# Handy Reader vs Speed Reading UpRead

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Handy Reader at 100% against Speed Reading UpRead's 54%. Handy Reader also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.2) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months). Speed Reading UpRead's advantage is ratings volume (116 vs 6). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Handy Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Speed Reading UpRead sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Handy Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Speed Reading UpRead has 116 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Handy Reader's written reviews are positive against 54% of Speed Reading UpRead's.

Handy Reader ships an update every 2 weeks, Speed Reading UpRead every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 17, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Handy Reader | Speed Reading UpRead |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (6 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/handy-reader-speed-reading/id822214888/reviews)** | [4.2 (116 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speed-reading-upread/id1454094961/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 6 | **116** |
| Positive reviews | **100.0% of reviews** | 53.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 18 MB | 33 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ihor Prysiazhniuk](https://appshunter.io/developer/822214891) | [Alain caltieri](https://appshunter.io/developer/1440005367) |

## What reviewers say

### Handy Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/handy-reader-speed-reading/id822214888)

Enhance your reading speed with this app, designed for efficient comprehension of digital texts. It supports various file formats and offers a distraction-free interface with customizable display options to suit your reading style.

**Highlights:** Speed reading functionality, Supports PDF, FB2, EPUB, DOCX, TXT, ODT, HTML, Word-focused display, Customizable fonts and themes, Adjustable reading speeds, Distraction-free interface

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Handy Reader Pro | $7.99 | one-time |


### Speed Reading UpRead

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speed-reading-upread/id1454094961)

Enhance your reading speed and comprehension with a science-backed approach. Effortlessly process web articles, PDFs, and documents at an accelerated pace. Customize your reading experience with adjustable speed, fonts, and colors for improved productivity and time savings.

**Highlights:** Read faster without special training, Reduce reading effort, Read web articles and documents, Save content for offline reading, Customize reading speed, font, and color

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Speed reading, weekly | $0.99 | per 7 days |
| Speed reading, monthly | $3.99 | per month |
| UpRead Speed Reading Yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Speed reading, yearly | $39.99 | per year |
| Speed reading, lifetime | $54.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Increases reading speed significantly
- 👍 Easy UI and useful tool
- 👍 Well-designed app
- 👍 Good for reading articles online
- 👍 Syncs content easily

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Freezes on intro page
- 🐛 Doesn't display PDF text
- 🐛 Asks for purchase immediately
- 🐛 Lacks built-in content
- 🐛 Difficult to operate

**Reported bugs**

- Froze on intro page
- Did not display text from imported PDF
- Asks for purchase on start screen
- Lifetime subscription not available in app
- Importing limited to documents without images or chapters

**Requested features**

- Add ability to read more than one word at a time
- Option to include articles (a, an, the) and punctuation
- Ability to upload books
- Search feature within text
- Pause reading stream by pressing and holding


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Handy Reader free?

Handy Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Speed Reading UpRead free?

Speed Reading UpRead is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Handy Reader or Speed Reading UpRead?

Handy Reader is rated higher. Handy Reader averages 4.8 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Speed Reading UpRead averages 4.2 from 116 ratings.

### Do Handy Reader or Speed Reading UpRead have ads?

Neither Handy Reader nor Speed Reading UpRead shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Handy Reader or Speed Reading UpRead?

Handy Reader ships an update every 2 weeks, and Speed Reading UpRead every 2 months. Most recently, Handy Reader was updated on September 17, 2026 and Speed Reading UpRead on October 14, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*