Comparison

Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 vs Word Wizard

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

Head to head
About

Simplex Spelling Phonics 1

This app uses a scientifically validated phonics approach to improve spelling skills. It teaches fundamental spelling patterns, sounds, and rules through structured lessons and high-frequency words, aiming to build long-term literacy and confidence.

Highlights
  • 450+ high-frequency words
  • 42 instructional phonics lessons
  • Spelling pattern and difficulty organization
  • Reverse phonics approach
  • Contextual spelling rule hints
  • Letter-by-letter feedback
  • Starting assessment test
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Scientifically validated as a highly effective approach to improving spelling skills through our phonics approach. A published study revealed that students demonstrated an average spelling improvement of 1.9 grades among children in a classroom setting who regularly used Simplex Spelling over a 18 week period. The largest student improvement observed over the same time period was 4.4 grade levels as assessed by administering the Schonell Spelling Test. Linda Chmiliar, "Improving the Spelling Skills of Students with Learning Disabilities using Apps on the iPad", International Journal of Technology and Inclusive Education, pp. 962-971. Special Issue Volume 3, 2016. Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 teaches a full year of spelling curriculum with over 450 high frequency words divided into 42 lists that are organized by spelling patterns and difficulty levels. Each of the 42 lists comes with a lesson that teaches one of the basic building blocks of spelling in the English language. These basic building blocks include the different phonograms, sounds, and spelling rules. Our spelling lists focus on some of the highest frequency words in the English language to help students establish a base foundation of literacy and confidence with spelling and reading. Students learn a new concept for each lesson building on the skills learned from previous lessons. Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 guides the student and acts as a personal spelling coach with every word, while teaching "how to spell" English words. Memorization may be sufficient to pass a spelling test, but it often does not transfer into good long term reading and spelling skills. Our goal with Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 is to not only teach a list of words, but to teach students “how to spell” these words, thus building long term skills that can be used for over 84% of the words in the English language that follow phonetic patterns. Many studies show that students who learn to read through phonics have a higher level of literacy than students who learn to read by using flash cards and the whole word approach. Also, that not all readers are good spellers, but almost all good spellers are also good readers. This is why Simplex Spelling's comprehensive unique phonics approach to spelling really works to create both better spellers and better readers. Note: Now supports both North American and British accents.
 Note: You can not create your own spelling lists. Features: 
 - Over 450 high frequency words to help build literacy. 
 - A starting assessment/placement test. - Review lists. - 42 instructional lessons teach phonics, phonograms, and spelling rules. 
 - A full “reverse phonics” approach that includes sounds made by all the different letter combinations. - Contextually relevant spelling rule hints that help explain “how to spell” English words.
 - Letter by letter feedback system provides immediate feedback. 
 - Guaranteed success on every word. 
 - Support for 40 user accounts. 
 - Export and email student progress reports. - Remembers each user’s progress in every list. - User stats screen to see mastered words and words that require further practice. 
 - Supports both upper and lower case letters.
 - Supports both alphabetic and QWERTY keyboard layouts.
 - Supports US, UK and Canadian English spelling of words. - Featured previously by Apple in New & Noteworthy, What's Hot, Words for the Wise and Spelling & Grammar. - Honorable mention in the 2012 Best App Ever Awards - Best Special Needs App. - AppsforHomeschooling (5/5, Golden App Award, 2011 Readers Choice Award) - Academics' Choice Award - Parents' Choice Award Privacy Disclosure: - No 3rd party ads - Does not share any data - No In-App purchases - Contains child protected links in app to developer's website for additional information, support and teaching tips. - Contains child protected link to developer email support. COPPA Compliant 
https://pyxwise.com/privacy-policy/

About

Word Wizard

This app helps children aged 4-10 learn to read and spell through interactive word-building and spelling activities. It features a talking movable alphabet, customizable word lists, and progress reports for parents and educators.

Highlights
  • Talking movable alphabet for phonics and word building
  • Customizable word lists with own words and images
  • Multiple spelling activities with increasing difficulty
  • Progress reports for tracking child's development
  • Adaptable settings for letter size, voices, and contrast modes
  • Supports multiple keyboard layouts and letter sizes
Features
Read full description

• "Speak ‘N Spell for the iPad Generation" - The New York Times • Word Wizard is an award-winning app used in schools which offers several unique reading and spelling activities for children ages four to 10. -- Learn to Read by Building Words -- • The Talking Movable Alphabet activity allows kids to experiment with word building and phonics thanks to the advanced text to speech engine (first step in learning to read) • Any text can be written and spoken • 2 child voices + 4 adult voices (US, UK & Australian voices) • Uppercase & lowercase letters, numbers, digraphs, ABC or QWERTY keyboard • Many, many settings to adapt the activities to the child’s needs (letter size, assign images to words, high contrast modes for kids with visual impairment,...) -- Learn to Spell using the Talking Movable Alphabet and your word lists -- • 3 spelling activities that increase in difficulty • 200 built-in word lists (about 2000 words) • Add your own words to create unique spelling quizzes! • Add your own images to illustrate your word lists • Keep tabs on your children’s progress with detailed reports ______ • Used in Schools (140K units sold to schools) • "This is an important breakthrough in reading instruction" - The New York Times • "This is a fantastic app for young children, right through to children in later elementary school " - Wired's GeekDad • Editor's Choice Award for Excellence in Design - Children's Technology Review • Winner of a Parents’ Choice Award • More than 290K units sold! _______ Talking Movable Alphabet Activity _______ • Pronounce and spell-check any word, number or sentence • Natural Sounding Voice - 2 child and 2 adult American voices + 1 British voice + 1 Australian voice • Letter sound (phonic) or name when a letter is touched in the alphabet • 4 keyboards available: letters (ABC or QWERTY, uppercase or lowercase), numbers, consonant digraphs (like “th”) and vowels digraphs (like “oo”) • Keyboard emulation option • 4 letter sizes available (allowing for more or fewer letters on the board) • Customized word pronunciation, if necessary • 4 high contrast modes for kids with vision impairments _______ Fun Spelling Activities _______ 3 spelling activities of increasing difficulty are provided to adapt the activity to the child’s spelling level. You can use the built-in word lists or create your own. 1 - "Word Practice" says and displays the word to spell, and asks the child to spell it 2 - "Scrambled Letters" says the word and displays the letters needed to build the word or sentence, and asks the child to reorder the letters. 3 - “Spelling Quizzes” is a standard spelling test, but the app won’t move onto the next word until the child has correctly spelled the word, helping them to remember its correct spelling. • 200 built-in word lists: Words for beginners (CVC, CCVC, CVCC), Dolch Words, 1,000 most frequently used words, body parts and more • Create custom word lists by entering your own words and sentences • Import and export word lists • Hints are available should kids not know how to spell a word • Once a quiz is completed, interactive animations are available as a reward -- Users & Reports -- • Unlimited number of users • Detailed Spelling Test Reports per user _______ Try it for free, and if you like it, buy the app forever or subscribe monthly for a low fee. Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at the confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless it is canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel your subscriptions by going to your account settings on the App Store after purchase. Privacy Policy: https://lescapadou.com/en/privacy-policy Terms of Use: https://lescapadou.com/tos/tos-en.html Please send any suggestions to support@lescapadou.com. We listen to our users to improve our products!

Screenshots

Simplex Spelling Phonics 14 screens
Word Wizard4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Word Wizard at Free against Simplex Spelling Phonics 1's $4.99. Word Wizard also leads on rating (4.2 vs 4.0) and ratings volume (101 vs 23). Simplex Spelling Phonics 1's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and chart position (#79 vs unranked). On review sentiment, update cadence, ads and device support 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

Word Wizard is free to download; Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 costs $4.99 up front. Word Wizard sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Word Wizard holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 23 and 101 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 81% of Simplex Spelling Phonics 1's written reviews are positive against 88% of Word Wizard's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 ships an update every 5 months, Word Wizard every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 versus Word Wizard: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSimplex Spelling Phonics 1Word Wizard
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating4.0 (23 ratings)4.2 (101 ratings) — better
Positive reviews81.4% of reviews87.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings23101 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 months — betterEvery 8 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#79 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size191 MB113 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPyxwise Software Inc.Pierre Abel

Customer experience

Simplex Spelling Phonics 1

All ratings23 ratings
Positive69.6%
Neutral8.7%
Negative21.7%
Written reviews43 reviews
Positive81.4%
Neutral4.7%
Negative14.0%

Word Wizard

All ratings101 ratings
Positive82.2%
Neutral1.0%
Negative16.8%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%

In-app purchases

None

Simplex Spelling Phonics 1

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Word Wizard

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly Subscription$0.991 Month
One-time1
  • Unlock Forever$7.99

Questions

Is Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 free?
Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Word Wizard free?
Word Wizard is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 or Word Wizard?
Word Wizard is rated higher. Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 averages 4.0 out of 5 from 23 ratings, while Word Wizard averages 4.2 from 101 ratings.
Do Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 or Word Wizard have ads?
Neither Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 nor Word Wizard shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 or Word Wizard?
Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 ships an update every 5 months, and Word Wizard every 8 months. Most recently, Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 was updated on October 26, 2026 and Word Wizard on October 24, 2026.

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