MyMaths is school-only — parents can't buy it, and many students actively dread it. If your child's school uses MyMaths and you want to supplement (or replace) that experience at home with something they'll actually enjoy, these are the best alternatives available to UK families.
Before switching, consider what matters most for your family:
| App | Price | Engagement | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| MathCraft | Free (beta) → £4.99/mo | RPG adventure | Stealth learning through genuine gameplay |
| DoodleMaths | £7.99/mo | Streaks, badges, stickers, and a robot-building reward system | Families who want consistent daily practice with strong habit-forming mechanics and a clean, no-nonsense interface |
| Mathletics | ~£6.50 (est.)/mo | Live speed races, avatar customisation, bronze/silver/gold certificates, leaderboards | Competitive children who are motivated by beating others in real-time maths races |
| Prodigy Math | ~£4–8 (Core tier)/mo | Full fantasy RPG with wizard battles, pet collection, and world exploration | Families who want a free RPG-style maths experience and don't mind the US curriculum focus or aggressive monetisation |
| Sumdog | £5.99/mo | 39 mini-games (racing, minigolf, flower defence, football) with a "question-then-play" model | Children who enjoy variety — 39 games prevents boredom |
| Komodo Maths | £9.99/mo | Martial arts belt system with physical stickers | Families who value human teacher oversight and a deliberately screen-time-limited approach to arithmetic fluency |
MathCraft wraps the entire White Rose Maths curriculum inside a pixel-art RPG. Your child raises a companion, builds an island, and completes quests — without ever realising they’re practising maths. An adaptive engine (spaced repetition + mastery tracking) ensures every session targets the right skill at the right difficulty.
Best for: Children who resist anything that feels like homework. Parents who want full visibility (curriculum heatmap, AI tutor logs, hard time limits).
Not ideal for: Families following a non-UK curriculum, or children who need intensive 1:1 support for significant learning difficulties.
Streaks, badges, stickers, and a robot-building reward system. No narrative, no game world, no characters.
Best for: Families who want consistent daily practice with strong habit-forming mechanics and a clean, no-nonsense interface.
Not ideal for: Children who resist anything that feels like homework. DoodleMaths is a dressed-up worksheet — effective, but visibly educational.
Live speed races, avatar customisation, bronze/silver/gold certificates, leaderboards. Competition-driven, not narrative-driven.
Best for: Competitive children who are motivated by beating others in real-time maths races. Families wanting broad curriculum coverage.
Not ideal for: Children who find competition stressful, or families wanting adaptive difficulty that adjusts automatically.
Full fantasy RPG with wizard battles, pet collection, and world exploration. Maths is context-free — questions appear as interruptions to gameplay, not part of it.
Best for: Families who want a free RPG-style maths experience and don't mind the US curriculum focus or aggressive monetisation.
Not ideal for: UK families wanting curriculum alignment, or parents concerned about manipulative freemium tactics targeting children.
39 mini-games (racing, minigolf, flower defence, football) with a "question-then-play" model. Virtual house/garden decoration with coins. Competitions.
Best for: Children who enjoy variety — 39 games prevents boredom. Families wanting maths + spelling in one subscription.
Not ideal for: Families wanting a polished experience or deep narrative engagement. Technical issues frustrate many users.
Martial arts belt system with physical stickers. Deliberately anti-gamification — minimal screen time by design.
Best for: Families who value human teacher oversight and a deliberately screen-time-limited approach to arithmetic fluency.
Not ideal for: Children who need motivation beyond drill practice, or families wanting full curriculum coverage including geometry and data.
MathCraft, DoodleMaths, Mathletics, and Sumdog are all parent-purchasable alternatives that cover the UK curriculum. MathCraft offers RPG-style engagement; DoodleMaths offers adaptive practice; Mathletics offers live competitions. All are available without a school subscription.
MathCraft is free during beta. Prodigy offers free maths content (with paid cosmetic upgrades). BBC Bitesize and Khan Academy are fully free but lack adaptive practice. White Rose Maths offers free home learning resources.
MyMaths has a 1.3/5 Trustpilot rating. The main complaints are: correct answers marked wrong (format sensitivity), having to redo entire question sets for one mistake, a terrible interface, and zero engagement beyond school accountability. Student reviews describe it as "depression creating."
If your school assigns MyMaths homework, your child will still need to complete it. A separate app like MathCraft can supplement that practice and make maths more enjoyable overall. Many families find that positive experiences with an engaging app improve their child's attitude towards all maths practice — including MyMaths.
Step-by-step lessons, worked examples, and adaptive practice — all wrapped in an adventure game your child will love.
Try MathCraft Free No credit card required