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Favorite Phonics Games, Apps, and Websites

Phonics is a foundational early reading and writing skill, and that's why there's no shortage of phonics apps, games, and websites out there in the market. With this list, we've narrowed the field down to some phonics favorites, both free and paid, that help students navigate the world of words through building phonemic awareness and spelling skills. All of these tools are well-suited to students and classrooms, offering engaging experiences that will delight kids and encourage them to explore words and build literacy. They also leverage the interactivity and audio-visuality of digital media, helping kids play and experiment with and listen to letter sounds.

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Free Phonics Games, Apps, and Websites

Starfall ABCs

ABCs and phonics integrate with fun images, animations, and activities

Bottom line: Great -- and free -- way to give kids clear, engaging examples of the ABCs in action.

Grades: Pre-K–K Price: Free

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Teach Your Monster to Read

Free phonics adventure oozes charm, has limited learning potential

Bottom line: Great style and character that'll get young children exploring letter sounds and sentences, but games could grow old quickly.

Grades: Pre-K–2 Price: $4.99

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Phonics Tic-Tac-Toe Interactive Game

Twist on traditional game would get a boost from audio support

Bottom line: Kids can build their phonics knowledge -- if they can read the questions.

Grades: K–2 Price: Free

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Phonics Genius

Quality flashcard-style phonics app missing some basics

Bottom line: Phonics Genius is a great resource for building phonemic awareness and a library of sight words.

Grades: K–5 Price: $0.99

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Paid Phonics Games, Apps, and Websites

Kids ABC Phonics

Good intro for students new to phonics or apps -- or both

Bottom line: Colorful pictures, clear voices and easy interactivity build basic letter sound and recognition skills.

Grades: Pre-K Price: $3.99

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Endless Wordplay: School Edition

Rhymes, phonetic approach, silly animations help kids construct words

Bottom line: Good, holistic approach to the nitty gritty of constructing words.

Grades: Pre-K–K Price: $14.99

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Rosetta Stone Kids Lingo Word Builder - English Reading and Spanish Speaking Ages 3 - 6

Sweet early-literacy games introduce English phonics and Spanish vocab

Bottom line: Kids learn Spanish and practice phonics while having silly fun.

Grades: Pre-K–K Price: Free, Free to Try

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Wonster Words (Pro Edition) - spelling with ABC phonics by Puzzling

Word construction and silly animations stress phonics and vocab

Bottom line: Silly graphics and some odd defining sentences sometimes distract from a respectable teaching approach.

Grades: Pre-K–K Price: $14.99

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PocketPhonics (Stories as IAP)

Strong phoneme development activities; good practice

Bottom line: An effective tool for phoneme-directed reading, although pictures of words often don't help kids understand word meanings.

Grades: Pre-K–1 Price: $6.99 There's an optional storybook subscription for $1.49 monthly or $14.49 annually.

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Montessorium: Intro to Words

Well-crafted app lets emerging readers and writers develop reading skills through word building

Bottom line: Basic reading skills are developed through word building, word play, and letter-sound recognition.

Grades: Pre-K–1 Price: $4.99

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Beginning Sounds Interactive Game

Cute sorting games help kids learn 18 initial sounds

Bottom line: Kids can build a good base of beginning letter sounds and related words but will need opportunities to expand their knowledge.

Grades: Pre-K–1 Price: $.99

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Hooked on Phonics

Well-known curriculum adapts well to fun, easy-to-use app

Bottom line: Thorough phonics program offers a nice mixture of learning, practicing, and reading.

Grades: Pre-K–1 Price: Free to Try Free seven-day trial version includes one lesson and one ebook. After that, it's $8.99 per month. There's also a lifetime subscription available.

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