ScratchJr vs Robo Blockly
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ScratchJr
This app allows young children to create their own interactive stories and games by snapping together graphical programming blocks. It fosters problem-solving, creative expression, and develops early numeracy and literacy skills in a fun, motivating context.
- Program interactive stories
- Create games
- Snap-together programming blocks
- Develop problem-solving skills
- Foster creative expression
- Learn coding fundamentals
Read full descriptionHide full description
With ScratchJr, young children (ages 5-7) learn important new skills as they program their own interactive stories and games. By snapping together graphical programming blocks, children can make characters move, jump, dance, and sing. In the process, children learn to solve problems, design projects, and express themselves creatively on the computer. They also use math and language in a meaningful and motivating context, supporting the development of early-childhood numeracy and literacy. With ScratchJr, children don’t just learn to code, they code to learn. ScratchJr was inspired by the popular Scratch programming language (http://scratch.mit.edu), used by millions of people (ages 8 and up) around the world. The ScratchJr interface and programming language were redesigned to make them appropriate for younger children’s cognitive, personal, social, and emotional development. ScratchJr is a collaboration between the Lifelong Kindergarten research group at the MIT Media Lab, the Developmental Technologies research group at Tufts University, and the Playful Invention Company. The ScratchJr project has received generous financial support from the National Science Foundation (NSF DRL-1118664), Scratch Foundation, LEGO Foundation, and British Telecommunications. If you enjoy using this free app, please consider making a donation to the Scratch Foundation (www.scratchfoundation.org), a nonprofit organization that provides ongoing support for ScratchJr. We appreciate donations of all sizes, large and small.
Robo Blockly
This app offers a unified coding environment for robot building and programming. It features three distinct coding levels, interactive tutorials, and a hands-on approach to learning STEAM concepts for children and adults.
- Unified coding environment
- Three coding levels (Live, Code, Blockly)
- Color-coded building blocks
- 19 interactive tutorials
- Hands-on STEAM learning
- Suitable for ages 5+
Read full descriptionHide full description
Our latest app combines our previous apps into one coding environment to provide you with the best Robo Wunderkind experience. Our app still provides three coding levels - Live, Code and Blockly - to match all levels of ability and coding skill. For ages 5 and up; prior coding experience is not required, neither are reading skills. Prototype, design and build your robot with our color-coded building blocks in just a few minutes and use our app to bring the robot to life! To start off, we provide you with 19 interactive tutorials. A truly hands-on experience for children, teachers and parents that transforms learning about technology and STEAM into a fun game.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ScratchJr at 67% against Robo Blockly's 0%. ScratchJr also leads on ads (none vs shown) and rating (3.9 vs 3.5). Robo Blockly's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 6 months). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ScratchJr holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ScratchJr has 1.8K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of ScratchJr's written reviews are positive against 0% of Robo Blockly's.
ScratchJr ships an update every 6 months, Robo Blockly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ScratchJr | Robo Blockly |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.9 (1.8K ratings) — better | 3.5 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.8% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1.8K — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 | 11.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 51 MB | 234 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Scratch Foundation, Inc. | Robo Technologies |
Customer experience
ScratchJr
Robo Blockly
Bugs and requests
ScratchJr
Reported bugs
4 issues- Freezing and crashing issues
- Incorrect character movements and positioning
- Saving and loading problems
- Microphone and recording bugs
Requested features
5 requests- Add more frames/scenes per project
- Improve drawing/editing tools
- Expand color and customization options
- Enhance audio features and sound library
- Integrate with the full Scratch platform
Robo Blockly
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
ScratchJr
No in-app purchases
Robo Blockly
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is ScratchJr free?
Is Robo Blockly free?
Which has better reviews, ScratchJr or Robo Blockly?
Do ScratchJr or Robo Blockly have ads?
Which is updated more often, ScratchJr or Robo Blockly?
Other comparisons
