10 Best Apps for Kids with Dyslexia and Learning Disabilities

10 Best Apps for Kids with Dyslexia and Learning Disabilities

In this section, you’ll find the latest information about a range of apps that may be helpful to individuals with dyslexia, parents of dyslexics, or the professionals who work with dyslexics (teachers, tutors, reading specialists, etc.).

We have carefully considered each app that teaches the valuable skills they need to succeed in speaking, reading, spelling, writing, maths and more. Children with dyslexia may benefit from special education apps such as technology (computers, tablets, and educational games). Each of these easy-to-use apps can make an enormous difference for dyslexic children and adults.

Individuals with dyslexia have great difficulty processing language. Their most significant obstacles are recognising words and spelling difficulties, both critical components of sight word learning. Despite these difficulties, several teaching strategies have proven effective in teaching children with dyslexia sight words.

Apps curated specifically for teachers and parents to use with their dyslexic kids can help their kids overcome their learning difficulties. 

Check out our range of assistive apps to help with Dyslexia that are great, on-the-go solutions and can aid individuals in education, the workplace and everyday activities.

Speechify

1. Speechify

Speechify - 5 star rating

(Android, iPhone, iPad)

Speechify is one of the best dyslexia apps for kids to get a good start with their reading journey. This app is specially designed for individuals with dyslexia and other learning disabilities, giving them the tools they need to succeed.

Speechify can read any digital document, including PDF files, articles, emails, and web pages. You can customize the app to suit your learning needs, whether you want to listen at a fast pace or follow along at a slower pace.

Speechify can help to improve reading comprehension and motivation to read. It is a great tool for people of all ages and abilities, including students, professionals, and people with disabilities.

Is beneficial for: improving visual memory, concentration, and processing speed

Age: 5-18+

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad, Web browsers


If we missed any of the 10 Best Apps for Kids with Dyslexia and Learning Disabilities , tell us about them!


MYdys will accompany people with dyslexia in their daily lives, allowing them to simply snap a picture of a text on any medium (book, magazine, signage, computer screen, websites, etc.), anywhere and on the go, and customize its display to meet their needs, with personalized features.

The highlight of the app is once the writing is loaded onto the app users are able to personalise their reading experience by selecting the choices relevant to their own reading needs. MYdys is ideal for supporting those with dyslexia. 

Is beneficial for: improving reading skills

Age: 5-18+

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Devices: iPhone, iPad



Dyslexia Gold

3. Dyslexia Gold

Dyslexia Gold - 5 star rating

(Website)

Dyslexia Gold is a popular app for kids with dyslexia. This dyslexia app improves reading fluency, speed and comprehension of children with learning disabilities. It increases reading age by over 12 months. Their fun, effective & unique programs help children learn to read and write:

  • Improve Reading with Engaging Eyes and Fluency Builder
  • Master Spelling and Times Tables

Dyslexia Gold addresses underlying problems that cause reading difficulties. We address vision problems to stop your child from skipping lines and words. And auditory problems so your child can hear that goat is made up of 3 sounds g - oa – t. The program is suitable for children aged 6-15. You can choose US or UK spelling and works on any PC or laptop with sound - Windows or Mac. Dyslexia Gold is used in over 250 schools and by thousands of parents. Dyslexia Gold also helps adults, as the program addresses the underlying difficulties causing reading problems.

Is beneficial for: improving reading and master spelling

Age: any educational level, aged 5 and above

Price: Subscription based

Device: Web



Easy Dyslexia Aid is a simple and intuitive app and a must for all classrooms that have children with dyslexia or dysgraphia. Easy Dyslexia Aid helps with spelling and literacy with the aid of the ‘OpenDyslexic’ font and colour overlays. 

Easy Dyslexia Aid is a welcome addition to the assistive technology market for dyslexia. This app can help dyslexic learners with specific cognitive difficulties making it easier to process particular kinds of information.

Is beneficial for: learning and practicing spelling, reading and writing

Age: 5+

Price: Paid

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad


Learning Ally Audiobooks

5. Learning Ally Audiobooks

(Android, iPhone, iPad)

Learning Ally Link provides over 80,000 audiobooks, audio textbooks, and other recorded books to help anyone who experiences difficulty in reading print material succeed. Formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic, this non-profit has been serving people with print and other disabilities that make visually reading print almost or completely non-accessible for decades. Originally offering books on tape through a lending library, this app is now a mode in which users can access their audiobooks.

For younger students, Learning Ally Audiobook builds fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. For older students, it helps students keep pace with class and work to their capability.

Age: 4+

Price: Free (membership required to use this app)

Devices: iPhone, iPad, Android


Special Words

6. Special Words

Special Words - 5 star rating

(Android, iPhone, iPad)

Special Words teaches children to recognise written words using pictures and sounds. Play alongside your child at a pace suited to their ability. The interface is easy to use and it has been broken down into graded levels that make it a very powerful tool.

Helping children with speech and language development, increase their sight vocabulary and develop hand-eye coordination as well as fine motor skills. 

Is beneficial for: learning and practicing words and Vocabulary

Age: 1-5

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad


Starfall ABCs

7. Starfall ABCs

Starfall ABCs - 4 star rating

(Android, iPhone, iPad)

Starfall ABCs is a solid early-learning app with a thorough approach to presenting the alphabet to preschoolers. Kids hear the sounds of each letter repeated often and can both hear and see how each letter is used in words. Each word has some cute animations they can trigger, followed by interactive games such as puzzles and mazes and chances to see words used in sentences.

Starfall app can help early readers learn the sounds that letters make, which is essential to decoding. The app gives kids the opportunity to practice sounding out words by reading songs, rhymes, and short stories.

Is beneficial for: learning and practicing letter identification

Age: 4+

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad


Reading Eggs

8. Reading Eggs

Reading Eggs - 5 star rating

(Android, iPhone, iPad)

Reading Eggs is a multi-award-winning learning app that helps dyslexic children learn to read. Reading Eggs uses carefully structured lessons to build essential spelling skills in children of all reading abilities. The animated, interactive lessons in Reading Eggs begin with phonemic skills – identifying beginning sounds and rhyming words, matching sounds and letters, sounding out words, segmenting and blending sounds and letters.

Programmes like Reading Eggs, which use explicit and systematic instruction, can make a huge difference in how successful children with dyslexia learn how to read.

Is beneficial for: learning reading, phonics and vocabulary

Age: 3+

Price: Free trial with subscription options

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad


Otsimo | Special Education

9. Otsimo | Special Education

Otsimo | Special Education - 5 star rating

(Android, iPhone, iPad)

Otsimo Special Education is one of the most critical tools to help people with dyslexia improve their reading skills and manage their challenges. When your child plays Otsimo Special Education regularly, his/her reading skills will improve. There are selected games to help the problem of dyslexia specifically. 

A learning path is designed as a personalised curriculum that is shaped according to the child’s level and preferences.

Is beneficial for: improving reading skills through repetition

Age: 4+

Price: Free trial with subscription options

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad


Phonics Genius

10. Phonics Genius

Phonics Genius - 4 star rating

(iPhone, iPad)

Phonics Genius is a customisable flashcard-style app designed to help kids identify letter sounds and their relationship to words and has just about every conceivable phonetic combination presented in a high-quality and completely enjoyable way. Phonics Genius is a great resource for building phonemic awareness and is best for kids who are emergent readers with previous reading experience.

Is beneficial for: developing and reinforcing phonics skills

Age: 6-8

Price: Paid

Devices: Android, iPhone, iPad



Frequently Asked Questions

Can apps help kids overcome dyslexia?

Apps can help with dyslexia in two general ways. Some apps provide practice and techniques to help learners minimise the impact of dyslexia. Other apps support people with dyslexia by helping them access information in texts or produce material readable by others. You should always seek specialist help if your suspect child has dyslexia. They can provide a clear diagnosis and provide additional guidance on the best approach to support your kids.

What features help make an app suitable for kids with dyslexia?

As well as apps dedicated to helping those with dyslexia, there are features in general-purpose apps that can prove helpful. The ability to change font, font size, and line spacing can make the difference between whether some people can read the information or not. There are no hard and fast rules about which options will help those with dyslexia, so some experimentation will be needed. The narration of text will help but be careful not to let its presence undermine kids' reading practice. Choosing web apps instead of downloadable apps can make it easier to use 3rd-party assistive tools.

How do you motivate kids with dyslexia to keep trying?

A tip for all reluctant readers, whether they have dyslexia or not, is to provide plenty of choices. Kids who feel they have chosen their reading material are likelier to read it. Also, remember that kids with dyslexia may love stories or learning from books even if they struggle to access them. Consider book apps or audiobook services so kids can build their love of books while their ability to access them catches up.


In this free app, Leo the Lion teaches the basics of multiplication before putting them to the test. Compared to other multiplication apps, this puts a much greater emphasis on teaching the topic rather than just testing and practice. Once children have mastered the lessons, they are put to test in the form of a race between Leo the Lion and an animal competitor. Teachers and parents can also engage with this app in the say-it-aloud activity, where there is a pause for a response after a math question. This dyslexia app will be helpful for students to learn Maths.

Read&Write app for iPad and Android is an alternative keyboard and incredibly useful toolbar for the iPad and Android. The app is designed for maximum literacy support by allowing students to read and complete literacy assignments independently.

Tackling dyslexia from an early age is crucial in building confidence, enthusiasm for learning, and preventing any difficulties from persisting into adulthood. 

Further Reading

Best Text-to-Speech Apps

Trending Topics

Most Popular