launch vs scratch: real code or blocks?
Updated
Scratch is a free, block-based coding tool from the MIT Media Lab, designed for ages 8 to 16. Launch is the AI coding platform where kids ages 5–13 describe what they want and build it in real HTML, CSS, JavaScript and React. Scratch teaches logic with blocks; Launch builds real software.
What Scratch does well
Scratch deserves its reputation. It was developed at the MIT Media Lab, it is free for everyone, and it is available in more than 40 languages. Kids drag and snap blocks together to make stories, games and animations, with no tricky syntax to get wrong.
For a first taste of sequences, loops and events, blocks are a gentle start. If your kid loves Scratch, that is a good sign: they like making things.
Where blocks stop
Blocks are not the code real software is written in. Websites and apps are built in languages like HTML, CSS and JavaScript, and a Scratch project is made of blocks, not those languages. At some point a kid who wants to make "a real app" has to start over in a different tool.
Blocks also put a ceiling on ambition. A kid builds what the blocks make easy. On Launch, a kid starts from their own idea, such as a chore chart, a math race or a class leaderboard, and the AI helps them build it in real code.
How Launch is different
On Launch, a kid describes what they want in plain words and Launch's AI builds it with real HTML, CSS, JavaScript and React. The kid plays it, says what to change, and can open the code and edit it. This is how much of real engineering works now: describe, check, steer.
Launch is built for kids ages 5–13 and runs in a web browser on a laptop, Chromebook, desktop or iPad. It is built around COPPA and FERPA, kids log in with a code rather than an email, and it is free to start.
When to move on from Scratch
Move on when your kid's ideas outgrow the blocks: when they ask how "real" apps are made, want to build something for their family or class, or get frustrated that a project is hard to express in blocks.
There is no rule that a kid has to finish Scratch first. Launch has no prerequisites, so a kid can start on Launch without any coding experience, and many kids will enjoy both.
| Platform | Real code | AI help | Built for kids | Ages | Price | Runs in browser |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Launch | Yes: HTML, CSS, JavaScript and React | Yes: an AI set up for kids builds what they describe | Yes: built around COPPA and FERPA | 5–13 | Free to start; Launch Basic $20/month | Yes: laptop, Chromebook, desktop or iPad |
| Scratch | No: drag-and-snap blocks | No AI builder: kids snap the blocks themselves | Built for young people (ages 8–16) | Designed for 8–16, used by all ages | Free | Yes: online at scratch.mit.edu |
questions parents and teachers ask
- Is Launch a good Scratch alternative?
- Yes, for kids ready for real code. Scratch teaches logic with blocks; Launch lets kids ages 5–13 describe an app and build it in real HTML, CSS, JavaScript and React with an AI set up for kids. Launch is free to start.
- What should my kid use after Scratch?
- Something that uses real code without a steep setup. Launch runs in a web browser, needs no installs or prior experience, and builds kids' ideas in the same languages real websites and apps use.
- Does Scratch teach real coding?
- Scratch teaches real coding concepts, like sequences, loops and events, using blocks instead of typed code. Those ideas carry over, but the blocks themselves are not the languages websites and apps are written in.
- Is Scratch free?
- Yes. Scratch is provided free of charge. Launch is also free to start, with no credit card; families can upgrade to Launch Basic for $20/month.