material. Many of these words are often called “sight words.” • When new Book Sets and new words are available for the app, they can be downloaded for free from within the app. For more info and videos, see http://www.sharpcuriosity.com

About

DyslexiaBuddy

This app provides a supportive reading experience for children with dyslexia, offering customizable tools and AI-powered assistance. It helps users read with confidence and enjoyment through features like read-aloud, text scanning, and personalized coaching.

Highlights
  • Dyslexia-friendly reading technology
  • Customizable reading interface
  • Read aloud with adjustable speed
  • Scan and read printed text
  • Import and read PDFs
  • On-device word definitions
  • AI-powered text summarization
Features
Read full description

Reading, made calmer. DyslexiaBuddy turns any page — printed, PDF, or on screen — into something you can read, hear, and understand. Built with guidance from educators and accessibility research, for the 700+ million people worldwide with dyslexia. On iPhone, iPad, and now Mac. Every feature below is unlocked with a free 7-day trial, so you can try the whole thing before you decide. READING MADE COMFORTABLE Dyslexia-friendly fonts, adjustable colors, line spacing, and text size. Change how a page looks until it feels easy to read. SCAN, IMPORT, AND READ ANYTHING Point your camera at a printed page, import a PDF or ebook, or send text in from any other app. It becomes a calm, readable view in seconds. READ ALOUD IN 28 VOICES Natural, human-sounding voices across a range of accents, with every word and sentence highlighted as it is spoken — so eyes and ears stay together. All generated on your device. UNDERSTAND AS YOU GO Long-press any word for an instant definition, translate a passage, tidy up messy scanned text, or summarize a whole document. On-device, no internet required. LEARN WITH OLLY, YOUR AI TUTOR A personal reading coach that can see the page you are on, explain what a passage means, break a hard word into sounds, and quiz you on what you read. REVIEW AND REMEMBER Words you look up are added to a spaced-repetition deck, so the tricky ones stick. BUILT FOR iOS 27 Home Screen widgets for recent documents and quick import. Say "Add to DyslexiaBuddy" or "read this" to Siri. Everything runs on device — nothing you read is uploaded. FOR FAMILIES, SCHOOLS, AND ADULT READERS Children build confidence reading independently. Parents and teachers get a calm way to support practice. Adults with dyslexia get the same help without it feeling like a children's app. Trusted by thousands of users in over 100 countries. TRY EVERYTHING FREE FOR 7 DAYS After your trial, DyslexiaBuddy Premium continues as an auto-renewing subscription — cancel anytime in Settings. Privacy Policy: https://DyslexiaBuddy.com/privacy Terms of Service: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Reading Machine4 screens
DyslexiaBuddy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Reading Machine at none against DyslexiaBuddy's 3. Reading Machine also leads on review sentiment (75% vs 57%) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 26.0). DyslexiaBuddy's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 14 months). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. DyslexiaBuddy sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Reading Machine asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 3.8 for Reading Machine against 3.9 for DyslexiaBuddy. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 12 and 8 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 75% of Reading Machine's written reviews are positive against 57% of DyslexiaBuddy's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Reading Machine ships an update every 14 months, DyslexiaBuddy every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 16, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Reading Machine versus DyslexiaBuddy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterReading MachineDyslexiaBuddy
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (12 ratings)3.9 (8 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.0% of reviews — better57.1% of reviews
Number of ratings12 — better8
Update frequencyEvery 14 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS8.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size107 MB106 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperDiana Sharp ConsultingOnlabs

Customer experience

Reading Machine

All ratings12 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral8.3%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%

DyslexiaBuddy

All ratings8 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive57.1%
Neutral14.3%
Negative28.6%

In-app purchases

None

Reading Machine

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

DyslexiaBuddy

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Access$69.99

Questions

Is Reading Machine free?
Reading Machine is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is DyslexiaBuddy free?
DyslexiaBuddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Reading Machine or DyslexiaBuddy?
DyslexiaBuddy is rated higher. Reading Machine averages 3.8 out of 5 from 12 ratings, while DyslexiaBuddy averages 3.9 from 8 ratings.
Do Reading Machine or DyslexiaBuddy have ads?
Neither Reading Machine nor DyslexiaBuddy shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Reading Machine or DyslexiaBuddy?
Reading Machine ships an update every 14 months, and DyslexiaBuddy every 3 weeks. Most recently, Reading Machine was updated on September 16, 2026 and DyslexiaBuddy on October 10, 2026.

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