Comparison

Starfall Learn to Read vs Speakia School

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

Speakia School

Features
Read full description

Study abroad without leaving home! Speak English like a native speaker. Welcome to Speakia, a virtual American town in your living room. Speakia is the missing piece of your child’s English learning- an affordable, on-demand conversational English environment at home! Cutting-edge voice technology transports your child to a life-like English world with conversational cartoon friends! With real-life topics and scenarios, your child will speak the same English American kids speak every day. Speak English anytime, anywhere for affordable, accelerated results in a gamified, life-like environment that kids actually enjoy. *How Speakia Works* Step 1 - Visit Speakia everyday for a 10 minute English Speaking Mission. Step 2 - Learn new, modern vocabulary, key sentence structures, and native-sounding pronunciation. Step 3 - Apply your knowledge in true-to-life conversations. Step 4 - Hang out for a chat in Speakia’s English speaking town. Step 5 - Watch your spoken English accelerate with engaging, systematic, daily practice. *From Speakia’s biggest fans- kids, parents and teachers!* “The app design is realistic and beautiful. Speakia’s learning content is closely related to daily life. If parents encourage their children to learn everyday, or parents use Speakia together with their children, their spoken English will improve rapidly.” - Luella- English teacher It’s great that my child can speak English everyday, and also great that I don’t have to force them to sit down and study. My child speaks much more English in Speakia than they do in English class! - Lucy (parent of an 8 year old girl) I like playing Speakia. I can talk with my cartoon friends in English. I don’t feel scared and embarrassed to speak English anymore! - Duke (6 years old) Terms of Use https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Starfall Learn to Read4 screens
Speakia School4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Speakia School at every 2 months against Starfall Learn to Read's every 9 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Starfall Learn to Read ships an update every 9 months, Speakia School every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Starfall Learn to Read versus Speakia School: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStarfall Learn to ReadSpeakia School
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (229 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews74.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings229 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 9 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size91 MB61 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStarfall Education FoundationEduMaxi Limited

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

Speakia School

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Starfall Learn to Read

No in-app purchases

None

Speakia School

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Starfall Learn to Read free?
Starfall Learn to Read is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Speakia School free?
Speakia School is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Starfall Learn to Read or Speakia School have ads?
Neither Starfall Learn to Read nor Speakia School shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Starfall Learn to Read or Speakia School?
Starfall Learn to Read ships an update every 9 months, and Speakia School every 2 months. Most recently, Starfall Learn to Read was updated on October 17, 2026 and Speakia School on October 6, 2026.

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