Spelling Notebook vs Spelling Star
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Spelling Notebook
Create personalized spelling lists, practice words with audio pronunciation, and test your knowledge. Earn stars for correct answers and focus on words you need to master. Ideal for students and anyone looking to improve their spelling skills.
- Create personalized word lists
- Audio pronunciation for words
- Test spelling knowledge
- Earn stars for correct words
- Practice words needing mastery
- Record your own voice
- Extensive searchable dictionary
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Create a personalized list of words to practice. Test your spelling - hear each word spoken. Get a star for each correct word. Practice just the words you have yet to master. Retest your words at anytime. Students can practice their words independently. Originally designed to be a replacement for a student's spelling notebook which lists words to be learnt for school each week. Unlike a paper notebook, SpellingNotebook can speak each of the words to enable testing and practice without seeing the written word. SpellingNotebook contains a full searchable spelling dictionary so that words can be added directly to the student's word list, minimizing entry errors. User Reviews * This app is awesome I have a spelling test coming up and I can spell every word correctly thanks to this app!!! (US) * Makes spelling practice fun (UK) * So fun!!!! This is a great app for kids and adults! (US) * Great App!!! Whole class uses it!! (Australia) Spelling Notebook features: * Students can practice independently * More than 100,000 words - add new words to the built in spelling dictionary when needed * Spelling Notebook has a built in voice that can say all words in its extensive dictionary and any new english words added * Optionally Record your own voice for the word you want to practice. You can record just the word, or even a whole phrase to help you recognize which word to spell. * Multiple English regions: UK, US, Canada, Australia and NZ * Earn a star for correct words * Keep multiple word lists * Edit word lists: add or delete words, add or delete an entire word list, rename your list * Import words from one wordlist into another * Words are selected from an extensive dictionary - minimizing entry errors * Help available in app to guide and support * Word list Copy and Paste * History of Word list tests and practice * Email test results * 8 words per list: Upgrade to Premium for unlimited words per list and a selection of UK, US and Australian voices. The built-in spelling dictionary is automatically selected by region. For countries outside US, Canada, Australia and NZ, the UK spelling dictionary is selected. Follow us on Instagram: @spellingnotebook Recommended Ages: All, Kids Categories: Education, Productivity, Apps for Kids
Spelling Star
This educational game offers three engaging spelling practice activities for children aged 9-12. It features adaptive difficulty, colorful graphics, and a two-player option to foster learning and cognitive skills. Scores are saved to track progress and can be emailed for record-keeping.
- Three engaging spelling games
- Adaptive difficulty levels
- Two-player option
- Automatic score saving
- Progress tracking via email
- Kid-safe, no ads or tracking
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Features of Spelling Star • Three engaging games that help children practice spelling • Difficulty level is automatically adjusted • Two-Player Option is available • Scores are automatically saved to show progress. • Scores can also be emailed to keep a record of a child's progress. • Colorful graphics and lively music make this game fun to play • Kid-safe: No third party ads or tracking This game helps to exercise a child’s attention and language skills while providing practice spelling basic words. Children, ages 9 to 12, will have fun playing and learning in settings ranging from the deep blue sea to the wilds of the jungle. All of our games are specially created to help children practice the cognitive abilities important for success in school and life. The games automatically adjust to allow children to learn at a level of difficulty personalized for them. As they succeed, new challenges at harder levels will be presented. Children will be challenged to develop their thinking speed as they are required to respond faster and faster in order to win. While a child's difficulty level is automatically adjusted based on his or her performance, it can be easily modified by parents or teachers when necessary. Distraction stimuli can also be added to reinforce increased focus and the ability to stay on task. In addition, a two player option is available which helps children learn how to take turns and be both a good winner and a good loser. Each round must be completed for grades to be saved in single player mode. Please note that no grades are saved in two player mode. Two player mode only records which Player (1 or 2) won the match after three rounds are completed. A training session is completed only when the program is stopped and then removed from memory. If the program is left open in the background and it is selected, then the last session started will be continued. The app will start off with a 60 minute trial version. You can modify the options and run the games during this trial period. Once the trial has ended, you will need to make a one-time in-app purchase to unlock the games for unlimited use.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Spelling Notebook at 4.6 against Spelling Star's 1.0. Spelling Notebook also leads on update cadence (every 3 months vs every 40 months) and ratings volume (2.7K vs 1). Spelling Star's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 13.0). 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
Both are free to download. Spelling Notebook sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Spelling Star sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Spelling Notebook holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Spelling Notebook has 2.7K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Spelling Notebook ships an update every 3 months, Spelling Star every 40 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Spelling Notebook | Spelling Star |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (2.7K ratings) — better | 1.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 86.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 2.7K — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months — better | Every 40 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 9.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 24 MB | 65 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Ako Software Ltd. | BrainTrain Inc. |
Bugs and requests
Spelling Notebook
Reported bugs
2 issues- Word lists disappearing after device change
- Keyboard issues causing app crashes
Requested features
5 requests- Add dictionary definitions
- Improve pronunciation quality
- Allow more words in free version
- Implement a dark mode
- Add ability to share/sync word lists
Spelling Star
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Spelling Notebook
- Upgrade to Premium$1.99
Spelling Star
- Full Version$2.99
Questions
Is Spelling Notebook free?
Is Spelling Star free?
Which has better reviews, Spelling Notebook or Spelling Star?
Do Spelling Notebook or Spelling Star have ads?
Which is updated more often, Spelling Notebook or Spelling Star?
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