Comparison

Polym vs Narraloud

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

Head to head
About

Polym

Enhance your memory and recall with audio-first lessons and active learning techniques. Explore a wide range of subjects through engaging courses, flashcards, and integrated memory training. Learn effectively anytime, anywhere with this distraction-free educational tool.

Highlights
  • Audio-first lessons for on-the-go learning
  • Active audio learning with flashcards
  • Spaced repetition and interleaving techniques
  • Expansive course catalog across various subjects
  • Progress tracking and due date reminders
  • Distraction-free learning interface
Features
Read full description

Polym: Remember what you learn. Polym (pronounced: poly-m) is a learning app built for the retention of foundational knowledge. Audio and text feeds deliver sets you can finish in a sitting, drawn from a catalog of essential subjects: logic, mathematics, psychology, philosophy, history, economics, and more. Embedded retrieval practice, spaced repetition, and interleaving move what you learn into long-term memory. Designed to strengthen attention with cognition tracking to keep you accountable. Some content and features require a subscription to access. What you'll immediately receive • Audio and text feeds • Active learning, spaced repetition, and interleaving • A collection of foundational knowledge, including classic book excerpts • Cognition tracking What you'll work toward • Improved retention and recall • Strengthened attention • Greater verbal fluency • Faster pattern recognition Begin with a single set. Essential for aspiring polymaths. By using this app, you agree to Apple's standard Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Narraloud

Listen to any text content, including articles, documents, and books, with natural-sounding voices that run offline and ensure your privacy. Enjoy features like word-by-word highlighting, adjustable playback speed, and a sleep timer for a seamless listening experience.

Highlights
  • On-device natural voice narration
  • Offline listening
  • Privacy-focused, no data upload
  • Supports articles, PDFs, EPUBs, Word docs
  • Word-by-word highlighting
  • Adjustable playback speed
  • Sleep timer
Read full description

Listen to anything you read. The article you saved for later, the contract from work, the book you’re halfway through. Narraloud reads them to you in natural voices that live right on your device. Natural voices run on your device, so narration works offline, nothing meters your listening, and your reading stays private. Books. PDFs. Links. Even the page sitting in front of you. Import what you want to read, press play, and listen while you walk, commute, cook, work, or simply give your eyes a break. NATURAL VOICES. RIGHT ON YOUR DEVICE. Narraloud uses neural speech models that run directly on your phone. Narration works offline, on a plane, in a tunnel, anywhere, and there is no account required just to start listening. Dozens of voices across seven languages: English, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, and Portuguese, each reading its own language natively. Just open something and listen. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your reading is personal. Narraloud’s narration runs on your device, so your documents are never uploaded to a server just to be spoken aloud. What you read is your business. NO CREDITS. JUST LISTEN. No minute packs, no word limits, and no meter running while you listen. Press play on a twenty-hour book and hear all of it. EVERYTHING YOU READ, READY TO LISTEN Bring almost anything into Narraloud: • Send articles directly from other apps • Import PDFs, EPUBs, and Word documents • Open documents from the Files app, including your cloud drives • Paste text from anywhere • Scan printed pages with your camera Narraloud turns them into clear, natural narration. FOLLOW ALONG AS YOU LISTEN Narraloud is designed for reading with your ears without losing your place on the page. • Word-by-word highlighting follows the narration • Change playback speed anytime • Continue listening from the Lock Screen with full playback controls • Bookmark passages to come back to • Choose a voice that fits what you’re reading • Jump forward or backward • Set a sleep timer and drift off to a chapter MADE FOR MORE WAYS OF READING For some people, listening is convenient. For others, it’s how reading becomes possible. Narraloud is built with accessibility as a core part of the product: full VoiceOver support, Dynamic Type throughout the app, dyslexia-friendly and hyperlegible reading fonts, and synchronized highlighting that lets you see each word as you hear it. It’s especially useful for readers with dyslexia or low vision, people who process information better when they hear it, and anyone who’d simply rather listen. NARRALOUD PLUS Narraloud reads aloud for free, forever. Plus adds the power tools: export any document as an audiobook, get imports cleaned and structured automatically, use the full voice catalog in VoiceOver and every other app, and teach the pronunciation dictionary your names and jargon. Subscription plans include a 7-day free trial. You can also buy the Lifetime plan, own it for good, and get every feature we ship next at no extra cost. Narraloud - text to narration. Press play on your reading list. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://narraloud.com/privacy

Screenshots

Polym4 screens
Narraloud4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Narraloud at none against Polym's shown. Narraloud also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 70%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). Polym's advantage is ratings volume (36 vs 4) and iOS requirement (16.4 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Polym sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month and Narraloud sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Narraloud holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Polym has 36 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 70% of Polym's written reviews are positive against 100% of Narraloud's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Polym ships an update every 11 days, Narraloud weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Polym versus Narraloud: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPolymNarraloud
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (36 ratings)5.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews70.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings36 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 11 daysWeekly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.4 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size65 MB138 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPolym App LLCArgmax

Customer experience

Polym

All ratings36 ratings
Positive88.9%
Neutral2.8%
Negative8.3%
Written reviews10 reviews
Positive70.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative20.0%

Narraloud

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

7 purchases

Polym

Subscriptions7
  • Standard Access14 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • Standard Access14 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Standard Access14 Days trial$11.991 Month
Show 4 more
  • Standard Access14 Days trial$14.993 Months
  • Standard Access14 Days trial$19.993 Months
  • Standard Access14 Days trial$29.993 Months
  • Standard Access14 Days trial$79.991 Year
4 purchases

Narraloud

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly Plus$2.997 Days
  • Monthly Plus7 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • Yearly Plus7 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Plus$79.99

Questions

Is Polym free?
Polym is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Narraloud free?
Narraloud is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Polym or Narraloud?
Narraloud is rated higher. Polym averages 4.6 out of 5 from 36 ratings, while Narraloud averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.
Do Polym or Narraloud have ads?
Polym shows ads; Narraloud does not.
Which is updated more often, Polym or Narraloud?
Polym ships an update every 11 days, and Narraloud weekly. Most recently, Polym was updated on October 6, 2026 and Narraloud on October 14, 2026.

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