Comparison

The Phonics App vs Parently Loop

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

Head to head
About

The Phonics App

This app teaches reading through phonics, focusing on sounds and blending words. It offers a research-led, non-addictive approach with expert guidance and informal checks to reinforce learning. Learn to decode nearly every English word with a focus on clear pronunciation.

Highlights
  • Learn a-z sounds and word blending
  • Expert video guidance
  • Simple tap-to-hear sound interface
  • Learn English sound pronunciation
  • Practice with 400+ words
  • Learn irregular (tricky) words
  • Informal learning checks
Features
Read full description

This multi-award-winning phonics app can help absolutely anyone learn to read. Join thousands of people around the world learning to read with The Phonics App! "We loved The Phonics App, as it has been specifically designed NOT to be addictive, and doesn't rely on dopamine hits for kids' rewards." - MadeForMums Tech Awards 2025 Editor's Choice. "A beautifully designed, calm, and research-led approach to early literacy that stands out in a market dominated by highly gamified products" - Digital Education Awards 2025 Highly Commended The Phonics App Features: * Learn the a-z sounds and how to blend 2 and 3 letter words completely free. * Subscribe to learn all the other sounds and practise with 400+ words. * ⁠⁠Video guidance from an expert phonics teacher every step of the way. * Beautifully simple - just tap the words to hear the sounds they're made of. * Learn how to pronounce all of the sounds of English (with an English accent). * ⁠Build up your knowledge of phonics, one sound at a time. * ⁠Learn how to read and understand common irregular (tricky) words. * ⁠Informal checks at the end of each section to reinforce your learning. * ⁠Learn both lower case and capital letters. * Learn to decode nearly every English word. * No collectibles, coins or dopamine rewards! Why did we make this app? Jonny is a father of two and started making this app to teach his kids to read. It worked really well, so he showed it to Miss Mabel (founder of Reading Roots, community of 750k parents and teachers learning phonics) to see if it would be useful to other people. She said yes, and had a lot of ideas how to make it better! So they spent AGES making 'The Phonics App', and now it's finally ready for you. We hope it helps you learn to read too! Miss Mabel & Jonny Subscriptions in this app follow standard Apple Terms of Use (EULA) which you can read here: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Parently Loop

Features
Read full description

Your school sends a lot of email. Somewhere in there: a permission slip due tomorrow, a fee deadline, a dress-up day nobody told you about until tonight. Parently Loop reads it all so nothing slips. Connect Gmail or Outlook. The app only looks at email from your school's domain, nothing else. Every message is sorted by child and by topic, deadlines and amounts are pulled out, and you get one calm daily brief instead of forty unread threads. How it works Connect your inbox. Only your school's domain is read. Each email is summarised and filed: payments, permissions, homework, schedule, events and more. Open the app to one verdict: something needs you, or you're all caught up. What you get A Today screen ordered by what's coming, not what arrived. Past items dissolve on their own. A morning brief with what goes in the bag and what they wear today. If nothing needs saying, it stays quiet. An evening brief with what tomorrow needs, and what can wait. Deadlines land in your calendar in two taps. Share the brief with your co-parent in one tap. Every email tagged to the right child, even when the school only writes "6F" or "Grade 2C". Attachments read too, so a stationery list doesn't stay locked inside a PDF. Reads any language your school writes in, including Arabic. Summaries come out clear and simple. Privacy first Read-only access. The app can never send, delete or move your email. Only email from your school's domain is processed. Personal mail is never touched. To sort your mail and pull out deadlines and amounts, your school emails and their content are stored in your account in our database. They are kept while your account is active and permanently deleted when you delete your account or disconnect your mailbox. No ads. Your data is never sold. Built by a parent in the UAE who kept missing fee deadlines buried in email number 43 of the week. Free for 14 days. Then one simple subscription for your whole family. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your device Settings. Terms of Use: https://www.automateloops.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://www.automateloops.com/privacy

Screenshots

The Phonics App4 screens
Parently Loop4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Parently Loop at daily against The Phonics App's monthly. 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. The Phonics App sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Parently Loop sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

The Phonics App ships an update monthly, Parently Loop daily. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
The Phonics App versus Parently Loop: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe Phonics AppParently Loop
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (100 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews92.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings100 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size248 MB35 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPhonics Folk LtdGOINNOVATEHUB LLC

Bugs and requests

The Phonics App

Requested features

3 requests
  • Option to open pictures for letter sounds
  • Accent options for narration (e.g., American English)
  • Offer app in Mandarin

Parently Loop

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

The Phonics App

Subscriptions3
  • Access Everything Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Access Everything Quarterly$12.993 Months
  • Access Everything Yearly$29.991 Year
2 purchases

Parently Loop

Subscriptions2
  • Parently Loop Pro - Monthly14 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Parently Loop Pro - Annual14 Days trial$39.991 Year

Questions

Is The Phonics App free?
The Phonics App is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Parently Loop free?
Parently Loop is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do The Phonics App or Parently Loop have ads?
Neither The Phonics App nor Parently Loop shows ads.
Which is updated more often, The Phonics App or Parently Loop?
The Phonics App ships an update monthly, and Parently Loop daily. Most recently, The Phonics App was updated on October 14, 2026 and Parently Loop on October 2, 2026.

Other comparisons