Comparison

1L vs West Academic Audio

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

Head to head
About

1L

This app provides comprehensive study materials for first-year law students. Access audio lectures, outlines, practice questions, and case briefs for all core subjects. Learn from renowned law professors and prepare for class with interactive tools.

Highlights
  • Audio lectures by legendary law professors
  • Black-letter law outlines
  • Emanuel® Law in a Flash flashcards
  • Casenote Legal Briefs
  • Multiple choice practice questions
  • Practice essay questions
Features
Read full description

Ace your first year of law school stress-free! Created by the same Harvard Law School alumni behind BarMax Bar Review and LSATMax LSAT Prep, 1L is the pioneer in first year law school supplements on mobile. Access audio lectures, black-letter law outlines, multiple-choice questions, practice essays, Emanuel Law in a Flash and Casenote Legal Briefs for every single first year subject. • Civil Procedure • Constitutional Law • Contracts • Criminal Law • Torts • Real Property $1150+ worth of law school supplements for only $24.99/month (app comes with a 7-day free trial. Free trial is for new customers only, subscription will automatically renew until canceled). Your subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Your iTunes will automatically be charged at the same price for renewal, as stated above, within 24-hours prior to the end of the current billing period. You can manage your subscription and/or turn off auto-renewal by visiting your iTunes Account Settings after purchase. Features include: LEARN FROM LEGENDS Master the black-letter law with audio lectures by legendary law professors including: • Arthur Miller (Civ Pro) • Noah Feldman (Con Law) • Charles Fried (Contracts) • Ronald Sullivan (Crimes) • Jonathan Zittrain (Torts) EMANUEL® LAW IN A FLASH Study anytime, anywhere with Emanuel® Law in a Flash comprehensive flash card set. CASENOTE LEGAL BRIEFS Prepare for class discussion with Casenote Legal Briefs, the most popular and trusted case brief series. MULTIPLE CHOICE PRACTICE Multiple choice questions with answer explanations. PRACTICE ESSAYS Work on issue spotting and analysis with sample essay questions. For more information on the in-app subscription you can view our privacy policy here https://testmaxprep.com/policies/privacy or our terms of service https://testmaxprep.com/policies/terms

About

West Academic Audio

Access audiobooks and lectures offline with this app. Download content, adjust playback speed, and view transcripts. It's designed for users of West Academic Study Aids.

Highlights
  • Offline audio access
  • Downloadable content
  • Adjustable playback speed
  • Lecture transcripts
  • Improved navigation
Features
Read full description

The West Academic Audio app provides offline access to audio content and audio lectures available through your subscription to West Academic Study Aids. Sign in to the app using your West Academic username and password. • Browse West Academic’s collection of audio titles and lectures • Download individual tracks or an entire title • Speed up or slow down a lecture to adjust to your listening style • View lecture transcripts (where available) • Improved navigation to get you to your recently played titles faster and discover new audio titles Looking to read West Academic books on a mobile app? Download the West Academic Library app for access to books while on the go. West Academic is the leading publisher of casebooks, treatises, study aids, and other legal education materials in the U.S. Founded on the principle of making legal information more accessible, and rooted in a long history of legal expertise and innovation, we’ve been a leader in legal education publishing for more than 100 years.

Screenshots

1L4 screens
West Academic Audio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: West Academic Audio at none against 1L's 1. West Academic Audio also leads on ads (none vs shown). 1L's advantage is review sentiment (58% vs 46%). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. 1L sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $24.99 per month. West Academic Audio asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for 1L against 4.8 for West Academic Audio. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 336 and 445 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 58% of 1L's written reviews are positive against 46% of West Academic Audio's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

1L ships an update every 6 weeks, West Academic Audio every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
1L versus West Academic Audio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter1LWest Academic Audio
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (336 ratings)4.8 (445 ratings) — better
Positive reviews57.7% of reviews — better46.2% of reviews
Number of ratings336445 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationSubscriptionSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size88 MB23 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTestMax, Inc.LEG, Inc.

Customer experience

1L

All ratings314 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral1.3%
Negative5.4%
Written reviews26 reviews
Positive57.7%
Neutral3.8%
Negative38.5%

West Academic Audio

All ratings388 ratings
Positive96.1%
Neutral0.8%
Negative3.1%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive46.2%
Neutral7.7%
Negative46.2%

User reviews

1L

From 336 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great for 1L studies
  • 👍 Helps with bar prep
  • 👍 Wonderful structure and quality
  • 👍 Loved the flashcards
  • 👍 Best study aid

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Unusable due to crashes
  • 🐛 Disappointing performance
  • 🐛 Glitchy multiple choice section
  • 🐛 Difficult to navigate MCQs

West Academic Audio

From 445 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great audio resources
  • 👍 Accessible on the go
  • 🚀 Faster downloads than old app
  • 🚀 Variable speed playback
  • 👍 Deletable tracks and collections

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Periodically signs out
  • 🐛 Deletes all downloads
  • 🐛 Access to audio gone
  • 🐛 Replaced by eBooks
  • 🐛 No solutions from support

Bugs and requests

1L

Reported bugs

11 issues
  • App crashes after 10 seconds
  • App crashes every time tried
  • App always crashes
  • App crashes immediately and will not open
  • App crashes before first flashcard is displayed
Show 6 more
  • App freezes
  • App crashes when opening flashcard set or outline
  • Lectures often unplayable
  • Login requires Apple ID confirmation every time
  • Swiping left and right in MCQs has issues
  • Seeing correct answer after finishing MCQs has issues

Requested features

7 requests
  • Allow MCQs per area again
  • Fix update that includes all questions
  • Develop more difficult questions
  • Fix glitches in multiple choice section
  • Offer month-to-month payment option
Show 2 more
  • Allow computer access
  • Provide clearer cancellation instructions

West Academic Audio

Reported bugs

7 issues
  • Periodically signs out and deletes all downloads
  • Access to audio material is gone, replaced by eBooks
  • Tracks refuse to download, then app won't let user log in after reinstall
  • App won't download or play anything
  • App will not let me login
Show 2 more
  • Cannot download content
  • App loses place in track

Requested features

5 requests
  • Wider selection of audio lectures
  • Sleep timer
  • Reading in addition to audio option
  • Sort library by downloaded audios
  • Stream instead of download files

In-app purchases

1 purchases

1L

Subscriptions1
  • BarMax 1L7 Days trial$24.991 Month
None

West Academic Audio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is 1L free?
1L is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is West Academic Audio free?
West Academic Audio is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, 1L or West Academic Audio?
West Academic Audio is rated higher. 1L averages 4.7 out of 5 from 336 ratings, while West Academic Audio averages 4.8 from 445 ratings.
Do 1L or West Academic Audio have ads?
1L shows ads; West Academic Audio does not.
Which is updated more often, 1L or West Academic Audio?
1L ships an update every 6 weeks, and West Academic Audio every 2 months. Most recently, 1L was updated on November 1, 2026 and West Academic Audio on November 3, 2026.

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