Comparison

Starfall I'm Reading vs First Steps to Reading Fluency

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

Head to head
About

Starfall I'm Reading

This app helps young children transition from learning to read to reading to learn. It offers a selection of stories and activities designed to build comprehension and fluency using high-frequency words in context. An AutoRead feature models fluent reading and can be toggled off for independent readers.

Highlights
  • Stories and activities for reading comprehension
  • Controlled vocabulary with high-frequency words
  • AutoRead feature to model fluent reading
  • Plays, fiction, non-fiction, comics, and fables
  • Audio support for fluency practice
Features
Read full description

Starfall® I’m Reading is the fourth step of Starfall’s Learn to Read phonics sequence, which teaches the foundational skills for learning to read. Step 1: ABCs Step 2: Learn to Read Step 3: It’s Fun to Read Step 4: I’m Reading! Starfall I’m Reading is the final step of Starfall’s free early learn-to-read sequence. I’m Reading! focuses on bridging the gap between basic phonics and true reading mastery. The program expands fluency and comprehension through exercise with words from the Dolch and Fry sight word lists. These words are challenging to sound out phonetically, but represent the majority of words found in children’s texts. Familiarity with these words builds confidence and natural ease with reading. The texts cover a wide range of multicultural fiction and nonfiction stories, with clickable words and sentences for fluency assistance throughout. Travel-ready. No internet connection required. Find Starfall I’m Reading, along with 700+ additional activities and counting across reading, math, music, and more in the Starfall app. The Starfall website and applications are program services of Starfall Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) publicly supported nonprofit organization. Starfall® and Starfall.com® are registered trademarks in the US, the European Union, and various other countries. Copyright © 2002–2026 by Starfall Education. All rights reserved. Starfall apps are inclusively designed to support all children, including English Language Learners (ELLs). Starfall also provides an Enhanced Accessible Index for children with visual, hearing, or mobility impairments. For more information, please contact Customer Service at (+1) 303-417-6414.

About

First Steps to Reading Fluency

This educational game offers personalized practice for letter names, sounds, and sight words to build foundational reading fluency. It aims to help young learners achieve automaticity in these essential skills, aligning with kindergarten learning standards.

Highlights
  • Letter name practice
  • Letter sound practice
  • Sight word practice
  • Personalized practice
  • Automaticity building
  • Kindergarten learning standards alignment
Features
Read full description

First Steps to Reading Fluency is designed to provide players personalized, deliberate and engaging practice of letter names, letter sounds, and sight words for the purpose of achieving automaticity of these foundational reading skills. Automaticity is the ability to perform a skill with a high degree of accuracy and speed with the ultimate goal of well-practiced fluent performance. Achieving automaticity of letter names, letter sounds, and sight words is important to perform higher-order reading skills. These foundational reading skills are part of state and national learning standards for kindergarten. This game requires an account to be created outside of the app itself, it requires both a parent/teacher and a student account. The student account is the one used to sign into the game itself. To create an account go to https://eruditelearninglab.unl.edu/Live/ then in the top right of the screen press parental/teacher controls, then press register. Or in the app press new user.

Screenshots

Starfall I'm Reading4 screens
First Steps to Reading Fluency4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: First Steps to Reading Fluency at 5.0 against Starfall I'm Reading's 4.2. First Steps to Reading Fluency also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 67%) and iOS requirement (7.0 vs 15.0). Starfall I'm Reading's advantage is ratings volume (47 vs 1). On price, ads, 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

First Steps to Reading Fluency holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Starfall I'm Reading has 47 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of Starfall I'm Reading's written reviews are positive against 100% of First Steps to Reading Fluency's.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Starfall I'm Reading versus First Steps to Reading Fluency: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStarfall I'm ReadingFirst Steps to Reading Fluency
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (47 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings47 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 10 months—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.07.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size102 MB402 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStarfall Education FoundationUniversity of Nebraska - Lincoln

Customer experience

Starfall I'm Reading

All ratings47 ratings
Positive83.0%
Neutral2.1%
Negative14.9%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

First Steps to Reading Fluency

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Starfall I'm Reading

No in-app purchases

None

First Steps to Reading Fluency

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Starfall I'm Reading free?
Starfall I'm Reading is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is First Steps to Reading Fluency free?
First Steps to Reading Fluency is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Starfall I'm Reading or First Steps to Reading Fluency?
First Steps to Reading Fluency is rated higher. Starfall I'm Reading averages 4.2 out of 5 from 47 ratings, while First Steps to Reading Fluency averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Starfall I'm Reading or First Steps to Reading Fluency have ads?
Neither Starfall I'm Reading nor First Steps to Reading Fluency shows ads.

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