Comparison

SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools vs Phonic Flashcards

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

Head to head
About

SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools

This educational app teaches children to spell three-letter phonetic words using short vowel sounds. It aligns with the Science of Reading principles, helping young learners develop essential early literacy skills through engaging activities.

Highlights
  • Teaches CVC word spelling
  • Aligns with Science of Reading
  • Focuses on short vowel sounds
  • Two levels of challenge
  • Developed with educators
  • Montessori principles
Read full description

Introducing ABC Spelling Magic 1 for Schools where learning to spell is fun and engaging! ABC Spelling Magic 1 incorporates the main principles of the Science of Reading. This app is designed to teach children the sounds of the letters and how to construct words, aligning with the science of reading. With two levels of challenge, it indirectly imparts the essential reading skill of segmenting while focusing on the skill of learning to spell words with three phonetic sounds using short vowel words. Incorporating the science of reading, the app's comprehensive approach is tailored to assist children in learning the sounds of the alphabet and honing their blending and segmenting skills, essential for early literacy development based on the science of reading. SPELLING MAGIC 1 focuses on CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words, such as cat, box, and pig, which are fundamental for phonics instruction based on the science of reading. The app categorizes words by middle vowel sounds in the first part and by categories in the second part, offering a well-rounded approach to phonics and word construction, rooted in the principles of the science of reading. The DELUXE version provides 245 words and offers a variety of options in the menu, including two types of voices, three types of fonts, two letter color styles, a special feature to connect the letters together, and over 185 additional words from the free version, enhancing the learning experience based on the principles of the science of reading. Developed by a team of educators utilizing accelerated learning techniques and Montessori principles, this app has been tested and approved by preschoolers, aligning with the science of reading and providing an enjoyable and beneficial experience in learning letter sounds. We welcome your feedback and suggestions as we strive to provide an enriching educational experience for young learners, rooted in the science of reading.

About

Phonic Flashcards

This educational app helps young children build a strong foundation for reading and spelling by teaching phonics. It uses interactive flashcards with professional voiceovers and includes engaging games to reinforce learning.

Highlights
  • Interactive phonics flashcards
  • Professional voiceovers for phonemes and words
  • Multisensory word-building game
  • Picture-word matching activity
  • Phonological awareness quiz
  • Reward arcade games
  • Multiple voice accents
Features
Read full description

We've been making educational software for twenty years, and this is by far the best educational app we have ever made. We wish every child could use it before they start school. Why are Phonic Flashcards better than regular flashcards? Because when you learn with Phonic Flashcards, the phonemes (letters and digraphs) are sounded out! The word "fish" becomes "fff" "i" "shhh", with all words and phonemes recorded by a professional voice artist, helping to build a solid phonics foundation for reading (and spelling) success! All our apps are designed to maximize learning outcomes, while also being super easy to use. Parents do not need a degree in order to use Phonic Flashcards to teach their child how to read. Phonic Flashcards makes a great classroom activity for literacy centers, as well as for one-on-one teaching and assessment, and also whole-class instruction when teaching short vowel sounds. Ages 4-7 plus remedial Includes 200+ flashcards, mainly common nouns. Each interactive card features a picture, which you can tap to hear a fun sound effect. Choose whether to have the words voiced, sounded-out, or both! Tap the letters and digraphs to hear each phoneme. Blend them together to sound-out the word. Hide the picture to administer a reading test. Begin with the sounds of the alphabet. Next learn to read CVC words, focusing on each short vowel sound. Then progress on to 4-5 letter words with blends and common digraphs. Choose a phoneme/sound from the "Digraphs Menu" which includes: ck, sh, ch, th, ng, oo, ee, oa, ou, ai, ea, oi, oy, ow, aw, ir, ar, or, and ur. Full details of all of the Word Lists can be found at: www.phonicflashcards.com As well as FLASHCARDS, there are three additional activities: SHADOWS - a multisensory word-building game which is visual and tactile, while also reinforcing phonemes. MATCH UP! - simply involves matching words with pictures. Turn off the sound cues to test word recognition. WHICH WORD? - a game-show style phonological awareness quiz, to test students on initial sounds and rimes. Upon completing each activity, children are rewarded with a simple tap-tap style arcade game of their choice, Frog Hop or Fish Food. Please refer to the PDF Guide (found at www.phonicflashcards.com) for full details of all the activities, and "How to teach your child to read using Phonic Flashcards". The Phonic Flashcards app requires no setting up, apart from choosing your voice accent the very first time you use it. There are USA, UK and Australian speech options. (You may change voice accent at any time in ‘Settings’ via the cog icon on the front screen.) We care about your child's privacy. This app contains: no ads, no in-app purchases, no sharing of data, no tracking of your location, and no links to social media. If you like our apps, please support us by reviewing and/or rating them in the app store! If you have any suggestions to make our apps better, please contact us directly via our website (www.phonicflashcards.com)

Screenshots

SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools4 screens
Phonic Flashcards4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Phonic Flashcards at 4.7 against SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools's 1.0. Phonic Flashcards also leads on ratings volume (19 vs 2) and price ($0.99 vs $1.99). SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 88%) and update cadence (every 4 months vs every 8 months). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools costs $1.99 and Phonic Flashcards $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Phonic Flashcards holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Phonic Flashcards has 19 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 100% of SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools's written reviews are positive against 88% of Phonic Flashcards's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools ships an update every 4 months, Phonic Flashcards every 8 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools versus Phonic Flashcards: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSPELLING MAGIC 1 for SchoolsPhonic Flashcards
Price$1.99$0.99 — better
Rating1.0 (2 ratings)4.7 (19 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better87.5% of reviews
Number of ratings219 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 months — betterEvery 8 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.46.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size114 MB73 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPRESCHOOL UNIVERSITYMichael Harvey

Customer experience

SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools

All ratings2 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Phonic Flashcards

All ratings19 ratings
Positive89.5%
Neutral5.3%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews16 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%

In-app purchases

None

SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools

No in-app purchases

None

Phonic Flashcards

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools free?
SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Phonic Flashcards free?
Phonic Flashcards costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools or Phonic Flashcards?
Phonic Flashcards is rated higher. SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools averages 1.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Phonic Flashcards averages 4.7 from 19 ratings.
Do SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools or Phonic Flashcards have ads?
Neither SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools nor Phonic Flashcards shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools or Phonic Flashcards?
SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools ships an update every 4 months, and Phonic Flashcards every 8 months. Most recently, SPELLING MAGIC 1 for Schools was updated on November 1, 2026 and Phonic Flashcards on November 1, 2026.

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