Looking for an alternative to TD Snap because the subscription adds up over time? Buddy covers communication and adds everyday independence, with the same words. Here is the comparison, and the cases where TD Snap is still the right choice.
Who is TD Snap for, and how much does it cost?
TD Snap is the AAC app from Tobii Dynavox, a specialist in eye gaze and dedicated communication devices. It works on iPad and Windows, by touch, with switches or with eye gaze, and is often installed on the brand’s dedicated devices, for people who use eye gaze. It uses PCS symbols and prints its own pages.
On the UK App Store, in October 2026, TD Snap costs £9.99/month to turn on the voice, plus £4.99/month per add-on module (PODD, Gateway, Metacom). AAC is used for years: £119.88 every 12 months without modules, at constant prices.
Buddy and TD Snap side by side
Prices from the UK App Store, October 2026; the other apps are in our AAC app comparison.
| Criterion | Buddy (Pictalk) | TD Snap |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Pay what you want, no locked features | £9.99/month + £4.99/month per module |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows, Mac, Android watch | iPad, Windows |
| Access | Touch, switch | Touch, switches, eye gaze |
| Languages | 11 | 22 |
| Symbols | ARASAAC, Mulberry, Tawasol, Sclera, ParlerPictos, OpenMoji, Makaton, personal photos | PCS |
| Vocabularies included | Essential 24, Springboard 48, Horizon 80, Quick Core, Vocal Flair, CommuniKate, Sequoia | Core First, Motor Plan, Express, Text, Scanning, Aphasia; PODD and Gateway as options |
| Vocabularies designed for phones | Yes | No |
| Grammar | Yes | Yes |
| Offline | Yes | Yes |
| Format | Open (OBZ) | Proprietary |
| Beyond AAC | Visual schedule, guided sequences, notebooks, smartwatch | Visual schedules, timers, scripts |
| Publisher | French non-profit association | Company |
Notes
- Buddy: on Windows and Mac, Buddy runs in the browser; the Android watch app works with Wear OS.
- Access: Buddy offers simple switch scanning (row, then cell; a switch, the Space or Enter key, a gamepad).
- Buddy’s vocabularies: 17 in English, with categorical organisation, motor planning and a pragmatic approach (details of the vocabularies).
- Phone: TD Snap does not work on phones; Buddy offers a phone layout (Essential 24).
What Buddy adds
Buddy is an independence companion: AAC boards, schedule, guided sequences, notebooks and smartwatch are linked and share the same symbols, so every activity brings the person into contact with the same words.
- Smart context: Buddy learns about family and friends, places and routines from the schedule and the notebooks, to better understand what is said, correct sentences and arrange symbols.
- The communication report: number and length of messages, new words, communicative functions; printable for the speech and language therapist, or viewed directly by the therapist or the setting with Buddy Pro.
- All devices: phone, tablet, computer and smartwatch synced, including older devices and systems, by touch or with a switch.
When should you keep TD Snap?
If the person needs eye gaze or advanced switch access, TD Snap on a Tobii Dynavox device is far better suited: Buddy offers simple switch scanning and no eye gaze (see positioning, switches and eye gaze). A dedicated device can be funded (see Funding AAC: how to prepare a funding request), with a manufacturer’s after-sales service. If the team works with a PODD book, the PODD module keeps the same organisation on the device. And if the person uses TD Snap with ease, their automatic movements are worth more than a saving.
Using a second app alongside TD Snap?
Some families add Buddy on the phone, alongside a dedicated device running TD Snap, for trips to the park, the schedule or the smartwatch:
- Against: the words are not in the same places, and stable positions are what make movements automatic. Two layouts mean learning twice.
- For: a backup tool is better than nothing when the main device isn’t there (Beukelman and Light, 2020).
- A compromise: Buddy for the schedule and sequences, TD Snap for communicating; or the essential pages reproduced in Buddy in the same positions (grids from 1×1 to 30×30).
Moving from TD Snap to Buddy
TD Snap’s format is proprietary: a vocabulary can’t be transferred directly. While TD Snap still works, print the most used pages and write down the personal words, then rebuild them in a grid of similar size. Keep TD Snap available for a few weeks. All the precautions are in the list Changing apps without losing progress.
Frequently asked questions
Does TD Snap work on Android or iPhone?
No, only on iPad and Windows, according to the publisher.
Can you use TD Snap without a subscription?
TD Snap’s voice requires either the subscription (£9.99/month on the UK App Store in October 2026) or a speech licence linked to a myTobiiDynavox account.
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.
- Tobii Dynavox, TD Snap product page, accessed in September and October 2026, and the UK App Store, accessed in October 2026.