Comparison

Starfall Learn to Read vs Math Facts Fluency

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

Head to head
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.

About

Math Facts Fluency

This app helps children achieve fluency in addition and subtraction math facts through timed practice and a reward system. It offers progress tracking and is designed for both typical and special needs children, as well as adults learning English or dealing with aphasia.

Highlights
  • Addition and subtraction facts in learnable groups
  • Built-in timers for fluency
  • Progressive skill mastery
  • At-a-glance reporting
  • Reward Center for motivation
  • Designed for special needs and adults
Features
Read full description

** Happy Frog Apps is a Mom’s Choice Award Winner! Also featured on FunEducationalApps.com, TeachersWithApps.com, and more! ** Math Facts Fluency: Easy-to-use, built-in rewards and excellent reporting. The only app you'll need to ensure your child is completely fluent in addition and subtraction math facts. What parents say about our awesome apps: *** 5 stars! My son tried other apps, but after using them, I couldn't tell how well he knew his math facts. Was he done? Did he still need practice? With your app, I know exactly how he is doing - and best of all, he LOVES working for the reward game. *** 5 stars! I like how my son can progress independently. The timer feature really ensures fluency. His recall is MUCH improved. Thanks!
 Math Fact fluency is *vital* for math success. Fluency frees up your learner's working memory, allowing more "brain space" for problem solving. Make math easier for your child by ensuring they know their math facts fluently (should be able to answer in about one second!) Math Facts Fluency Builder provides: -- Addition and subtraction math facts introduced in learnable groups. -- Built-in timers to ensure fluency at all levels. Earlier levels allow more time. Final levels require FAST answering! -- Students progress only when mastery of the current skill is demonstrated. -- 'At a glance' reporting shows you instantly how your learner is progressing. -- The fun Reward Center motivates even hesitant learners. Our apps are designed for and tested by typical and special needs children. Testers include children with Autism and other special needs. Our apps work for them! Our apps are also suitable for adults dealing with aphasia or learning English as a Second Language. 
To evaluate the app, download the free version, which has four free levels. Additional levels and additional players can be accessed with in-app purchases. (All levels can be purchased for $2.99 -- price may change.) 

If you prefer no in-app purchases, download the School Edition of this app, which includes all levels and up to 10 players. We take customer service very seriously! If you ever have a problem or find that we've missed something, contact us at our website and we will do our best to fix the problem.  We collect NO private information in our app. None! Our apps do not allow unrestricted web or social media access. We conform to the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.

Screenshots

Starfall Learn to Read4 screens
Math Facts Fluency4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Starfall Learn to Read at 4.2 against Math Facts Fluency's 3.0. Starfall Learn to Read also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ratings volume (226 vs 2). Math Facts Fluency's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 75%) and iOS requirement (12.2 vs 15.0). On price, 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. Math Facts Fluency sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Starfall Learn to Read asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Starfall Learn to Read holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Starfall Learn to Read has 226 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of Starfall Learn to Read's written reviews are positive against 100% of Math Facts Fluency's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Starfall Learn to Read ships an update every 11 months, Math Facts Fluency every 53 months. The most recent releases landed on September 5, 2026 and September 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Starfall Learn to Read versus Math Facts Fluency: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStarfall Learn to ReadMath Facts Fluency
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (226 ratings) — better3.0 (2 ratings)
Positive reviews74.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings226 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 11 months — betterEvery 53 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.2 — better
Further details — not scored
Size91 MB17 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStarfall Education FoundationJanine Toole

Customer experience

Starfall Learn to Read

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

Math Facts Fluency

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

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

Math Facts Fluency

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Starfall Learn to Read

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Math Facts Fluency

One-time3
  • 2 Users$0.99
  • All Levels$1.99
  • 10 Users$2.99

Questions

Is Starfall Learn to Read free?
Starfall Learn to Read is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Math Facts Fluency free?
Math Facts Fluency is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Starfall Learn to Read or Math Facts Fluency?
Starfall Learn to Read is rated higher. Starfall Learn to Read averages 4.2 out of 5 from 226 ratings, while Math Facts Fluency averages 3.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Starfall Learn to Read or Math Facts Fluency have ads?
Neither Starfall Learn to Read nor Math Facts Fluency shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Starfall Learn to Read or Math Facts Fluency?
Starfall Learn to Read ships an update every 11 months, and Math Facts Fluency every 53 months. Most recently, Starfall Learn to Read was updated on September 5, 2026 and Math Facts Fluency on September 19, 2026.

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