Comparison

Smarty Spell vs Numbers on Bricks

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

Head to head
About

Smarty Spell

This comprehensive literacy platform offers three engaging game modes to improve spelling and reading skills. It features extensive customization options for word lists and audio, along with detailed progress tracking for educators and parents.

Highlights
  • Three distinct game modes
  • Over 300 built-in words
  • Grade-level and thematic word lists
  • Custom word lists with photos
  • Real human and TTS audio
  • Professional-grade data tracking
  • Adjustable font sizes and hints
Features
Read full description

Smarty Spell: The Ultimate 3-in-1 Literacy Platform Developed by a certified Speech-Language Pathologist, Smarty Spell has evolved into a comprehensive educational platform designed to take your student’s spelling and reading abilities to the next level. With a highly engaging new interface, friendly animal mascots, and superior data tracking, Smarty Spell is the perfect tool for educators, therapists, and parents alike. While it comes loaded with over 300 built-in words, the true power of Smarty Spell lies in its incredible flexibility. Students can tackle words based on their grade level (Kindergarten to 6th Grade), explore thematic categories, or master completely custom word lists created by their teacher. Three Ways to Play: Smarty Spell now features three distinct, interactive game modes to keep students engaged while targeting different literacy skills: Spelling Game: Drag and drop letters to spell the target word with full visual and auditory scaffolding. Reading Game: Build sight-word recognition by matching the spoken word and image to the correct text. Missing Letter Game: A fun, tactile experience where students fill in the blanks on a beautiful wooden tray to complete the word. Unmatched Customization & Accessibility: Smarty Spell adapts to every learner. Reinforce specific vocabulary by adding your own words and photos! The app seamlessly blends real, recorded human audio with a newly integrated, high-quality, kid-friendly Text-to-Speech engine, ensuring every word—even your custom ones—is pronounced perfectly. You can also adjust font sizes, toggle visual hints, and switch between uppercase and lowercase letters to meet each student's exact needs. Professional-Grade Data Tracking: Tracking progress is a breeze with our completely overhauled "Report Card" suite. Teachers and parents can monitor overall accuracy over time via intuitive line graphs, or drill down into specific word lists. Because the app tracks data by game type, you will know exactly if a student has mastered "Animals" in Reading, but still needs practice with "Animals" in Spelling! Enjoy the benefits of a clean, modern interface, engaging gameplay, and robust tracking. Key Features Include: The Content: 3 Distinct Game Modes: Spelling, Reading, and Missing Letter. Over 300 Built-In Words: Ready to play immediately. Grade-Level Lists: Organized sequentially from Kindergarten to 6th Grade. Thematic Lists: Animals, Numbers, Colors & Shapes, Classroom, Body Parts, Common Nouns, Clothes, Fruits, and Vegetables. Total Customization: Create custom lists, add new words, and even upload your own photos and audio recordings. The Gameplay: Premium Audio: High-quality, kid-friendly Text-to-Speech alongside real human audio recordings. Audio Spell Letters: Option to have each letter spoken aloud as the student drags it. Visual Hints: Toggle picture clues on or off to increase or decrease difficulty. Word Reading: Turn target word dictation on or off. Capitalization Control: Choose between all capitals, all lowercase, or standard capitalization. Adjustable UI: 3 different font size options for accessibility. Automatic Transition: Move immediately to the next word, or manually transition to control the pace. The Data: Multi-Student Support: Manage profiles and avatars for an entire classroom or caseload. Advanced Report Cards: View line graphs of session-by-session accuracy. Skill Isolation: Data is tracked independently for Reading, Spelling, and Missing Letter games so you know exactly where a student excels. Word-Level Mastery: See exactly which specific words a student got correct or needs to practice. Easy Exporting: Generate beautiful, multi-page PDF reports to email or print directly from the app via AirPrint.

About

Numbers on Bricks

Read full description

Learn to count to 1000! Numbers on Bricks helps children discover the big numbers from 100 to 1000, step by step, with clear exercises and fun challenges. WHAT'S INSIDE • 22 exercises and 3 tests • Recognizing numbers from 100 to 1000 • Skip counting in steps of 1, 5, 10, 20, 40 and 50 • Number dictation: listen to a number (is it 193 or 139?) and type it in • Practice with whole hundreds (100, 200, 300), then hundreds and tens (110, 120), then all numbers • Ordering numbers on the number line and filling in the missing numbers • Hearing and practicing how numbers are pronounced STEP BY STEP Each exercise starts small and the steps get bigger as your child grows. This builds real number sense: knowing where a number belongs, how big it is and how to say it. The perfect preparation for adding and subtracting with numbers up to 1000. BEFORE YOU START Your child should already be comfortable with sums up to 100.

Screenshots

Numbers on Bricks4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Numbers on Bricks at $3.99 against Smarty Spell's $14.99. Numbers on Bricks also leads on update cadence (every 5 months vs every 9 months) and device support (3 vs 1). Smarty Spell's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On ads and in-app purchases 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

Smarty Spell costs $14.99 and Numbers on Bricks $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Smarty Spell ships an update every 9 months, Numbers on Bricks every 5 months. Both last shipped on October 8, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Smarty Spell versus Numbers on Bricks: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSmarty SpellNumbers on Bricks
Price$14.99$3.99 — better
Rating4.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 9 monthsEvery 5 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaid—
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size97 MB57 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSmarty EarsMagiwise

In-app purchases

None

Smarty Spell

No in-app purchases

None

Numbers on Bricks

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Smarty Spell free?
Smarty Spell costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Numbers on Bricks free?
Numbers on Bricks costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Smarty Spell or Numbers on Bricks have ads?
Neither Smarty Spell nor Numbers on Bricks shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Smarty Spell or Numbers on Bricks?
Smarty Spell ships an update every 9 months, and Numbers on Bricks every 5 months. Most recently, Smarty Spell was updated on October 8, 2026 and Numbers on Bricks on October 8, 2026.

Other comparisons