ABCmouse vs LetterSchool
ABCmouse
abcmouse.comLetterSchool
letterschool.comSide by side
| Figure | ABCmouse | LetterSchool |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $3.33/mo | $5/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 10 | 5 |
| Spec score · Preschool Learning Apps | 9.5 (#1) | 9.0 (#2) |
| Spec score · Kinder Apps | 9.5 (#1) | 8.9 (#2) |
| Company facts | LinkedIn lists Age of Learning as privately held, founded in 2007, headquartered in Glendale, California, with 201–500 employees. | LinkedIn lists the company as privately held, founded in 2016, headquartered in Amsterdam and employing 2–10 people. |
| Headquarters | Glendale, California, United States | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Licence | Terms grant only a limited, nonexclusive, revocable, nontransferable personal-use licence; the service content and software remain Age of Learning property. | The terms provide a limited personal, non-transferable licence and prohibit copying, modification, reverse engineering, redistribution and commercial use. |
| Praise: engagement | G2 reviewers repeatedly praise easy navigation, interactive games, books and children voluntarily asking to use the program. | Common Sense Media says the guided interface, hints and animations make practice easy to navigate and engaging. |
| Purpose | ABCmouse provides an early learning curriculum for children ages 2–8, covering reading, math, science, social studies, art, and music. | LetterSchool teaches children to write and spell through handwriting, phonics, numbers, and spelling activities. |
| Rating on Apple App Store | 4.2 out of 5 from 4.3K ratings | 4.5 out of 5 from 17K ratings |
| Rating on Google Play | 4.6 out of 5 from 34.4K reviews | 4.4 out of 5 from 16.1K reviews |
| Security and privacy | The privacy policy says Age of Learning uses physical, technical and administrative safeguards and offers controls to review or delete child information. | The privacy policy says the company follows GDPR and Dutch data-protection requirements, uses SSL transmission encryption and access controls, and claims COPPA compliance. |
| Support | Live customer help is available Monday through Saturday, 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time. | The help page directs users to contact [email protected] for assistance. |
| System requirements | Classic desktop access requires Windows 10 or macOS Mojave 10.10, 8 GB RAM, 10 GB storage, a current Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Edge browser, and specified bandwidth. | The Apple listing requires iOS/iPadOS 13 or later and macOS 11 or later on an Apple Silicon Mac. |
| What it does | ABCmouse is a digital early-learning program for children approximately ages 2–8, combining curriculum activities with games, books, videos, songs and puzzles. | LetterSchool teaches young children handwriting, phonics, spelling, reading, numbers and shapes through guided practice. |
Plans
ABCmouse
- ABCmouse BasicFree
- Assessment Center add-on (Monthly)$3.99 a month
- Assessment Center monthly add-on$3.99 a month
- ABCmouse Premium monthly$14.99 a month
- ABCmouse Premium Monthly$14.99 a month
- ABCmouse Classic Short-term$29.99 a month
- Assessment Center add-on (Annual)$39.99 a year
- Assessment Center annual add-on$39.99 a year
- ABCmouse Premium annual$45 a year
- ABCmouse Premium Annual$45 a year
LetterSchool
- Free appFree
- Monthly Plan$9.99 a month
- School student license$9.99, paid once
- School student license$9.99, paid once
- Yearly Plan$59.99 a year
In their own words
ABCmouse
ABCmouse is an early learning program for children ages 2–8, with activities across reading, math, science, social studies, art, and music. Its curriculum includes more than 13,000 activities and personalized Learning Paths, plus STEM activities, coding fundamentals, a Parent Dashboard, customizable avatars, tickets and rewards, and Pet Town. A child's Learning Path progress, avatar customizations, and My World updates sync between the mobile app and a desktop or laptop web browser. Mobile web browsers are not supported; phone and tablet users are directed to the app. The free Basic plan allows up to 10 activities per day for one child profile. Premium monthly costs $14.99 a month and has a 30-day trial for web signups; annual Premium is 45.00 USD for the first year, then renews at $59.99 a year plus tax. ABCmouse for Teachers is a free web-based tool for PreK–2nd grade educators to manage classes, assign homework, and share printable resources; individual free educator accounts are for classroom use in the U.S. and Canada.
LetterSchool
LetterSchool teaches handwriting, phonics, numbers and spelling through activities for young children. It is described as designed for ages three to eight, with a listed target age range of two to six. Letter practice moves through guided tapping, tracing and independent writing. The app gives visual and auditory feedback and corrects each line as a child draws it. Languages listed include English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Dutch, Japanese, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Danish and Arabic. English users can choose Handwriting Without Tears, Zaner-Bloser or D’Nealian handwriting styles. The free app costs nothing and includes five uppercase and lowercase letters, five shapes and three CVC flashcards covering nine words. Paid access is listed from $1.92/mo (annual), with a 7-day trial. LetterSchool is available on Android, iOS, macOS and Windows. The school offering is currently iOS-only as LetterSchool – Block Letters. The maker says the app has no ads or social media and does not seek to collect personally identifiable information directly from children under 13.