Which augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) app should you choose in 2026, and how much does it cost? This comparison puts six AAC apps side by side: Buddy, Proloquo2Go, TD Snap, Grid, Avaz and LetMeTalk. We develop Buddy at Pictalk, so we are not neutral, which is why we date the prices and say when another app is a better fit.

Which app for which need?

• The person needs eye gaze, advanced switch access, a joystick or head control: Grid or TD Snap, ideally on a dedicated device. These devices can be funded (see Funding AAC: how to prepare a funding request); access methods are covered in our guide on positioning, switches and eye gaze.
• The person also wants to control their computer or environment (email, television, lights): Grid 3.
• The person moves from one device to another (phone, tablet, school computer, smartwatch), including older devices: Buddy, synced across all their devices.
• The person already uses an app with ease: don’t change without a strong reason. Their automatic movements are valuable.
• You want to follow the person’s progress: Buddy produces a communication report to share with the speech and language therapist.
• The whole family uses Apple and the team already knows the tool: Proloquo2Go.
• The goal is everyday independence, not just communication: Buddy links the schedule, guided sequences, notebooks and the smartwatch to the same words and symbols.
• You still use LetMeTalk: start planning the move now (see below).

This list is a starting point, not a verdict: the right choice is confirmed by a trial over several weeks. The full method is in our guide Choosing a tool: paper, tablet, trial.

The 2026 comparison table

Prices checked in October 2026 on the UK App Store and on the publishers’ official websites. Prices change often: check them on the day you buy. ‘Not verified’ marks a point we could not confirm.

Notes

• Buddy: on Windows and Mac, Buddy runs in the browser; the Android watch app works with Wear OS.
• Proloquo2Go: the Apple Watch app complements the iPhone app.
• Grid: Grid for iPad on iPad, Grid 3 on Windows.
• Access: Buddy offers simple switch scanning; for Proloquo2Go, eye gaze works through iOS 18 or a certified camera, and for Avaz through a compatible device.
• Languages: number of languages in which the publisher provides a vocabulary or an interface, according to the official websites and the App Store in October 2026. Grid: ‘more than 30’ according to Smartbox. Avaz: 6 in the main app, plus editions for India and Sri Lanka.
• Buddy’s vocabularies: 17 in English, with categorical organisation (Essential 24 in portrait and landscape, Springboard 48, Horizon 80), motor planning (Quick Core and Vocal Flair, in 24, 40, 60, 84 and 112 cells) and a pragmatic approach (CommuniKate 12 and 20, Sequoia 15).
• Phone: TD Snap and Grid do not work on phones; Proloquo2Go, Avaz and LetMeTalk work on iPhone, but we could not verify that their vocabularies have a layout designed for a small screen.
• Offline: for Grid, verified for Grid 3; Buddy downloads everything it needs at start-up.
• LetMeTalk: the iPhone and iPad app has not been updated since 2018, though it is still listed on the UK App Store; the Android version has been removed from Google Play.

App by app

Buddy (Pictalk)

Buddy is an independence companion: AAC boards, visual schedule, guided sequences and notebooks share the same symbols and are linked together. Its smart context learns about family and friends, places and routines from the schedule and the notebooks, to better understand what is said and correct sentences. Its communication report tracks language development (messages, new words, communicative functions) and can be shared with the speech and language therapist. Buddy offers 17 vocabularies with automatic conjugation, and works on phone, tablet, computer and smartwatch, including older devices, by touch or with a switch. Pay what you want, with no locked features.

Proloquo2Go

One of the most widely installed AAC apps on iPad, published by AssistiveWare. Its Crescendo vocabulary, very strong on grammar, comes in 23 grid sizes. It works on iPhone, iPad and Mac. £249.99 as a one-off purchase. See Proloquo2Go alternative.

TD Snap

Tobii Dynavox’s app, on iPad and Windows, often installed on the brand’s dedicated devices; it stands out for eye gaze and offers PODD and Gateway as options. £9.99/month, plus £4.99/month per module, which comes to £119.88 over 12 months without modules. See TD Snap alternative.

Grid for iPad and Grid 3

Smartbox’s reference for complex access (eye gaze, switches, joystick, head); on Windows, Grid 3 also controls the computer and the environment. £9.99/month or £299.99 on iPad, about £550 excl. VAT for Grid 3, with a free trial of 30 to 60 days. See Grid alternative.

Avaz

Available on iPhone, iPad and Android, with SymbolStix symbols and one of the most affordable lifetime plans on the market. £7.99/month, £90.99/year or £199.99 lifetime. See Avaz alternative.

LetMeTalk

Free and based on ARASAAC, it was for a long time a way in for families. It has not been updated since 2018 and has been removed from Google Play, though it is still listed on the UK App Store: plan the move. Free. See LetMeTalk is no longer updated: what’s the alternative?.

Changing apps without losing progress

Changing tools has a cost: the words are no longer in the same place and the person has to relearn the paths. Whatever app you are moving from or to, these precautions limit the damage:

1. Choose the right moment. Avoid the start of the school year or a house move: Beukelman and Light advise never changing both where someone lives and their AAC system at the same time.
2. Take stock while the old tool still works. Take screenshots of the most used pages and write down the personal words: names, places, foods, games, favourite expressions. They are the most precious, and no ready-made vocabulary contains them. Proprietary formats can’t be imported directly; the open OBZ format, on the other hand, moves from one compatible app to another.
3. Choose a similar grid size. If the person used about 48 cells, don’t start again from 24. See Organising the grid.
4. Keep the same images where possible. Moving from one ARASAAC app to another (from LetMeTalk to Buddy, for example) keeps familiar symbols. Add the personal words in the cells set aside for them, without moving the other words.
5. Plan an overlap. Keep the old tool available for a few weeks, so the person is never left without a way to express themselves.
6. Model a lot on the new tool. Show the words during activities the person enjoys, while you talk, without demanding a response. See Model, wait, respond.
7. Print a paper version of the essential pages, in the same positions: it is the backup when the battery is flat.

Frequently asked questions

What about WatchHelp or PictoTask?

WatchHelp and PictoTask, our former apps, have been discontinued: their features are now part of Buddy, as are those of Pictalk AAC.

Can you use two apps at the same time?

Yes, but the words won’t be in the same places, which means learning twice. A common compromise: keep the main tool for communicating, and use the other for the schedule and sequences, or as a backup.

How long should you try an app for?

Several weeks, not a few days: set the tool up for one priority situation, allow one or two weeks of practice, then observe real use (Beukelman and Light, 2020).

Pictalk Buddy brings together AAC boards, a visual schedule, guided sequences and notebooks, with the same symbols, on Android, iOS, the web and the watch. A pay-what-you-want app, developed by a non-profit association. Discover Buddy

Sources

• Beukelman, D. R. and Light, J. C., 2020, Augmentative & Alternative Communication, 5th ed., Paul H. Brookes.
• Official websites of AssistiveWare, Tobii Dynavox, Smartbox and Avaz and Google Play, accessed in September and October 2026; the UK App Store, accessed in October 2026.