Comparison

AlphaTopics vs Cuespeak

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

Head to head
About

AlphaTopics

This app aids communication for individuals with unclear speech by providing tools to convey messages faster. It offers letter boards, customizable topic boards, and a whiteboard for writing or drawing, helping to improve listener understanding and expressiveness.

Highlights
  • Letter board with alphabetical or frequency order
  • Customizable topic boards with voice output
  • Whiteboard for writing and drawing
  • Adjustable settings for various impairments
  • Export custom boards for printing or sharing
  • Built-in scanning and guided access support
Read full description

Sometimes just giving a hint or context is all your listener needs to understand you. The first letter or two. The general topic. AlphaTopics is the perfect AAC app for people whose natural speech is not always clear. Stop wasting time navigating to the right word or typing it out. Get your point across faster by touching just the first few letters of the words you say. Give your listener context by starting the conversation with the topic. Write it out with your finger or draw a picture. Don’t let overly complicated apps slow you down. Tactus Therapy, a trusted name in speech therapy apps, brings you a new take on a classic communication tool. AlphaTopics includes 3 AAC communication boards loaded with features: 1) Letter Board - 26 letters in alphabetical order or 2 variations of frequency order - 10 single digits allow you to express any number - Vowels highlighted and aligned for faster navigation - Natural or automated speech reads out the name of each letter or number - Yes, no, question, smiley, space, and backspace buttons for prosody and function 2) Topic Board - Fully customizable text you can re-order - Voice output with adjustable speech rate - Two sizes of grid to display 12 or 24 topics - Pre-filled with functional topics for adults 3) Whiteboard - Write or draw on the screen - 6 colors and 4 widths - Export to Photos or e-mail When used together, alphabet and topic boards have been scientifically shown to make the speech of people with motor speech disorders far more understandable. Combined with the whiteboard, these tools help people with aphasia express themselves more clearly with self-cueing and strategy use. Stroke, traumatic brain injury, cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s disease, ALS, and motor neuron disease are all conditions that can impair speech production. Pointing to the first letter in each word not only gives the listener more information about the word, it also encourages the speaker to slow down and separate words, actually making the words clearer! Using alphabet supplementation, studies show intelligibility of sentences improves 25% on average. Pointing to the topic before speaking narrows the range of possibilities for the listener, giving context. Studies show using a topic cue improves word understanding by an average of 28%. Topics can also be used by people with aphasia, a language disorder, to help pinpoint the intended message. Additional Features: *Adjustable settings for visual, physical, language, and cognitive impairments *Works with built-in scanning and guided access *4 color schemes *Pick which board comes up when you start the app *Export any board you've customized to print or share "People whose speech is hard to understand often just want to provide extra clues to their listener and don’t require all the features of a comprehensive AAC app. It’s terrific that we now have an app that provides this level of support on a mobile platform.” - Lois Turner, SLP & AAC specialist Visit tactustherapy.com for more information on how to use this app, the evidence to support this form of AAC, and a day-by-day account of how this app was made.

About

Cuespeak

This app provides speech and language rehabilitation exercises for individuals with difficulties following stroke or brain injury. It offers a wide range of customizable activities for speaking, understanding, reading, and writing, designed for home or clinic use.

Highlights
  • Expert-developed exercises
  • Personalized therapy sessions
  • Engaging and interactive activities
  • Weekly new content updates
  • Session sharing via email
  • Mobile accessibility
Features
Read full description

Supercharge your speech therapy with Cuespeak, the NHS-recommended rehabilitation tool for people with speech, language, and cognitive difficulties after stroke or brain injury. Designed for use in both home and clinic, Cuespeak offers a huge range of exercises to work on aphasia and apraxia of speech, addressing speaking, understanding, reading and writing. Key Features: - Expert-Developed Content: Access hundreds of exercises developed by specialist speech and language therapists - Personalise it: Customise your therapy sessions and add personalised content such as names of family and friends - Engaging and Fun: Cuespeak’s interactive exercises are relevant to real life to keep you motivated - Up to date: New content added every week, including the latest items from the news - Share sessions via email: Allows you to get help from someone in another location - Accessible on the move: Use Cuespeak on your iPhone or iPad, so you can practise anytime, anywhere, making therapy convenient and flexible Who is it for? - People with speech and language difficulties seeking a home therapy tool - Caregivers and family members supporting a loved one’s recovery following stroke or brain injury What users have said: - “I just wanted to thank you for your marvellous programme. My husband has severe aphasia but has not lost his intelligence. Your programme stimulates his interest – there is no dumbing down. Keep up the good work. We love the humour in Cuespeak” Home user - “This is the best therapy tool I have ever used” Elizabeth McBarnet, Speech & Language Therapist, N. Ireland - "I can’t stress enough how much I love this app. I have been using it today with a lady with apraxia and aphasia and she was just so excited by how relevant it was to her life!” Bev Snowden, Senior Specialist SLT, North Devon Healthcare Trust

Screenshots

AlphaTopics4 screens
Cuespeak4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Cuespeak at Free against AlphaTopics's $9.99. Cuespeak also leads on review sentiment (83% vs 40%) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 11 months). AlphaTopics's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 7) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 15.0). On ratings volume, ads 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

Cuespeak is free to download; AlphaTopics costs $9.99 up front. Cuespeak sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. AlphaTopics asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Cuespeak holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 46 and 83 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of AlphaTopics's written reviews are positive against 83% of Cuespeak's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

AlphaTopics ships an update every 11 months, Cuespeak every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
AlphaTopics versus Cuespeak: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAlphaTopicsCuespeak
Price$9.99Free — better
Rating4.3 (46 ratings)4.7 (83 ratings) — better
Positive reviews40.0% of reviews83.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings4683 — better
Update frequencyEvery 11 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS9.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB124 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperTactus Therapy Solutions Ltd.Cuespeak Limited

Customer experience

AlphaTopics

All ratings46 ratings
Positive82.6%
Neutral10.9%
Negative6.5%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive40.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative60.0%

Cuespeak

All ratings83 ratings
Positive95.2%
Neutral2.4%
Negative2.4%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral8.3%
Negative8.3%

In-app purchases

None

AlphaTopics

No in-app purchases

7 purchases

Cuespeak

Subscriptions5
  • Legacy 1$3.991 Month
  • Legacy 2$3.991 Month
  • Legacy 3$3.991 Month
Show 2 more
  • Monthly auto-renewing1 Month trial$7.491 Month
  • Monthly auto-renewing$12.991 Month
One-time2
  • 1 year license (non-renewing)$129.99
  • 3 year license (non-renewing)$399.00

Questions

Is AlphaTopics free?
AlphaTopics costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Cuespeak free?
Cuespeak is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, AlphaTopics or Cuespeak?
Cuespeak is rated higher. AlphaTopics averages 4.3 out of 5 from 46 ratings, while Cuespeak averages 4.7 from 83 ratings.
Do AlphaTopics or Cuespeak have ads?
Neither AlphaTopics nor Cuespeak shows ads.
Which is updated more often, AlphaTopics or Cuespeak?
AlphaTopics ships an update every 11 months, and Cuespeak every 3 weeks. Most recently, AlphaTopics was updated on September 21, 2026 and Cuespeak on September 22, 2026.

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