Comparison

BrainPOP Jr. vs Starfall Learn to Read

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

Head to head
About

BrainPOP Jr.

This app offers engaging animated movies, interactive activities, and quizzes for K-3 learners. It aims to transform passive screen time into active, enriched educational experiences with relatable characters guiding children through various subjects. The platform is designed to foster critical thinking and independent learning.

Highlights
  • Animated movies
  • Interactive activities
  • Quizzes
  • K-3 curriculum
  • Critical thinking focus
  • Independent learning
Read full description

Access BrainPOP Jr.’s award-winning animated movies, activities and quizzes made by educators and replace your kids’ passive screen time with active, enriched learning. The gentle, humorous, and relatable characters Annie and Moby serve as guides through each topic, empowering kids to form their own ideas. BrainPOP Jr. is designed to cultivate critical thinking skills and encourage children to ask questions and make connections. Start your free trial today to access content for grades K-3 across all subjects. BrainPOP Jr. is a research-backed learning platform created by educators that know how kids learn best, and perfect for age-appropriate, independent learning. Start watching, learning, playing and growing with us! Terms of Use: https://www.brainpop.com/about/terms_of_use/ Privacy Policy: https://www.brainpop.com/about/privacy_policy/ User Agreement: https://www.brainpop.com/about/user_agreement/

About

Starfall Learn to Read

This free app offers engaging books, games, and movies to help children learn to read. It focuses on vowel sounds and spelling through interactive activities, songs, and movies, fostering a love for language and reading.

Highlights
  • Interactive reading activities
  • Engaging games and movies
  • Focus on vowel sounds and spelling
  • Songs and positive reinforcement
  • Suitable for emerging readers
  • Supports English language learners
Features
Read full description

Starfall® Learn to Read is the second step of Starfall’s Learn to Read phonics sequence, which teaches the foundational skills for learning to read. Step 1: ABCs Step 2: Learn to Read Step 3: It’s Fun to Read Step 4: I’m Reading! In Starfall Learn to Read, children explore early phonics in a sequential, stress-free environment. Each step of the learning journey comes to life with help from the Vowel Pals—delightful characters that add depth and personality to each vowel sound. Children develop their phonics skills through the use of CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words, sight words, and vowel teams. Mastering the skills taught in Starfall Learn to Read helps children become confident, independent readers. Travel-ready. No internet connection required. Find Starfall Learn to Read, along with 700+ additional activities and counting across reading, math, music, and more in the Starfall app. The Starfall website and applications are program services of Starfall Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) publicly supported nonprofit organization. Starfall® and Starfall.com® are registered trademarks in the US, the European Union, and various other countries. Copyright © 2002–2026 by Starfall Education. All rights reserved. Starfall apps are inclusively designed to support all children, including English Language Learners (ELLs). Starfall also provides an Enhanced Accessible Index for children with visual, hearing, or mobility impairments. For more information, please contact Customer Service at (+1) 303-417-6414.

Screenshots

BrainPOP Jr.4 screens
Starfall Learn to Read4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Starfall Learn to Read at none against BrainPOP Jr.'s 5. BrainPOP Jr.'s advantage is rating (4.6 vs 4.2) and update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 11 months). On price, review sentiment, 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

Both are free to download. BrainPOP Jr. sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Starfall Learn to Read asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

BrainPOP Jr. holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BrainPOP Jr. has 21K ratings behind it against 226, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 73% of BrainPOP Jr.'s written reviews are positive against 75% of Starfall Learn to Read's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BrainPOP Jr. ships an update every 6 weeks, Starfall Learn to Read every 11 months. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
BrainPOP Jr. versus Starfall Learn to Read: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBrainPOP Jr.Starfall Learn to Read
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (21K ratings) — better4.2 (226 ratings)
Positive reviews72.6% of reviews74.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings21K — better226
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeks — betterEvery 11 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB91 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBrainPOP®Starfall Education Foundation

Customer experience

BrainPOP Jr.

All ratings20,857 ratings
Positive90.3%
Neutral4.2%
Negative5.6%
Written reviews186 reviews
Positive72.6%
Neutral8.6%
Negative18.8%

Starfall Learn to Read

All ratings226 ratings
Positive77.0%
Neutral7.1%
Negative15.9%
Written reviews75 reviews
Positive74.7%
Neutral1.3%
Negative24.0%

User reviews

BrainPOP Jr.

From 21K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💡 Makes learning fun
  • 👍 Engaging videos and quizzes
  • 👍 Helpful for homeschooling and supplemental learning
  • 👍 Informative and educational content
  • 👍 Funny and entertaining

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription
  • 💰 Lack of free content
  • 🐛 Crashes and technical issues
  • 👎 Limited content selection

Starfall Learn to Read

From 226 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 📚 Excellent phonics and reading instruction method
  • 🎵 Engaging songs and catchy tunes that maintain interest
  • 🎨 Well-designed animations and interactive stories
  • 👶 Effective for children with learning difficulties (dyslexia, ADHD, special needs)
  • 💰 Free version available with substantial content

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes and fails to load on some devices
  • ❌ Math games incompatible with certain iOS versions
  • 📱 Technical issues with black/green screens on launch
  • 🔄 Requires multiple restarts to function properly
  • 💳 Misleading pricing - paid version converted to free

Bugs and requests

BrainPOP Jr.

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when trying to subscribe
  • Videos not loading properly
  • Quiz functionality not working

Requested features

5 requests
  • More free videos and content
  • Lower subscription pricing
  • Improved device compatibility
  • Expanded topic coverage
  • Better navigation and organization

Starfall Learn to Read

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • App won't load beyond launch screen (black or green screen)
  • Math games incompatible with iPhone updates
  • Sound not playing in some instances
  • App requires deletion and reinstallation to function
  • Crashes on iOS 9.2.1 and older versions
Show 3 more
  • Glitches when pressing letter machine words
  • App needs to be opened twice each time to run
  • Compatibility issues with various iOS versions

Requested features

10 requests
  • Reward/star system for motivation and progress tracking
  • Lesson progression markers showing mastery of modules
  • Writing and spelling exercises to reinforce learning
  • More stories and content variety
  • UK English version option
Show 5 more
  • Settings to control word pronunciation features
  • More word-building exercises
  • Sight vocabulary games for common words
  • Additional phonics rules (ng, tch, ck, tion, sion)
  • Level progression system to track advancement

In-app purchases

5 purchases

BrainPOP Jr.

Subscriptions5
  • BrainPOP Jr. Explorer Subscription$3.991 Month
  • Full Access Monthly14 Days trial$14.991 Month
  • BrainPOP Jr. Monthly Combo14 Days trial$19.991 Month
Show 2 more
  • Full Access Yearly14 Days trial$119.001 Year
  • BrainPOP Jr. Yearly Combo14 Days trial$159.991 Year
None

Starfall Learn to Read

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BrainPOP Jr. free?
BrainPOP Jr. is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Starfall Learn to Read free?
Starfall Learn to Read is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, BrainPOP Jr. or Starfall Learn to Read?
BrainPOP Jr. is rated higher. BrainPOP Jr. averages 4.6 out of 5 from 21K ratings, while Starfall Learn to Read averages 4.2 from 226 ratings.
Do BrainPOP Jr. or Starfall Learn to Read have ads?
Neither BrainPOP Jr. nor Starfall Learn to Read shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BrainPOP Jr. or Starfall Learn to Read?
BrainPOP Jr. ships an update every 6 weeks, and Starfall Learn to Read every 11 months. Most recently, BrainPOP Jr. was updated on September 22, 2026 and Starfall Learn to Read on September 5, 2026.

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