# Pre vs Mathemagics

The clearest difference is price: Pre at Free against Mathemagics's $2.99. Pre also leads on ratings volume (360 vs 79). Mathemagics's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and review sentiment (86% vs 67%). On rating, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Pre is free to download; Mathemagics costs $2.99 up front. Pre sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $9.99 per month. Mathemagics asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Pre against 4.7 for Mathemagics. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 360 and 79 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 67% of Pre's written reviews are positive against 86% of Mathemagics's.

Pre ships an update every 6 months, Mathemagics every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Pre | Mathemagics |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $2.99 |
| Rating | [4.6 (360 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pre-algebra/id459734695/reviews) | **[4.7 (79 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mathemagics-algebra-practice/id500955086/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **360** | 79 |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | **85.6% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Every 5 months** |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Paid |
| Size | 15 MB | 29 MB |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [YourTeacher.com](https://appshunter.io/developer/340925628) | [Blue Lightning Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/306586850) |

## What reviewers say

### Pre

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pre-algebra/id459734695)

Access a comprehensive Pre-Algebra curriculum with video lessons, guided practice, and assessments. Track your learning progress and reinforce knowledge with chapter reviews and a final exam. A free trial is available.

**Highlights:** Video instruction, Guided practice, Tests and quizzes, Worksheets and notes, Progress tracking, Chapter reviews, Final exam

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Get full access to Pre-Algebra | $9.99 | per month |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to learn from
- 👍 Short videos make learning easy
- 👍 Simple and good layout
- 👍 Outstanding app
- 👍 Helps significantly with pre-algebra

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 App freezes and needs reinstallation
- 🐛 Opening app requires charger plugged in
- 🐛 Multiple choice answers don't show up
- 🐛 Doesn't explain commutative and associative properties well
- 🐛 Describing alternative PEMDAS methods as wrong is not ideal

**Reported bugs**

- App freezes
- Opening app without charger plugged in displays blank page
- Multiple choice answers don't show up on screen
- Daughter's progress and grades disappeared
- App is blank and not working

**Requested features**

- Algebra 2 content
- Better explanation of commutative and associative properties
- Side-by-side comparison of properties
- Allow writing on the screen
- More fraction problems


### Mathemagics

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mathemagics-algebra-practice/id500955086)

Master algebra with rare, lightning-fast calculation techniques. Learn through animated lessons and practice with endless, randomly generated problems. Prepare for standardized tests and improve mental math skills.

**Highlights:** Learn rare algebra techniques, Animated step-by-step lessons, Practice with random questions, Gain achievements, Improve calculation speed, Test preparation for SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🧠 Effective mental math tricks and shortcuts
- 📚 Clear, easy-to-follow step-by-step lessons
- ⚡ Helps improve calculation speed significantly
- 🎓 Great for test prep (GMAT, SAT, MCAT)
- 🎮 Fun and engaging learning experience

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔤 Font too small and hard to read
- 🎨 Poor color contrast (light grey on grid paper)
- 🐛 Crashes on older devices (iPhone 4S)
- ⚠️ Limited content - only about 10 tricks
- 📖 Not suitable for complete beginners

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on iPhone 4S after update
- Lesson steps disappear after updates
- Lessons fail to load or load incompletely
- Incorrect answers in practice problems (10% and 1% calculations)
- Wrong answer choices for basic calculations

**Requested features**

- Explanations of why tricks work mathematically
- More advanced equation types and variations
- Scrap paper or writing area for practice problems
- Ability to input custom numbers for real-life practice
- iCloud sync across devices


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Pre free?

Pre is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Mathemagics free?

Mathemagics costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Pre or Mathemagics?

Mathemagics is rated higher. Pre averages 4.6 out of 5 from 360 ratings, while Mathemagics averages 4.7 from 79 ratings.

### Do Pre or Mathemagics have ads?

Neither Pre nor Mathemagics shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Pre or Mathemagics?

Pre ships an update every 6 months, and Mathemagics every 5 months. Most recently, Pre was updated on October 21, 2026 and Mathemagics on October 15, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*