Comparison

Hooked on Phonics Learning vs Decodable Readers L1 Sample

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

Head to head
About

Hooked on Phonics Learning

This app helps children learn to read, write, and do math through engaging games and activities. It offers phonics lessons, spelling practice, and math concepts for kids from preschool to second grade. Daily practice builds essential literacy and numeracy skills.

Highlights
  • Phonics and reading lessons
  • Math games and activities
  • Spelling and handwriting practice
  • Interactive storybooks
  • Vocabulary building
  • Progress tracking
  • Personalized learning paths
Read full description

Help your child learn to read with confidence! Hooked on Phonics is a phonics and reading app for kids in preschool and pre-K through kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. Just 15 minutes of daily reading practice helps children build skills step by step. Built on 40 years of early literacy experience and aligned with the Science of Reading, Hooked on Phonics combines phonics lessons, reading games, interactive activities, and digital storybooks. Kids practice letter sounds, blending, sight words, spelling, vocabulary, and reading comprehension at their own pace. LEARN TO READ WITH PHONICS • Letter sounds and phonemic awareness: Recognize letters, hear sounds, and build early literacy skills. • Sounding out words: Blend sounds to decode CVC words, new words, and sentences. • Reading fluency: Improve accuracy and confidence with guided reading practice. • Reading comprehension: Explore stories, build vocabulary, and strengthen understanding. • Handwriting and spelling: Practice letter tracing, writing, and spelling skills. READING GAMES FOR PRESCHOOL THROUGH SECOND GRADE Looking for a learn-to-read app for a 4-year-old, 5-year-old, or beginning reader? Practice ABCs, alphabet sounds, phonics, word recognition, and early reading through bite-sized educational games. Use lessons for kindergarten readiness, homeschool reading practice, after-school enrichment, or extra reading help at home. Whether your child is learning letters in preschool, preparing for kindergarten, reading in first grade, or practicing second grade reading skills, interactive stories and encouraging rewards make screen time learning time. HOOKED ON MATH IS INCLUDED Explore math learning for kids ages 3–9, from pre-K through third grade. Hooked on Math teaches counting, number sense, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division with math games, songs, and stories. Build reading and math skills in one learning experience. NEW- HOOKED ON PHONICS VOCABULARY Grow vocabulary with Word of the Day for K–2 readers. Visual, audio, and interactive word activities connect new words to stories in the app. Kids collect icons for mastered words in a digital sticker book and revisit what they learn. WHY PARENTS CHOOSE HOOKED ON PHONICS • Three learning experiences: Hooked on Phonics, Hooked on Math, Hooked on Spelling, and bonus Vocabulary activities in one subscription. • Personalized placement: A quick questionnaire helps children start at an appropriate reading level. • 1,000+ educational games and activities: Phonics, reading, word recognition, tracing, spelling, and math practice. • 100+ digital storybooks: Encourage independent reading and comprehension. • Three child profiles: Individual learning experiences for up to three children. • Ad-free learning: No advertising during lessons; designed for children and families. • Progress across devices: Learning progress saves automatically across devices. • Positive motivation: Avatar rewards, progress maps, and supportive feedback. LEARNING BEYOND THE SCREEN Reinforce phonics and reading skills with free printable reading worksheets and letter-tracing pages on our website. Optional physical Practice Packs with workbooks, storybooks, and celebration stickers can be delivered to your door. Physical materials are not included in an app-only subscription. TRY IT FREE FOR 7 DAYS Download Hooked on Phonics to start your 7-day free trial and explore phonics, reading games, early math, and spelling activities. Subscription terms • After the 7-day free trial, your selected monthly or annual subscription is charged through the app store unless canceled. • Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the current period ends. • Manage or cancel your subscription in your app store account settings. Terms of service: https://hookedonphonics.com/terms-of-service/

About

Decodable Readers L1 Sample

This app provides a systematic approach to learning to read for children, using "right-fit" books that only contain words made from sounds the child has learned. It introduces sounds progressively through engaging stories with audio support and interactive features.

Highlights
  • Systematic sound introduction
  • Phonic readers with "right-fit" books
  • Progressive sound complexity
  • Audio support for stories
  • Interactive word tapping
  • Australian themes and illustrations
Read full description

The Decodable Readers Australia books support a systematic approach of learning to read.This approach ensures kids are given the “right-fit” book. Decodable, or phonic readers, only contain words made up of the sounds a child has learnt. Within each level in the Decodable Readers Australia Series, a new group of sounds is introduced. As children move through each level the sounds progress from simple to complex. The Decodable Readers Australia – Level 1 books introduce the sounds s, a, t, p, i, n. All the words in each of the 20 books in Level 1 are made up of only these sounds and minimal sight words. This small number of sounds and the opportunity to practice using 20 different fun and engaging stories about Nat and her bush friends, allows children to master the beginnings of the basic code as well as blending and tracking. Each story in Level 1 can be enjoyed by listening to the professional audio or read aloud with the support of tapping and hearing the word if required. The audio function can be controlled independently within each page. Both parents and teachers can support children with phonemic awareness, vocab, comprehension and development through the use of the pre-reading and post-reading activities provided within each story. Key Features: • listen to each story being read to them using the audio function • use each book to practice reading independently • tap each word to hear the sounds and the word if support is needed • tap to turn each page for individual reading pace • all Australian themes and characters • beautifully illustrated with detail for engagement and enjoyment

Screenshots

Hooked on Phonics Learning4 screens
Decodable Readers L1 Sample1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Hooked on Phonics Learning at 4.5 against Decodable Readers L1 Sample's 1.0. Hooked on Phonics Learning also leads on review sentiment (42% vs 0%) and ratings volume (18K vs 1). Decodable Readers L1 Sample's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and iOS requirement (10.2 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. Hooked on Phonics Learning sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Decodable Readers L1 Sample asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Hooked on Phonics Learning holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hooked on Phonics Learning has 18K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 42% of Hooked on Phonics Learning's written reviews are positive against 0% of Decodable Readers L1 Sample's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hooked on Phonics Learning ships an update monthly, Decodable Readers L1 Sample every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Hooked on Phonics Learning versus Decodable Readers L1 Sample: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHooked on Phonics LearningDecodable Readers L1 Sample
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (18K ratings) — better1.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews42.4% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings18K — better1
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#70 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.010.2 — better
Further details — not scored
Size352 MB77 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHooked on PhonicsDecodable Readers Australia

Customer experience

Hooked on Phonics Learning

All ratings18,247 ratings
Positive86.7%
Neutral4.4%
Negative8.8%
Written reviews375 reviews
Positive42.4%
Neutral11.5%
Negative46.1%

Decodable Readers L1 Sample

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative50.0%

Bugs and requests

Hooked on Phonics Learning

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Avatar creation feature broken
  • Incorrect letter pronunciations
  • Levels not loading properly
  • Login issues after updates

Requested features

4 requests
  • More variety in activities and games
  • Ability to skip or customize lessons
  • Offline mode for using the app without internet
  • Support for larger families with more user profiles

Decodable Readers L1 Sample

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Hooked on Phonics Learning

Subscriptions9
  • Hooked on Phonics7 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • 1 month 7.997 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • Monthly $7.997 Days trial$7.991 Month
Show 6 more
  • Hooked on Phonics7 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • Monthly $12.997 Days trial2 variants$12.991 Month
  • Monthly $14.997 Days trial$14.991 Month
  • Semi-Annual $29.997 Days trial$29.996 Months
  • Annual $49.997 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Annual $79.997 Days trial$79.991 Year
None

Decodable Readers L1 Sample

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Hooked on Phonics Learning free?
Hooked on Phonics Learning is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Decodable Readers L1 Sample free?
Decodable Readers L1 Sample is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Hooked on Phonics Learning or Decodable Readers L1 Sample?
Hooked on Phonics Learning is rated higher. Hooked on Phonics Learning averages 4.5 out of 5 from 18K ratings, while Decodable Readers L1 Sample averages 1.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Hooked on Phonics Learning or Decodable Readers L1 Sample have ads?
Neither Hooked on Phonics Learning nor Decodable Readers L1 Sample shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Hooked on Phonics Learning or Decodable Readers L1 Sample?
Hooked on Phonics Learning ships an update monthly, and Decodable Readers L1 Sample every 2 months. Most recently, Hooked on Phonics Learning was updated on November 13, 2026 and Decodable Readers L1 Sample on November 2, 2026.

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