In this guide (11 sections)
The six kids’ encyclopedias you are most likely to find are built for different ages, and two of them are websites rather than apps. Encyclopedia: Kids Learning is our pick for children aged 5 to 12, and the short answer below says who each of the others suits. All six are checked against the four things parents ask first: age, price, ads, and whether each works on an iPhone, an Android phone or only in a browser. The answers come mostly from each maker’s website or app store listing, checked on 13 October 2026. Prices are in US dollars. They change, so check the listing before you pay.
The six at a glance: ages, iPhone or Android
| App | Ages | On |
|---|---|---|
| Encyclopedia: Kids Learning | 5 to 12 | iOS, Android |
| Britannica Kids | Pre‑K to 9+ | Browser |
| World Book Kids | K‑early elem. | Browser |
| Wikids | 3 to 7 | iOS, Android |
| Cretapedia | 5 to 12 | iOS, Android |
| Kids Encyclopedia with AI | 9 to 11 | iOS, Android |
Ages are each maker’s own wording, with two exceptions. For Kids Encyclopedia with AI the range is Apple’s, because the app’s description gives none. For World Book Kids it comes from a review quoted on World Book’s own page: kindergarten through early elementary.
Ads. Britannica Kids, Wikids, Cretapedia and Encyclopedia: Kids Learning each describe themselves as ad-free. Kids Encyclopedia with AI does not say either way, and we saw no “Contains ads” label on its Google Play listing. The World Book pages we checked do not mention ads.
What your child does in each.
- Encyclopedia: Kids Learning: hears every topic read aloud, watches a video on each, practises sight words with flashcards and earns stars in a reward system that parents set up.
- Britannica Kids: reads articles or has them read aloud, explores an interactive atlas and watches videos.
- World Book Kids: reads articles and tries games, activities and projects.
- Wikids: listens to narration over illustrations, photos and short videos.
- Cretapedia: watches 3D animations and takes quizzes.
- Kids Encyclopedia with AI: listens to voiceovers, takes a quiz on every topic and asks the AI questions.
Prices compared
US prices, checked 13 October 2026.
| App | Month | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Encyclopedia: Kids Learning | $4.99 | $34.99 |
| Britannica Kids | $8.99 | $74.95 |
| World Book Kids | No plan | See note |
| Wikids | $4.99 | $29.99 |
| Cretapedia | $13.99 | $119.99 |
| Kids Encyclopedia with AI | $6.99 | $34.99 |
World Book sells a yearly subscription only, and its own pages showed two different prices, so check worldbook.com. The Kids Encyclopedia with AI subscription adds the AI helper.
Is there a free encyclopedia app for kids?
Several let you start free. In Encyclopedia: Kids Learning every animal topic is free, with no trial needed, and a 7-day trial unlocks the rest. Some public libraries offer World Book Kids free to card holders, and Kids Encyclopedia with AI has a free preview of its AI helper. Britannica Kids, Wikids and Cretapedia each offer a 7-day trial, Cretapedia’s on its main plans.
Encyclopedia: Kids Learning, our top pick for ages 5 to 12
Why we chose it:
- Over 1,000 topics, from animals and space to the human body, science and history. Of the other apps that give a number, Wikids says “hundreds” and Cretapedia “20+”. The two websites have bigger archives.
- Every topic is read aloud and has a video, so children who are still learning to read can follow along. None of the other five says it has a video for every topic.
- The lowest monthly price of the five sold by the month, shared with Wikids.
- Every animal topic is free, with no trial needed.
- No ads, in the free version or the paid one.
- More than an encyclopedia: sight-word flashcards and star rewards that parents set up for real-world tasks.
Privacy. Its App Store privacy label lists the data linked to a user: a parent’s email address, purchase history, identifiers and usage data. Its Google Play listing says the app may collect location, personal info and four other types of data. The app’s privacy policy says children’s activity data is used only to run it and is never sold.
Where it is weaker: Britannica’s archive is more than a hundred times larger, so it is more likely to have what your child needs for a school report on a niche subject. Only the animal topics are free. The rest needs a subscription once the trial ends.
Best for: most children aged 5 to 12, especially those who like to listen and watch as well as read.
To try it: free to download on the App Store and Google Play.
Is there a Britannica Kids app?
Not one you can download today, as far as we could find. Britannica Kids is a website that its maker calls “mobile-friendly”, so it works in the browser on a phone or tablet. When we searched the App Store and Google Play on 13 October 2026, neither listed one. The only trace we found was a short series of single-topic apps released in 2010 (Volcanoes, Dinosaurs and Ancient Egypt), and we could not find those listed either.
What it does well is depth. Britannica advertises “Over 130K fact-checked articles by experts”, with images, videos and an interactive atlas. It covers Pre-K to Grade 9+ in four grade bands: Fundamentals, Kids, Students and Scholars. Britannica says it offers “3 unique reading levels for all readers”, and children can have articles read aloud. It is ad-free: Britannica’s privacy policy calls Britannica Kids “our ad-free, premium subscription service”.
Best for: school research, and children who want the largest archive of the six, by the makers’ own numbers.
World Book Kids
World Book Kids is also a website. World Book says it has “thousands of articles, multimedia content, and a collection of biographies” and “an abundance of educational games, activities, and projects”. A 2013 review from American Reference Books Annual, quoted on World Book’s page, says the site is “intended for use by students in the kindergarten through early elementary level”. You can buy a home subscription from World Book, and some public libraries offer it free with a library card.
Best for: younger school-age children, especially if your library already has it.
Wikids
On the App Store, Wikids calls itself “The Talking Encyclopedia” for ages 3 to 7, “a narrated encyclopedia designed especially for pre-readers”. Its maker says it covers “hundreds of fascinating topics”. Narration runs throughout, alongside illustrations, photos and short videos. Its Google Play listing says “No ads. No worries.” and that the app collects no data. Its App Store label lists only usage and diagnostics data, not linked to the user.
Best for: children aged 3 to 7, including those who cannot read yet.
Cretapedia
Cretapedia is a science app for children aged 5 to 12. Its App Store listing describes “stunning 3D animations”, quizzes and bite-sized lessons covering “20+ fascinating topics”. The listing calls it “a safe, ad-free space”, and the Cretapedia website shows a kidSAFE certification. It is the most expensive of the six.
Best for: children who love science and learn well from animation.
Kids Encyclopedia with AI
Kids Encyclopedia with AI covers science, history, nature, geography, art and technology, with “natural voiceovers for curated topics” and a quiz mode on every topic. Its subscription adds Professor Squeaky, which the developer calls “our safe and specialised AI”. It can create “any topic, with cover art and voiceover specifically for kids” and answer questions. There is a free preview before you subscribe. Its Google Play listing says it collects no data, and its App Store privacy label lists only usage and diagnostics data, not linked to the user.
Best for: children who like asking their own questions. As with any AI-written content for children, we suggest reading a few answers together at first.
Pick the app that fits the way your child learns, not the one with the most articles.
How to choose
- Start with age. Under 7 and not reading yet: Wikids. School age: match your child to the ages in the table above.
- Decide what your child will use it for. Look things up for school: Britannica Kids or World Book Kids. Explore science: Cretapedia. Browse, listen and watch across many subjects: Encyclopedia: Kids Learning. Ask their own questions: Kids Encyclopedia with AI.
- Use the free trials. Try two at once and let your child pick the one they keep going back to.
Looking for the Encarta of today?
Microsoft’s Encarta, the CD-ROM encyclopedia many parents grew up with, had a children’s program, Encarta Kids. In March 2009 Microsoft announced it was discontinuing Encarta, and its websites closed by the end of that year, as The Register reported at the time. In our view, the closest thing to Encarta today is Britannica Kids: a general encyclopedia for children, with articles, pictures and videos, in a browser rather than on a disc.
How we checked
On 13 October 2026 we opened each product’s own website or store listings and compared all six on ages, US prices where clear, ads, devices and what a child does in each. We also searched the App Store and Google Play for a Britannica Kids app. Every price and quote above comes from those pages on that date. The 2010 Britannica apps and the Encarta history come from the sources listed below.
Sources (11)
- Britannica Kids membership and prices: premium.britannica.com/kids-membership, checked 13 October 2026
- Britannica privacy policy (Kids & Student Data section): corporate.britannica.com/privacy-policy, checked 13 October 2026
- World Book Kids product pages: worldbook.com/store/p/545-World-Book-Kids.aspx and worldbook.com/products/kids-online-encyclopedia, checked 13 October 2026
- Wikids: App Store listing id903091915, Google Play com.wiki_kids.wikidsanimals and wikids.world, checked 13 October 2026
- Cretapedia: App Store listing id6446936735, Google Play com.zebraacademykids.pedia and cretapedia.com, checked 13 October 2026
- Kids Encyclopedia with AI: App Store listing id1502045040 and Google Play com.sneakysharkstudios.kids_encyclopedia, checked 13 October 2026
- Encyclopedia: Kids Learning: App Store listing id6758155526 and Google Play com.initiatehub.encyclopedia, checked 13 October 2026
- World Book Kids in public libraries: lapl.org/world-book-kids, checked 13 October 2026
- Britannica Kids single-topic apps: Apptopia record for id388309543, and PRNewswire, 14 September 2010
- Encyclopedia: Kids Learning privacy policy and support page: initiatehub.com/privacy and initiatehub.com/support, checked 13 October 2026
- The Register, 'Microsoft kills MSN Encarta', 31 March 2009; Search Engine Land, 'Microsoft kills encyclopedia Encarta', March 2009; Wikipedia, Encarta (for Encarta Kids)
