The Best Apps to Learn Braille in 2026

To learn braille from scratch, pick an app that teaches, not one that only translates. For contracted English braille (grade 2), Paige and Braille Academy are the most complete. To learn the alphabet with a guided course and a screen reader, there is Braillito, which is ours and needs a subscription after a free trial. And if you have just lost your sight, the best option is not an app at all: it is Hadley.

Below are the apps compared on the same criteria, plus a section on things that are not apps and sometimes work better.

Key points

• The big divide is grade 1 versus grade 2. Most English braille in the world is contracted (grade 2); several apps stop at the alphabet.
• No app replaces raised material. On a screen you learn the system; touch is trained on paper, a slate or a braille display.
• Check the last update. One app still often recommended has not been updated since 2018, and another has disappeared from the App Store.
• "Works with a screen reader" is not the default. Of the apps below, only some state VoiceOver or TalkBack support, and one says plainly that it is not designed for people with severe visual impairment.
• The truly free options often come from organizations, not app stores: Hadley, UEB Online and Braille Brain offer full courses at no cost.

Disclosure: Braillito is our app

Braillito is our product, so read us with that in mind. We cannot be neutral judges in a comparison we compete in, and pretending otherwise would be worse than saying it.

What we can do is make the comparison checkable:

1. The criteria are written before the entries, and are the same for every app.
2. Every detail links to the app's store listing or official website, so you can check it.
3. There is a whole section on where each of the others beats us, by name.
4. We recommend resources that are not products, and in several cases are better than ours.

If the conclusion of this article were "use Braillito for everything", the article would be wrong. It is not.

Data checked on October 7, 2026, on the public App Store and Google Play listings (US store) and the official sites. Prices, ratings and dates change: check the listing before deciding.

The criteria

Seven questions, applied the same way to all. Most "best apps" lists answer none of them.

A warning about the screen reader criterion: "works with a screen reader" and "designed for blind users" are not the same. An app can be navigable with TalkBack and still put all of its teaching in images.

Comparison table

Paige — Learn braille

From Paige Braille Ltd, a British company. Thirteen chapters take you from the alphabet through grade 2 contractions and shortforms, with games and a built-in translator. Its listing states VoiceOver support throughout and external braille keyboard support, with optional musical feedback for each dot.

Free to try; a one-time purchase unlocks everything, with no ads and no subscription. Last update: September 2026. It is young: it had only 11 ratings in the US store when we checked, so there is little third-party evidence yet.

Who it is for. Learning UEB grade 2 on an iPhone, with VoiceOver, without ads.

Who it is not for. iPhone only, English only.

Listing: Paige on the App Store · paigebraille.com.

Braille Academy: Play & Learn

The most ambitious UEB syllabus on this list. 13 chapters, 59 levels and 29 challenges, covering 23 alphabetic wordsigns, 38 contractions, 12 wordsigns, 34 groupsigns and 75 shortform words. It works offline, has no ads and is free. It is rated 4.9 out of 5 from 1,670 ratings in the US store; its latest version is from January 2025.

The most honest thing about this app is in its own listing, and it deserves quoting: "this app is not specially designed for people with severe visual impairment", though its developer says they are working on TalkBack and VoiceOver.

Who it is for. A sighted person (a teacher, a parent, a special education student) who needs to master contracted English braille. At that, it is probably the best on this list.

Who it is not for. It is not the option today if you use a screen reader.

Listing: Braille Academy on the App Store.

Braillito

Ours. 63 lessons in 8 worlds, in 38 languages, each with its real braille code rather than a transliteration. It works on iPhone and Android, with VoiceOver and TalkBack. The download is free, with a free trial; after that, a subscription unlocks all lessons and games. In the US App Store on October 7, 2026, plans ran from $3.99 a week to $39.99 a year. Its store listings also mention ads and in-app purchases. Rated 4.6 from 11 ratings on the App Store and 4.8 from 142 reviews on Google Play. What its screen reader support means in practice, and what we cannot claim yet, is in using Braillito with VoiceOver and TalkBack.

Who it is for. Someone starting from zero who wants a guided course, works with a screen reader, or needs a language few apps cover, such as Spanish, Japanese, Korean or Arabic.

Who it is not for. Three things Braillito does not do, said plainly:

• It does not teach contracted braille in the store version. Our course is grade 1, letter by letter. In English, grade 2 is everyday braille: see braille contractions. For contractions, use Paige or Braille Academy.
• It does not take input from a braille display. A display can show the text your screen reader reads, but you cannot answer exercises with it.
• It does not teach braille music.

Get Braillito.

Brailliac: Braille Tutor

The most downloaded braille app on Android: 100,000+ downloads, rated 4.7 with about 1,900 reviews on Google Play. It has a dictionary, guided practice, a challenge mode and translation, with points and levels that unlock features. It covers six codes, including Unified English Braille.

It is free, but contains ads. Its last update, according to its listing, was May 3, 2024.

Who it is for. Someone who wants lots of practice and to compete against themselves, on Android, and does not mind ads.

Who it is not for. Its listing does not mention TalkBack, so if you use a screen reader, try it before relying on it.

Listing: Brailliac on Google Play.

Braille Tutor, by iEnable

Teaches contracted braille (UEB) with on-screen keys or the home keys of a Bluetooth keyboard, which mimics a Perkins brailler. It is self-voiced and also works with iOS accessibility; extra lessons are an in-app purchase. Rated 4.5 from 152 ratings; its latest version is 1.3, from March 2018, and it runs on iPad only.

Who it is for. Practising at home the contracted braille learned in class, especially with a Bluetooth keyboard.

Who it is not for. The date matters: more than eight years without an update is a long time in operating system terms.

Listing: Braille Tutor on the App Store.

Gone: iBraille Challenge

iBraille Challenge, from the Braille Institute of America and California State University, Los Angeles, was the only app built around a refreshable braille display, for practising the National Braille Challenge tests. It is still recommended in many lists, but on October 7, 2026 it was no longer available on the App Store: its listing returned "not found" in the US, UK and Mexico stores. Its last version was from May 2018.

If you came looking for it, the closest current options for practising with a display are a refreshable braille display used with your phone's screen reader, and the braille books from the NLS.

Where each one beats us

The section almost no comparison written by an app maker includes, and the one that makes the rest worth reading.

If you do not want an app

Here is the least commercial advice in the article, and probably the most useful: for several kinds of learner, the best option is not an app.

• Hadley, for adults with vision loss and the people around them: free workshops to learn braille by sight, and courses by touch with audio instruction and materials mailed home. See hadleyhelps.org.
• UEB Online, for teachers who need a certificate: free courses in UEB literacy, mathematics and music, with an optional AU$50 certificate. See uebonline.org.
• Braille Brain, for school teams: UEB and Nemeth courses from Cal State LA and APH. See braillebrain.aphtech.org.
• Raised material, for everyone: no screen trains touch. A slate and stylus is cheap and enough to start writing, and libraries for blind readers lend braille books.

All of these, with their formats and sign-up details, are in free braille resources.

How to choose, in one table

Frequently asked questions

What is the best free app to learn braille?

For English, Braille Academy is free with no ads and covers contracted braille in the most detail, though it is not designed for screen reader users. Paige is free to try, supports VoiceOver and unlocks everything with a one-time purchase. Braillito is not the answer here: it needs a subscription after a free trial, and it is ours. If you want to learn without spending anything, Hadley's free workshops are better than any app.

Can you really learn braille for free?

Yes. Hadley offers free workshops, UEB Online gives free training with an optional paid certificate, and Braille Brain offers UEB and Nemeth courses. Among apps, several are free: some with ads, others with a paid unlock.

Which apps teach grade 2 braille?

Paige and Braille Academy on iPhone, and Braille Tutor by iEnable on iPad. Braillito teaches grade 1 only. If you want the difference first, see braille contractions.

Are these apps useful if I can see?

Yes, almost all are built for that, and some only for that. The important distinction is another one: learning the system with your eyes does not train touch. If your goal is to read with your fingers, practise without looking and on paper from the start. See learning braille as a sighted person.

Do braille apps work with a screen reader?

Not by default. Of the apps here, two state VoiceOver support (Paige and Braillito, which also supports TalkBack), one says it is not designed for severe visual impairment, and one does not mention screen readers in its listing. If you use one, try the app before committing to a course.

How did you check this?

On October 7, 2026, on each app's public listing in the US App Store and Google Play and on the official sites of Hadley, NextSense and Braille Brain. Every entry links to its source. We include nothing we could not check there. If you spot a mistake or a missing app, write to us and we will fix it.