Comparison

Visual Countdown Timer vs Hungry Caterpillar Play School

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

Head to head
About

Visual Countdown Timer

This app uses a visual countdown to help children understand time and complete tasks. A picture is revealed as time elapses, and an exciting animation and sound reward completion. It aims to turn daily struggles into fun and encourage quicker task completion.

Highlights
  • Visual countdown from green to red
  • Picture revealed as time elapses
  • Exciting sound and animation reward
  • Customizable background images
  • User-selected reveal images
  • Adaptable for various tasks
Features
Read full description

Is it a battle to get your child to do something quickly? This visual countdown App was designed for my 2 year old son to help him get his reward chart star for getting dressed quickly. Getting him dressed used to take forever with many stalling strategies being deployed. Now he runs upstairs asking for the "Countdown". Watch as the timer runs from green to amber to red, helping the child understand that time is running out. A fun picture is slowly revealed as the time runs down and when the time is up the child is rewarded with an exciting sound and the picture spins. Background image changes to match the time of day, so that your child is given subtle hints as to what time of day the task they are being asked relates to. Choose your own image to reveal from your iPhones photo library to really surprise your child. Endless possible uses: * Getting dressed * Getting out the door (shoes and coats on) * Tidying * Brushing teeth * Sharing toys Turns daily struggles into fun time!

About

Hungry Caterpillar Play School

This app provides a Montessori-inspired learning environment for children aged 2-6, featuring hundreds of books, activities, and games. It encourages independent learning through art, music, math, science, and problem-solving, with a focus on digital wellness and offline play.

Highlights
  • Montessori-inspired activities
  • Hundreds of books, games, and songs
  • Child-centric learning
  • Eric Carle art style
  • Early learning for ages 2-6
  • Offline play
  • Meditations for wellness
Features
Read full description

Hungry Caterpillar Play School offers a calming and beautiful environment for young children ages 2-6. Activities are based on Montessori principles that encourage hands-on and independent learning. The app is inspired by Eric Carle, a beloved author and illustrator known for his classic children’s books, including “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”. • Hundreds of books, activities, videos, songs, and meditations. • Child-centric learning—explore and learn at your own pace • Eric Carle's beautiful and unique art style • Essential early learning for kids aged 2-6 • Gentle rewards to encourage repeated play—crucial for early learners • Highly praised by parents of neurodivergent children LEARNING BENEFITS ABCs - learn the alphabet and how to read. Children trace letters and learn to spell their name. EARLY MATH - explore numbers 1-10. Play games that teach early coding, measurement, patterns, and more. SCIENCE & NATURE - activities and non-fiction books make little ones aware of science and the natural world. PROBLEM-SOLVING - match pairs, learn shapes, solve jigsaw puzzles, and complete fun quizzes. ART & MUSIC - artistic activities include coloring, collage, and building blocks. Experiment with musical notes, explore scales, learn chords, and create beats. HEALTH & WELLNESS - practice meditations to calm down, relax, and reduce anxiety. Apple Editor’s Choice 2022 FEATURES • Safe and age-appropriate • Designed responsibly to let your child enjoy screen time while developing healthy digital habits at a young age • Play pre-downloaded content offline without wifi or internet • Regular updates with new content • Apple Family Sharing for easy subscription sharing with other family members • No third-party advertising • No in-app purchases for subscribers SUPPORT For any questions or assistance, please reach out to us at support@storytoys.com ABOUT STORYTOYS Our mission is to bring the world's most popular characters, worlds, and stories to life for children. We make apps for kids that engage them in well-rounded activities designed to help them learn, play, and grow. Parents can enjoy peace of mind knowing their kids are learning and having fun at the same time. PRIVACY & TERMS StoryToys takes children's privacy seriously and ensures that its apps comply with privacy laws, including the Child Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). If you would like to learn more about the information we collect and how we use it, please visit our privacy policy at https://storytoys.com/privacy. Read our terms of use here: https://storytoys.com/terms. SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS This app contains sample content that is free to play. However, LOTS MORE fun and entertaining games and activities are available if you purchase a monthly or yearly subscription. While you are subscribed you can play with EVERYTHING. We regularly add new stuff, so subscribed users will enjoy ever-expanding play opportunities. • Subscriptions are billed monthly or annually according to the rate of the selected subscription plan. • You can change your mind at any point. Cancelling can be done through your iTunes settings. • Your subscription will auto-renew at the cost of the chosen package unless you cancel it 24 hours before the end of the current subscription period. Subscription fees are charged to your iTunes account. • After purchase, you can manage your subscription and turn off auto-renewal by going to your Account Settings. • When you purchase a subscription, you forfeit any unused portion of a free trial period. • You can use your subscription on any device registered with the same Apple ID that you subscribed from.

Screenshots

Visual Countdown Timer4 screens
Hungry Caterpillar Play School4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Visual Countdown Timer at 80% against Hungry Caterpillar Play School's 38%. Visual Countdown Timer also leads on rating (4.6 vs 4.2). Hungry Caterpillar Play School's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.5). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and in-app purchases 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. Visual Countdown Timer sells 7 one-off in-app purchases and Hungry Caterpillar Play School sells 10 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

Visual Countdown Timer holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 40K and 24K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 80% of Visual Countdown Timer's written reviews are positive against 38% of Hungry Caterpillar Play School's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Visual Countdown Timer ships an update monthly, Hungry Caterpillar Play School every 5 weeks. Both last shipped on October 4, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Visual Countdown Timer versus Hungry Caterpillar Play School: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVisual Countdown TimerHungry Caterpillar Play School
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (40K ratings) — better4.2 (24K ratings)
Positive reviews80.3% of reviews — better37.9% of reviews
Number of ratings40K — better24K
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.513.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size185 MB463 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFehners Software LLPStoryToys Limited

Customer experience

Visual Countdown Timer

All ratings40,434 ratings
Positive89.3%
Neutral5.6%
Negative5.1%
Written reviews290 reviews
Positive80.3%
Neutral6.2%
Negative13.4%

Hungry Caterpillar Play School

All ratings23,698 ratings
Positive79.3%
Neutral9.7%
Negative10.9%
Written reviews298 reviews
Positive37.9%
Neutral7.0%
Negative55.0%

User reviews

Visual Countdown Timer

From 40K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great for classroom/special needs use
  • 👍 Simple and visual design
  • 👍 Customizable pictures and sounds
  • 👍 Helps with transitions and routines
  • 👍 Motivates kids to complete tasks

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
  • 🔊 Loud ticking sound
  • 🔒 Ads in free version
  • 🔒 Can't pause or stop timer

Hungry Caterpillar Play School

From 24K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Engaging and educational
  • 👍 Great for young kids
  • 👍 Variety of games and activities
  • 👍 Calming and relaxing
  • 👍 Visually appealing

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Sound issues
  • 🐛 Bugs and crashes
  • 💰 Expensive subscription
  • 💰 Misleading pricing and trial
  • 🤬 Deceptive subscription practices

Bugs and requests

Visual Countdown Timer

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Custom pictures load rotated
  • Timer stops working when app is in background

Requested features

5 requests
  • Option to set timer to countdown to a specific time
  • Ability to adjust timer in smaller increments
  • Option to keep picture displayed after timer ends
  • Background timer functionality
  • Custom sound/music options

Hungry Caterpillar Play School

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Inability to log in
  • Freezing and crashing
  • Unresponsive touch controls
  • Content not unlocking after purchase

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improved accessibility options
  • Better navigation and organization
  • More reading and spelling activities
  • Family sharing support
  • Ability to cancel subscription easily

In-app purchases

7 purchases

Visual Countdown Timer

One-time7
  • Ocean Pack$0.99
  • Transport Pack$0.99
  • Animal Pack$0.99
Show 4 more
  • Cartoon Pack$0.99
  • Mask Maker$0.99
  • Remove Ads$1.99
  • Premium Upgrade$3.99
10 purchases

Hungry Caterpillar Play School

Subscriptions10
  • Special Offer$2.991 Month
  • Learning - Pay Monthly7 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • Start learning – Pay monthly1 Month trial$7.991 Month
Show 7 more
  • Learning - Pay Monthly7 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • Monthly Membership7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Limited Offer - Pay Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Learning - Pay Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Annual - Best Value7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Learning - Pay Yearly - Save!1 Month trial$59.991 Year
  • Big Savings - Pay Annually7 Days trial$59.991 Year

Questions

Is Visual Countdown Timer free?
Visual Countdown Timer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hungry Caterpillar Play School free?
Hungry Caterpillar Play School is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Visual Countdown Timer or Hungry Caterpillar Play School?
Visual Countdown Timer is rated higher. Visual Countdown Timer averages 4.6 out of 5 from 40K ratings, while Hungry Caterpillar Play School averages 4.2 from 24K ratings.
Do Visual Countdown Timer or Hungry Caterpillar Play School have ads?
Visual Countdown Timer shows ads; Hungry Caterpillar Play School does not.
Which is updated more often, Visual Countdown Timer or Hungry Caterpillar Play School?
Visual Countdown Timer ships an update monthly, and Hungry Caterpillar Play School every 5 weeks. Most recently, Visual Countdown Timer was updated on October 4, 2026 and Hungry Caterpillar Play School on October 4, 2026.

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