Comparison

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 vs Phonics & ABC

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

Head to head
About

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3

This educational app helps children master letter-sound connections through four interactive games. It focuses solely on the sounds letters make, not their names, using lowercase letters for effective learning. Children can play independently with built-in feedback.

Highlights
  • Letter-sound matching games
  • Focus on letter sounds, not names
  • Independent play with feedback
  • Uses lowercase letters
  • Reinforces phonics skills
Features
Read full description

This app is designed to help your child master the letter-sound connection. This app uses four different games to help your child learn and reinforce their knowledge of which sound each letter makes. Each game involves seeing letters and hearing sounds. The child decides which sounds do and which sound do not match the letter(s) being shown. The child either identifies the correct answer by tapping or drags and drops the correct answer in its place. This app is the third app in the ABC MAGIC PHONICS series. This app builds on the skills learned in the first two apps of this series. Those apps were about teaching letter/sound associations using phonetic pictures. This app focuses only on the sound of the letter and does not use any phonetic pictures as cues. We recommend the other ABC MAGIC PHONICS apps as means to develop and reinforce your child’s phonics skills and reading abilities. Please note, that in this app, only the SOUNDS of the letters are used and NEVER the names of the letters. A child can actually read without knowing the common names of the letters, but a child only knowing the names of the letters cannot phonetically read. The ubiquitousness of the ABC song both at home and at school will surely give children the ability to name the letters. Many children, however, are not given the much-needed explicit instruction of the SOUNDS that the letters make. This app, therefore, is dedicated to helping children learn the SOUNDS that the letters make. Only lower case letters are used, which is the most effective way for teaching children letters since 95% of the printed word is lowercase. These games are designed so that children can do them independently after being given the basic instructions of how to play the games. The app has built-in feedback mechanisms to help the child to work independently. These mechanisms allow the child to learn at their own pace and in their own way. Some pictures may seem indiscernible, but don’t worry, the pictures, when touched, will ALWAYS say their name. The child NEVER has to know what the picture is ahead of time. Tapping on the image box will ALWAYS play the audio file that names the picture.

About

Phonics & ABC

This educational tool teaches children phonemes and letter sounds through interactive books, activities, and flashcards. It focuses on building letter sound knowledge, aiding speech development, and enhancing early literacy skills for school readiness.

Highlights
  • Interactive read-along books
  • Learning activities with feedback
  • Comprehensive flashcards
  • Human voice narration
  • Focus on 44 phonemes
  • Speech and language development support
Features
Read full description

The Phonics app for children is a powerful educational tool designed to teach children the 44 phonemes and letter sounds through fun and interactive read along books, learning activities, and flashcards. Developed by Smart Kidz Club with the "just right" reading condition without any animations and distractions, this app uses human voice narration and is designed to make learning phonics focused, easy, and enjoyable for young children. The Phonics app will help children • Build a solid letter sound knowledge • Help with speech and language development • Enhance their early literacy and reading skills • Get a head start at school with higher reading readiness The app introduces children to each of the 44 phonemes (letter sounds) and their corresponding graphemes, letters that make up that sound. Each phoneme is taught through a list of that contains that sound and is supported by an image. There is a separate book and flashcard for the beginning, middle, and ending sounds of vowels, consonants, and digraphs. Once children have learned the phonemes and letter sounds, they can move on to the practice activities. These learning activities are designed to help children practice their phonics skills such as matching sounds to pictures. The activities are interactive and provide immediate feedback, allowing children to learn from their mistakes and improve their phonics skills. The app also includes a comprehensive set of flashcards that children can use to practice their phonics skills. The flashcards are organized by phoneme and include pictures and words that use the corresponding sound. Children can swipe through the flashcards at their own pace, listening to the sound and practicing saying the word. This feature is perfect for children who prefer to learn at their own pace and for parents who want to help their children practice phonics skills outside of the app. The Phonics app for children is designed to be user-friendly and intuitive, with simple navigation and clear instructions. The app is suitable for children of all ages, from preschoolers to early elementary school students. It can be used both in the classroom and at home. The Phonics app for children is an excellent tool for teaching children the 44 phonemes and letter sounds. Whether used in the classroom or at home, the Phonics app for children is an excellent tool for supporting children's literacy development.

Screenshots

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 34 screens
Phonics & ABC4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 at 88% against Phonics & ABC's 0%. ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 also leads on ratings volume (922 vs 89) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 17.6). Phonics & ABC's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 10 months) and rating (4.6 vs 4.4). 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. ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Phonics & ABC sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Phonics & ABC holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 has 922 ratings behind it against 89, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 88% of ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3's written reviews are positive against 0% of Phonics & ABC's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 ships an update every 10 months, Phonics & ABC monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 versus Phonics & ABC: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterABC MAGIC PHONICS 3Phonics & ABC
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (922 ratings)4.6 (89 ratings) — better
Positive reviews87.5% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings922 — better89
Update frequencyEvery 10 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS8.0 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size58 MB40 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPRESCHOOL UNIVERSITYSmart Kidz Club Inc.

Customer experience

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3

All ratings921 ratings
Positive84.3%
Neutral9.2%
Negative6.5%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%

Phonics & ABC

All ratings88 ratings
Positive90.9%
Neutral3.4%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3

One-time1
  • Full Version$1.99
3 purchases

Phonics & ABC

Subscriptions3
  • Phonics for Kids:1M$2.991 Month
  • Phonics for Kids:3M3 Days trial$3.993 Months
  • Phonics for Kids:6M3 Days trial$4.996 Months

Questions

Is ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 free?
ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Phonics & ABC free?
Phonics & ABC is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 or Phonics & ABC?
Phonics & ABC is rated higher. ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 averages 4.4 out of 5 from 922 ratings, while Phonics & ABC averages 4.6 from 89 ratings.
Do ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 or Phonics & ABC have ads?
Neither ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 nor Phonics & ABC shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 or Phonics & ABC?
ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 ships an update every 10 months, and Phonics & ABC monthly. Most recently, ABC MAGIC PHONICS 3 was updated on October 29, 2026 and Phonics & ABC on October 25, 2026.

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