PLAY vs Word Waves
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PLAY
This app uses virtual Play-Doh to teach children the alphabet. Kids can trace letters, learn new vocabulary, and create custom Play-Doh scenes. It also includes letter matching games and progress tracking for parents.
- Virtual Play-Doh letter tracing
- Vocabulary association with letters
- Customizable Play-Doh creations
- Play-Doh scene building
- Letter matching games
- Progress tracking for parents
Read full descriptionHide full description
“Top 20 Best Apps of the Week” - The Guardian UK “The perfect blend of nostalgia and learning opportunities” - About.com “Fun, mess free way for learning”-Yahoo Voices “Well-thought out, educationally beneficial, colorful”- The Learning Treehouse “Completely transforms the way kids interact with technology” - Appshappens.com Learn your ABCs using ‘virtual’ PLAY-DOH modeling compound with this delightfully interactive educational app! PLAY-DOH Create ABCs application is designed to help children develop the essential skills required for reading and writing. Using this app, children will learn to: recognize letters, write letters using proper stroke order and associate letters with sounds. WRITE AND CRAFT! Learn how to write letters of the alphabet by using ‘virtual’ PLAY-DOH modeling compound. Discover new vocabulary words that start with the same letter. What starts with the letter A? An alligator! But be careful, it’s ready to chomp! When you successfully complete each letter, you are rewarded with a ‘virtual’ PLAY-DOH treat that you can create and customize. Want to change the color? Go ahead! Want to squish it? You can do that, too! CREATE AND SHARE! Build your own PLAY-DOH scenes with your PLAY-DOH creations. The PLAY-DOH gallery is just a click away on the ‘create and share’ button. There you can enjoy all the animated, colorful objects you make as you work your way through the letters of the alphabet. Select your favorite background and then bring PLAY-DOH scenes to life with custom PLAY-DOH pictures. Save your creations on your phone or tablet and share them with others! LETTER MATCHING Click on the ‘match’ button and you can enjoy a new activity: matching letters with the PLAY-DOH creations. The ‘match’ feature reinforces initial letter sounds by matching letters with objects that start with the same sound. A letter select screen allows you to play the activity on any letter you choose. Can you match the letters of the alphabet to the different PLAY-DOH creations? Give it a try! PLAY-DOH Create ABCs includes: -Tracing of uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet -Exciting ‘virtual’ PLAY-DOH treats -Poem and animations to re-enforce learning letter sounds -‘Squishable’ PLAY-DOH animations! -A matching activity to match letters with pictures -A letter select screen that allows children to choose any letter to play -A creativity zone, the PLAY-DOH gallery, where kids design custom PLAY-DOH scenes -A save-to-camera feature where parents can save and share their child’s colorful creations -Curriculum developed and reviewed by preschool education expert s -Multiplayer profiles that allow more than one child to play and save their progress -Parental reporting to show progress PLAY-DOH Create ABCs will help children develop: -Language and pre-reading skills, including letter recognition and phonemic (sound) awareness and knowledge. - Fine motor skills and coordination -Their creativity via ‘learning by doing’ NOTE: Before you download this experience, please consider that this app contains in-app purchases that cost money. Additional content cannot be unlocked without spending money. ABOUT PLAYDATE DIGITAL PlayDate Digital Inc. is an emergent publisher of high-quality, interactive, mobile educational software for children. PlayDate Digital's products nurture children's emerging literacy and creativity skills by turning digital screens into engaging experiences. PlayDate Digital content is built in partnership with some of the world's most trusted global brands for kids. Visit us: playdatedigital.com Like us: facebook.com/playdatedigital Follow us: @playdatedigital Watch all our app trailers: youtube.com/PlayDateDigital1 HAVE QUESTIONS? We'd love to hear from you! Your questions suggestions and comments are always welcome. Contact us 24/7 at info@playdatedigital.com
Word Waves
Read full descriptionHide full description
Word Waves – learn a new language one word at a time. Match words against the clock, build combos and watch your vocabulary grow. Learn English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Portuguese or Japanese with short, playful lessons and Wavy, the little robot who cheers you on. 6 COURSES, 130 LESSONS, 2,600 WORDS • Essentials – numbers, people & questions, colors & shapes and everyday basics • Travel & Survival – greetings, transport, dining, shopping and emergencies • Home & Everyday Life – home, family, health, time and weather • Work & Technology – work, tech, numbers, style and clothing • Hobbies & Entertainment – sports, gaming, media, the outdoors and emotions • Society & Advanced – society, science, business, culture and expressions Follow the winding lesson path, earn up to three stars per lesson and unlock the next level. PLAY TO LEARN • Fast matching rounds with a timer, combos and milestone celebrations • Missed a word? Drill it again straight from your results • Stuck? Use a hint to narrow down the choices BUILD A DAILY HABIT • Pick a daily goal of 3, 10 or 15 minutes • Keep your streak going – a Streak Shield saves a missed day • Track your progress and rewards in My Journey WORKS OFFLINE, NO ACCOUNT Every word is built into the app. No sign-up, no internet needed to learn, and your progress stays on your device. Light, dark or automatic theme, and the app speaks English, Dutch, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Japanese. WORD WAVES PREMIUM (OPTIONAL) All lessons are free. Premium removes ads and gives you hints without watching a video. Choose Monthly or Annual (auto-renewing subscriptions) or a one-time Lifetime purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; manage or cancel them in your App Store account settings. EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: PLAY at none against Word Waves's shown. PLAY also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.0). Word Waves's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). On price and in-app purchases 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. PLAY sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Word Waves sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
PLAY ships an update every 2 months, Word Waves fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PLAY | Word Waves |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (25 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 51.2% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 25 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 243 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | PlayDate Digital Inc. | Zico Bakker |
In-app purchases
PLAY
- Remove Ads$1.99
- Unlock All Alphabets$3.99
Word Waves
- Word Waves Monthly$4.991 Month
- Word Waves Yearly$49.991 Year
Questions
Is PLAY free?
Is Word Waves free?
Do PLAY or Word Waves have ads?
Which is updated more often, PLAY or Word Waves?
Other comparisons















