Comparison

Custom Boards Elite vs Math Boost Start

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

Head to head
About

Custom Boards Elite

Create custom visual support materials using a vast library of symbols or your own photos. Design boards, schedules, and worksheets for communication and learning. Print, save, or email your creations directly from the app.

Highlights
  • Activity creation center
  • 21,000+ built-in symbols
  • Add custom photos
  • Template library (120+)
  • Print, save, and email
  • Organize with folders
Features
Read full description

The Ultimate Visual Support & Activity Creator Empower communication and learning with Custom Boards Elite! Designed specifically for speech therapists, special education teachers, and parents, Custom Boards Elite is an evidence-based app that revolutionizes how you create visual supports. Whether you need a daily schedule, a communication grid, or an engaging articulation game, Custom Boards gives you the tools to build professional, customized materials in minutes. UNMATCHED SYMBOL LIBRARY Say goodbye to stick figures and limited clip art. Custom Boards includes over 29,000 high-quality, diverse symbols from the renowned Smarty Symbols library. Need something specific? You can easily upload and integrate your own photos directly from your device! 120+ READY-TO-USE TEMPLATES Stop starting from scratch. Choose from over 120 expertly designed templates categorized into six core areas: Activities & Games: Bingo, Dominoes, Board Games, and more. Devices & Switches: Perfect for AAC device overlays. Signs & Labels: Create classroom rules, labels, and directional signs. Grids & Boards: Standard communication grids from 1x1 up to complex layouts. Schedules & Calendars: First-Then boards, weekly schedules, and daily routines. Worksheets: Ready-made educational printables. DEEP CUSTOMIZATION Make every board your own. Our intuitive editor allows you to: Customize background and text colors for every single cell. Tweak border styles (solid, dashed, circular) to highlight specific targets. Easily edit text labels to match your student's specific vocabulary. BUILT FOR SPEECH THERAPISTS Save hours of prep time with our advanced search filters. Target specific speech goals by filtering the entire 21,000+ symbol library by Initial, Medial, or Final letter positions! EXPORT & ORGANIZE When your masterpiece is complete, you are ready to PRINT, SAVE, or E-MAIL the final template. Print directly from your iPad to any AirPrint-ready printer. Creating boards for a whole caseload? Keep your finalized templates neatly organized into custom folders inside the app's Archive. Join the revolution in special education and start creating beautiful, effective visual supports today!

About

Math Boost Start

Practice secondary school math skills with engaging quizzes and matching games. Covers topics like algebra, number, data, and shape, with randomized questions for endless practice. Ideal for students aged 11-14.

Highlights
  • Multiple choice quizzes
  • Timed challenges
  • High score tables
  • Match the question and answer game
  • Topic-based question selection
  • Randomized questions
  • Practice Algebra, Number, Data, Shape
Features
Read full description

Math Boost is for secondary school students ages around 11-14. It is based on US, UK or International curricula – for example the MYP. Math Boost Start offers students a chance to engage and practice their maths skills on the go and in a fun way. Maths Boost Start is written specifically for iPhone and iPad. It was written by a working maths teacher in an International School and is based on software that has been tried and tested on pupils over several years. The app has 2 parts: -the standard math quiz using multiple choice, against the time and competing on high scores -the pairs game offers you the change to access the same questions, but in a match the question and answer game What do you get? The Math Boost applications offer pupils opportunity to: -engage quickly in random questions -choose questions based around topics (e.g. Algebra, Number, Data, Shape) -choose specific topics to practice -choose length of play -engage in topics by the conventional multiple choice mode -engage in topics in a pairs game -high scores tables There are currently about 80 sets of questions available. All questions are randomized in order and use random numbers, so you will never get the same game twice. The questions cover around 80% of the topics found on the full curricula. The full range of topics only become apparent when you delve in the software. They can be found under the main areas below: Any in topic: Algebra; Algebra - brackets; Collecting like terms; Equations; Missing number; Sequences - Formula; Sequences - Next Term; Sequences - Rule; Sometimes, always, never; Straight Lines; Substitution; Any in topic: Data; Averages; Interpreting Charts; Mean; Probabilities; Any in topic: Number; Approximations; Decimals; Directed numbers; Factors and multiples; Frac, Dec, %; Fractions: simplify and equivalent; HCF and LCM; Money Problems; Multiply/divide powers of 10; Multiply fractions; Order of Operations; Ordering decimals; Percentages; Primes, Squares and Cubes; Ratio; Rounding; Rounding and Sig figs; Significant figures; Times/Divide Tables; Upper and Lower Bounds; Word Problems; Any in topic: Shape; 2D or 3D Shapes; 2D Shapes; 3D Shapes; Angle Facts; Angle Sums; Angles in Shapes; Area and Perimeter; Areas; Circles; Coordinates; Fractions of Shapes; Measures; Symmetry; Time Problems; Translations; Languages; Maths Jokes.

Screenshots

Math Boost Start4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Math Boost Start at 5.0 against Custom Boards Elite's 2.2. Math Boost Start also leads on monetization model (free vs subscription) and device support (3 vs 1). Custom Boards Elite's advantage is ratings volume (6 vs 1). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads 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. Custom Boards Elite sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Math Boost Start sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Math Boost Start holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Custom Boards Elite has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 56% of Custom Boards Elite's written reviews are positive against 57% of Math Boost Start's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Custom Boards Elite ships an update every 7 months, Math Boost Start every 6 months. Both last shipped on November 6, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Custom Boards Elite versus Math Boost Start: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCustom Boards EliteMath Boost Start
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.2 (6 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews55.6% of reviews57.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings6 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 7 monthsEvery 6 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size880 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSmarty EarsR.D. Hare

Customer experience

Custom Boards Elite

All ratings5 ratings
Positive20.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative80.0%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive55.6%
Neutral11.1%
Negative33.3%

Math Boost Start

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive57.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative42.9%

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Custom Boards Elite

Subscriptions3
  • Monthly Subscription7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Six months Access7 Days trial$49.996 Months
  • Yearly Access7 Days trial$59.991 Year
One-time7
  • The ant$0.99
  • Placemat$0.99
  • Tech talk$0.99
Show 4 more
  • Weekly$0.99
  • Orderly$0.99
  • Story Board$0.99
  • Purchase 10,000 Smarty Symbols$19.99
1 purchases

Math Boost Start

One-time1
  • Full Version Unlock$1.99

Questions

Is Custom Boards Elite free?
Custom Boards Elite is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Math Boost Start free?
Math Boost Start is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Custom Boards Elite or Math Boost Start?
Math Boost Start is rated higher. Custom Boards Elite averages 2.2 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Math Boost Start averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Custom Boards Elite or Math Boost Start have ads?
Neither Custom Boards Elite nor Math Boost Start shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Custom Boards Elite or Math Boost Start?
Custom Boards Elite ships an update every 7 months, and Math Boost Start every 6 months. Most recently, Custom Boards Elite was updated on November 6, 2026 and Math Boost Start on November 6, 2026.

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