If you search for the best maths apps for kids, a lot of what comes up is written for American parents, aimed at adults, or is other parents asking the same question in Facebook groups. Useful, but not much help if your child is in a UK primary school and you just want to know what's worth trying.
I should say up front that I co-founded Trivela FC, which is one of the apps below. I've tried to be fair about it, and about the others. Several of them are very good at what they do.
The more useful question isn't really which app is best. It's which one suits what your child needs to practise, and whether they'll open it without being asked.
What is the best maths app for kids in the UK?
There isn't a single best maths app. The right one depends on what your child needs to practise and whether they'll choose to use it. For times tables, Times Tables Rock Stars is the best known, and the company says it's used in more than 15,000 schools. For short, regular practice across the wider curriculum, DoodleMaths covers Early Years to Year 9. For quick, free practice of number facts, Hit the Button and BBC Bitesize are good places to start. And if your child loves football but won't sit down to practise, well that's the exact problem we built Trivela FC for.
Check what your child's school already uses
Before paying for anything, ask your child's teacher. Many schools already subscribe to a maths app, and your child may have a login they can use at home.
It also helps your child. Practising at home on the same app they use at school means the progress counts in both places, and the teacher can see it.
The apps worth knowing about
Times Tables Rock Stars
Times Tables Rock Stars is a times tables and division practice app with a rock music theme, for children aged 6 and up. The questions adapt to each child, and it works in a browser or as an app. The company says it's used in more than 15,000 primary and secondary schools worldwide, and it also offers subscriptions for families and tutors.
Best for: children who need to get faster at times tables, especially if their school already uses it. The leaderboards and live multiplayer games suit children who like competing.
DoodleMaths
DoodleMaths is a subscription maths app from DoodleLearning, covering Early Years to Year 9. It's designed around short, regular practice rather than long sessions, and it's used by parents and schools.
Best for: families who want one app for steady practice across the whole maths curriculum, not just times tables.
Hit the Button
Hit the Button, from Topmarks, is a quick-fire game that tests number bonds, times tables, doubling and halving, multiples, division facts and square numbers against the clock. You can play it on the Topmarks website, and there's an app with extra features, including an untimed practice mode and high-score tracking. Topmarks has said a new free version is on the way.
Best for: five-minute bursts of practice, and getting used to answering under time pressure, which is useful before the Year 4 multiplication tables check.
BBC Bitesize
BBC Bitesize has free times tables games and songs covering the 1 to 12 times tables.
Best for: a free starting point, and younger children who learn well from songs.
Trivela FC
Trivela FC is the one we make. It's a football-themed maths game for children from Reception to GCSE. For parents it costs £5.99 a month.
I started it because I struggled to get my son to do his maths homework, and I wondered whether turning maths into a football game might help. Children go on a personalised maths training journey and then get to play football matches as a reward.
It covers all maths fundamentals from addition and times tables to those skills needed to pass foundation GCSE.
Best for: children who love football and see maths practice as something to avoid.
How to choose a maths app for your child
The best way to choose is to answer three questions: what your child needs to practise, whether they'll use it without a fight, and whether it fits with what their school is doing.
What do they actually need? If it's times tables, a focused times tables app will do more than a general one. If there are gaps across the curriculum, something broader makes more sense. Your child's teacher can usually tell you which it is.
Will they choose to open it? This is the one most reviews skip, and it's the one that matters most. An app your child ignores isn't helping, however good it is. It sounds obvious, but parents already know practice matters. The difficulty is getting children to do it, so the app has to give them a reason to want to.
Does it work alongside school? An app is extra practice, not a replacement for teaching. The ones that work best are the ones that back up what your child is already learning in class.
Are free maths apps any good?
Yes, for a lot of children. Free options like BBC Bitesize and the Hit the Button website are a sensible place to start, especially for practising number facts. Paid apps tend to add things like tracking progress over time, adapting to your child's level and keeping them coming back, which matters more if practice is a struggle.
If your child happily practises with a free game, there's no need to pay for anything. If they don't, the question to ask isn't which app has the most features. It's which one they'll actually want to play.
If that's football, I'd love you to give Trivela FC a go and tell us what you think. And if it's something else on this list, that's fine too. The goal is a child who wants to get better at maths, whichever app gets them there.