Comparison

Flash Reader vs Speedy Reader

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

Head to head
About

Flash Reader

Enhance your reading speed and comprehension with this app. It presents text one word at a time, in chunks, or as a traditional reader, allowing you to adjust speed and track progress. Supports various file types and offers a free tier with an optional Pro upgrade.

Highlights
  • Word-by-word reading mode
  • Chunk reading mode
  • Traditional reader mode
  • Adjustable reading speed
  • Supports PDFs, EPUBs, Word files
  • Camera scanning for text
  • Siri integration
Features
Read full description

Flash Reader is back, and better than ever. It read you one word at a time years before that was a trend. On the App Store since 2010, rebuilt from scratch for version 4, and everything happens on your device. Paste it, share it from any app, open a PDF, EPUB or Word file, or point the camera at a page, and you're reading. Every document keeps your place, and a widget, Control Center or Siri takes you straight back in. THREE WAYS TO READ • Flash: one word, one spot, and the pages fly. One letter in red holds your eye. • Chunk: a few words at a time, for when you would rather stroll. • Reader: the whole text, for a look back. Tap to pause. Play picks the sentence back up, so you never lose the thread. SPEED, WITH RECEIPTS Understanding holds to about 350 words a minute, then it slips. Flash Reader starts you at 250, the ruler shows which zone you are in, and your real speed counts the pauses too. Go faster whenever you like; the ruler tells you what it costs. Little words pass quickly, long or rare ones get a beat more, and a full stop gets its pause. Rest breaks when you want them. READ ANYTHING, START ANYWHERE • Copy anything, anywhere. Tap the clipboard chip, or the button in Control Center, and it flashes. • Share text, a web page or a link from any app: articles, mail, messages, notes. • Open PDF, EPUB, Word and text files from the Files app. • Point the camera at a page, or pick a photo or a screenshot. The text is read on your device. • Drop in a link and get the article, with none of the clutter around it. • Say "Flash my clipboard" or "Resume reading" and Siri does the rest. • Every document keeps its place, its mode and its speed. • Search, sort and rename. Deleted documents wait in Recently deleted. BACK IN ONE TAP Continue Reading and Streak widgets for the Home and Lock Screens. Flash clipboard and Resume reading in Control Center. Stats keep words read today, your streak and your real speed, pauses and all. ROOM TO READ Four themes (Paper, Ink, Sepia and High Contrast), a choice of fonts, an adjustable word size, and reading in landscape. On iPad, the library sits beside the reading view and a keyboard drives both. Designed for iPhone Duo: open it and the page unfolds beside the words. The whole app speaks 50 languages. FREE AND PRO Free to start. Text you paste, copy or share reads free, forever, at full quality: every mode, every speed, every theme, links, TXT and Markdown files, and three documents on the shelf at a time. Pro opens PDF, EPUB, Word, RTF and HTML files, scans and photos, and an unlimited shelf. One purchase covers iPhone and iPad, and your library and your place travel between them through your own iCloud. Choose Pro by the year with a 14-day free trial, by the month, or pay once and keep it. Annual and monthly Pro renew automatically until cancelled in your Apple Account settings, at least 24 hours before the period ends. No account. No ads. No analytics and no tracking. COMING BACK? Your books, your speed and your bookmark come along from the old version. If you bought Pro inside Flash Reader before, it is still yours: Restore purchases in Settings brings it back on any device. If you bought the separate Flash Reader Pro app, write to us and we will sort it out. More formats and modes are coming as free updates. Flash Reader 4 needs iOS 26 or later. On an older iPhone or iPad, the App Store keeps offering the last version that runs there. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy: https://flashreaderapp.com/privacy Questions: support@flashreaderapp.com

About

Speedy Reader

Boost your reading speed and comprehension with this app that uses Rapid Serial Visual Presentation (RSVP) technology. It displays words one at a time, minimizing eye movement distractions and allowing for fully adjustable speeds. Read PDFs, typed text, or clipboard content to save time and improve focus.

Highlights
  • RSVP speed reading technology
  • Adjustable reading speed
  • Read PDFs, typed text, and clipboard content
  • Focus mode to minimize distractions
  • Save and revisit reading history
  • Improve comprehension and memory
Features
Read full description

Speedy Reader – Read Faster, Focus Better, Learn More Do you want to read faster and retain more? Speedy Reader uses RSVP (Rapid Serial Visual Presentation) technology to help you boost reading speed, focus, and comprehension. Read Anything, Anywhere Open PDFs from your device or online. Paste or type your own text. Instantly read copied content from your clipboard. Save and revisit your reading history anytime. Speed Reading Made Easy Words display one at a time to remove eye-movement distractions. Fully adjustable speed to match your comfort. Improve focus, memory, and productivity. Why Speedy Reader? Train your brain to read 2x–3x faster. Save time on study, work, and daily reading. Stay distraction-free with a clean, focused mode. Access your saved history to continue where you left off. Perfect for students, professionals, book lovers, and anyone who wants to read more in less time. Download Speedy Reader today and unlock your full reading potential. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Flash Reader4 screens
Speedy Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Speedy Reader at 100% against Flash Reader's 49%. Speedy Reader also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.2) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 weeks). Flash Reader's advantage is ratings volume (163 vs 4). 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. Flash Reader sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Speedy Reader sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Speedy Reader holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Flash Reader has 163 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 49% of Flash Reader's written reviews are positive against 100% of Speedy Reader's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Flash Reader ships an update every 6 weeks, Speedy Reader every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Flash Reader versus Speedy Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFlash ReaderSpeedy Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (163 ratings)5.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews49.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings163 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS26.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size22 MB115 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDidstopiaTran Duc Thu

Customer experience

Flash Reader

All ratings163 ratings
Positive78.5%
Neutral8.0%
Negative13.5%
Written reviews136 reviews
Positive49.3%
Neutral5.9%
Negative44.9%

Speedy Reader

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Flash Reader

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Login screen freezes
  • Incompatible with older devices
  • Crashes when switching modes
  • Loses reading progress
  • Inaccurate resume times

Requested features

10 requests
  • Fancy text like newer video captions
  • Bookmarks and navigation
  • Support for Google Drive
  • Quick rewind option
  • Table of contents
Show 5 more
  • Search option
  • Ability to go backward/forward
  • Choose page to go to
  • Dark mode
  • Advanced analytics dashboard

Speedy Reader

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Flash Reader

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Pro Annual14 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time7
  • Flash Reader Pro$0.99
  • Flash Reader Pro2 variants$1.99
  • Flash Reader Pro$2.99
Show 4 more
  • Flash Reader Pro$3.99
  • Flash Reader Pro$4.99
  • Pro Lifetime$39.99
  • Pro Lifetime$79.99
2 purchases

Speedy Reader

One-time2
  • Ads Free$9.99
  • Premium$19.99

Questions

Is Flash Reader free?
Flash Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Speedy Reader free?
Speedy Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Flash Reader or Speedy Reader?
Speedy Reader is rated higher. Flash Reader averages 4.2 out of 5 from 163 ratings, while Speedy Reader averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.
Do Flash Reader or Speedy Reader have ads?
Neither Flash Reader nor Speedy Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Flash Reader or Speedy Reader?
Flash Reader ships an update every 6 weeks, and Speedy Reader every 2 weeks. Most recently, Flash Reader was updated on November 6, 2026 and Speedy Reader on October 30, 2026.

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