Starfall Learn to Read vs Mathtopia
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- 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
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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.
Mathtopia
This educational puzzle game uses a tile-matching mechanic to help children practice math skills. Players solve equations by matching answer tiles, earning stars and trophies for speed and accuracy. It offers a fun and engaging way to reinforce addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division concepts.
- Tile-matching math puzzles
- Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division practice
- Earn stars and trophies
- Multi-touch swap for complex matching
- Game Center integration for competition
- Unlock secret levels
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Same game play as Mathtopia+ with the early levels of addition free. Smart Apps for Kids says of Mathtopia+: "...the first app I've reviewed that has been so addicting to me I couldn't stop playing long enough to write the review. It's also being played by all three of my children, in 6th grade, 3rd grade, and kindergarten, and I've even heard them fighting over the iPad for more Mathtopia+ time. I can guarantee no one in my house has ever fought over more time with flash cards." "Wickedly addictive!" Math Coach's Corner. "I found our 10-year-old 'sneaking' time on the iPad and playing it for fun." Apps for Homeschooling. Stamp math expressions with colorful answer tiles. Solve a tile-matching puzzle to advance. Earn stars and trophies as you get faster at recognizing equivalencies. The puzzle game play is similar to popular jewel swapping games but with multi-touch swap, enabling more complicated and challenging matching for addicts of tile-matching puzzlers. True addicts can match their skills against others on Game Center and unlock secret levels. Reduce stress while training the brain. What others are saying about Mathtopia and Mathopia+ ° Mathtopia+ won the Children's Technology Review Editor's Choice Award 2013 ° Fun Educational Apps Top Pick ° PadGadget - Ten iPad Apps We Love ° SmartAppsForKids - Five Stars ° Minds in Bloom - Best Math App Ever Mathtopia achievements are life-long skills. This app requires in app purchase to unlock some features. We hope you enjoy Mathtopia. Common Core and Grade Levels Alignments Addition and Subtraction: Kindergarten, First, and Second Grade CCSS.Math.Content.2.OA.B.2 Add and subtract within 20. By end of Grade 2, know from memory all sums of two one-digit numbers. Multiplication and Division: Third Grade CCSS.Math.Content.3.OA.C.7 Fluently multiply and divide within 100. By end of Grade 3, know from memory all products of two one-digit numbers. Multiplication and Division Modules. Mathtopia animations are powered by the Sparrow Framework. http://www.TopShelfLearning.com
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Starfall Learn to Read at 4.2 against Mathtopia's 3.2. Starfall Learn to Read also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 6) and ratings volume (229 vs 10). Mathtopia's advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 9 months) and review sentiment (89% vs 75%). 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
Both are free to download. Mathtopia sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Starfall Learn to Read asks for nothing beyond the download.
Starfall Learn to Read holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Starfall Learn to Read has 229 ratings behind it against 10, 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 89% of Mathtopia's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Starfall Learn to Read ships an update every 9 months, Mathtopia every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Starfall Learn to Read | Mathtopia |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (229 ratings) — better | 3.2 (10 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 74.7% of reviews | 88.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 229 — better | 10 |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | Every 4 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 5.1.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 91 MB | 21 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Starfall Education Foundation | Omega Labs Inc. |
Customer experience
Starfall Learn to Read
Mathtopia
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
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- 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
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- 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
Mathtopia
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Starfall Learn to Read
No in-app purchases
Mathtopia
- Mathtopia Subtraction$0.99
- Mathtopia Division$0.99
- Mathtopia Addition$0.99
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- Mathtopia Multiplication$0.99
- Mathtopia Fractions$0.99
- Roman Numerals for Mathtopia$0.99
Questions
Is Starfall Learn to Read free?
Is Mathtopia free?
Which has better reviews, Starfall Learn to Read or Mathtopia?
Do Starfall Learn to Read or Mathtopia have ads?
Which is updated more often, Starfall Learn to Read or Mathtopia?
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