Decodable Books List by Level: The Best Series for Each Stage of Reading

By Readigo editorial team · 2026-05-17 · 14 min read

Short answer

The best decodable book series for early readers are Bob Books (Level A-D, pre-K to grade 1), Flyleaf Publishing (grades K-2), Geodes by Great Minds (rich content, grades K-2), Half-Pint Readers, Reading A-Z decodables, and Phonic Books "Dandelion Launchers". Most libraries stock these. You don't need to buy them all.

What decodable books are (quick recap)

A decodable book is an early-reader book that only uses phonics patterns your child has already been taught. Each book introduces a small set of patterns and gives your child dozens of chances to practice them. Decodable books are different from leveled books (organized by complexity but may include patterns your child hasn't been taught) and from predictable books (which repeat a sentence frame so your child can guess the next word from context and pictures). The distinction matters. A child reading a real decodable book has exactly one strategy. Use phonics. A child reading a predictable book has many strategies, including guessing. And guessing is the wrong skill to practice. The National Reading Panel (2000) named systematic phonics as one of the five evidence-based pillars of effective reading instruction. Decodable books are how phonics moves from explicit lessons into real reading practice. They are the practice text that builds the reading circuit, especially for kids with dyslexia (about 1 in 5 children, per the International Dyslexia Association). For a fuller treatment, see decodable books explained.

How decodable levels work

Decodable book series follow a phonics scope and sequence - the order letter-sound patterns get taught. The typical English progression looks like this, simplest to most complex. Level 0: Pre-decodable / wordless. Books with no text. Used for picture talk, story structure, and oral language. Not yet decoding practice. Level 1: Letter sounds and simple CVC. The first few consonants (typically m, s, t, p, n, c, h, d, g) and the short a vowel. Words: mat, sat, hat, cat, ham, sam. Usually one to two sentences per page. Level 2: Full CVC. All five short vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and the rest of the consonants. Words: cat, dog, sun, hop, jet, log, fin. Your child can now decode hundreds of three-letter words. Level 3: Digraphs. Two letters making one sound: sh, ch, th, ck, wh, ng. Words: ship, chip, this, sock, ring. Most beginning readers spend several months here. Level 4: Consonant blends. Two or three consonants where each sound is still heard: bl, st, str, fr, sk, gl, sp. Words: blob, stop, strap, frog, skip. Combined with digraphs, your child can now decode most one-syllable words. Level 5: Long vowels with magic-e (CVCe). Silent e makes the previous vowel long: cape, bike, rope, cute, hide, made. This is a big leap. The silent letter rule is your child's first explicit "rule" about how English spelling encodes sound. Level 6: Vowel teams. Two vowels making one long sound: ai, ea, oa, ee, oo, ay, ow, ou. Words: rain, beach, boat, feet, moon, day. Level 7: R-controlled vowels. A vowel followed by r makes a unique sound: ar, er, ir, or, ur. Words: car, her, bird, fork, hurt. Level 8: Multisyllabic words and morphology. Compound words, two-syllable words, prefixes and suffixes (un-, re-, -ing, -ed, -er), and eventually Latin and Greek roots. Not every series uses the same level numbers. Some go A–D, some 1–6, some by colors. The underlying progression is the same. Mark Seidenberg (Language at the Speed of Sight, 2017) makes the cognitive-science case for why this order matters. Each step widens the brain's print-to-sound map a little more, and skipping steps creates gaps that show up later.

Bob Books (Levels A–D)

The original mass-market decodable series. Bobby Lynn Maslen started Bob Books in 1976 after she, a kindergarten teacher, couldn't find books simple enough for her students. Cheap, plain, in print, available almost everywhere. Set 1: Beginning Readers (Level A). 12 tiny books, focused on m/s/t/p/n with short a and short i. Words: mat, Sam, Mac, sat. Most parents start here. The illustrations are minimal stick figures, and that's the point. Pictures don't carry meaning. Words do. A typical 5-year-old finishes this set in a few weeks of daily practice. Set 2: Advancing Beginners (Level B). 12 books, adding more consonants (b, d, h, l, k, j) and short vowels. Your child reads longer sentences and slightly longer books. Set 3: Word Families. 10 books focused on common rhyming families (-an, -at, -ot, -ig). Builds fluency on the patterns your child has been working on. Set 4: Complex Words (Level C). 8 books, introducing digraphs (sh, ch, th) and consonant blends. By the end of this set, your child can read most one-syllable words. Set 5: Long Vowels (Level D). 8 books, introducing the magic-e pattern. Bake, rope, hike, cute. Later sets cover vowel teams, multisyllabic words, and bridge to chapter books. Most U.S. public libraries stock at least Set 1, often Sets 2 and 3. A complete set runs $90–$110 new and is easy to find used. The right starting set: wherever your child sits on the scope and sequence above. If they don't yet have CVC down, start at Set 1. If they read CVC fluently but trip on digraphs, start at Set 3.

Flyleaf Publishing

Flyleaf is the most pedagogically sophisticated of the major decodable lines. Reading specialists started it, and U.S. schools running structured-literacy programs use it heavily. Higher production quality than Bob Books. Full-color illustrations, more interesting story arcs, longer texts per book. Emergent Readers. The earliest level, equivalent to Bob Books Set 1. Short books with simple CVC patterns. Early Readers. Equivalent to Bob Books Sets 2 and 3. Longer books, better stories, includes digraphs and early blends. Lower-grade and Mid-grade Bridges. Where decodables start to look like real children's books, with chapter structure and richer content. Includes long vowels, vowel teams, and multisyllabic patterns. Flyleaf books cost a bit more than Bob Books, but the extra engagement is real. Kids who feel babied by Bob Books often warm to Flyleaf. You can get them through the Flyleaf Publishing website and, more and more, through public libraries. Many U.S. schools that shifted to structured literacy stock Flyleaf in their book rooms.

Geodes (Great Minds)

Geodes is the newest major decodable line, published by Great Minds (the same publisher behind the Wit & Wisdom and Eureka Math curricula). It launched around 2018 in response to the science-of-reading movement. What makes Geodes different. The books are built around real content topics. Animals, weather, history, science. They are decodable, but they don't feel like phonics drill. A Geodes book about polar bears teaches you something about polar bears while giving your child practice on a target phonics pattern. The illustrations are professional and the content is genuinely educational. The target audience is K-2 readers working through structured-literacy curricula. Geodes books are organized by modules tied to the Wit & Wisdom content sequence, so kids using both get reinforcement. But you don't need Wit & Wisdom to use Geodes. The books stand alone fine. Geodes cost more than Bob Books and a touch more than Flyleaf. They are the right pick if your child finds traditional decodables boring and wants "real" books. Available through the Great Minds website and via schools using the curriculum.

Half-Pint Readers

Half-Pint Readers are sweet, well-illustrated, parent-friendly decodables in a small format (about the size of a deck of cards). A homeschool parent started the line because she wanted charming decodables that didn't feel clinical. The sets are organized by phonics skill. Short vowels, digraphs, blends, long vowels, vowel teams. Each set has 8–12 small books. Colorful illustrations, gentle storylines, recurring characters. Kids who don't connect with Bob Books often love Half-Pint. You can buy Half-Pint Readers in physical and digital formats. They are less common in public libraries than Bob Books, but worth asking your librarian. Many homeschool co-ops stock them. Useful if your child responds better to color illustrations than to Bob Books' minimalism, or if you want decodables that travel well. The small format is bag-friendly.

Reading A-Z decodables

Reading A-Z is a massive digital library of leveled and decodable books. You get in through a subscription (around $109 per teacher per year) or via your child's school if they have institutional access. Most U.S. public schools have a Reading A-Z subscription somewhere in the building. The decodable section alone has hundreds of books, organized by phonics scope and sequence. The advantage is volume. You can give a child 30 different books at the same phonics level if they need that much practice, instead of rereading the same 12 Bob Books over and over. The downside is screen-based reading. You can print Reading A-Z books, but most families read them on a tablet or laptop. The research on print vs. screen reading for early readers is mixed. Most reading specialists prefer print for the first few years of learning to read. For a child with glasses or screen-time concerns, this matters. If your child's school has Reading A-Z access, ask the teacher whether you can print decodables for home practice. Most schools say yes. If you want personal access, the subscription is steep, but the volume is unmatched.

Phonic Books (Dandelion Launchers and Decodable Comics)

Phonic Books is a UK publisher that has grown fast in the U.S. and Canada over the last five years. Their books are decodable but designed for a specific gap in the market. Dandelion Launchers. Their entry-level series. Equivalent to Bob Books Set 1 and 2 but with slightly more grown-up illustration. Good for kids who feel babied by traditional decodables. The books are still very short and at a clear CVC-and-digraphs level. Dandelion Readers. The mid-level series. Covers blends, long vowels, vowel teams. Aimed at ages 5–8. Decodable Comics (Moon Dogs, etc.). This is where Phonic Books shines. Comic-book-format decodables for older struggling readers (ages 7–11). A 9-year-old who still needs decodable practice but won't be caught dead with a Bob Books has a real option here. Each comic is fully decodable. Only previously taught patterns appear, but the format and story are age-appropriate. For kids embarrassed by their reading level, this is often the difference between practice happening and not happening. You can buy Phonic Books on their website, on Amazon, and increasingly through U.S. libraries that have caught up to the science-of-reading shift.

Library vs. buying: the practical case for both

You do not need to buy every decodable series. Decodables are practice text, not literature you keep on the shelf. The smart play is a mix. Library first, always. Most U.S. public libraries now stock Bob Books, often Flyleaf, sometimes Half-Pint or Phonic Books. Your librarian can usually request inter-library loans for sets you don't see on the shelf. A weekly library trip and 6–10 decodables checked out at a time costs zero dollars. Buy one starter set. Even if you use the library, having one set at home that lives by your child's bed or at the kitchen table means daily practice doesn't depend on a library trip. Bob Books Set 1 ($15–$20 used) is the cheapest reasonable starter. Half-Pint Set 1 is the charming alternative. Borrow from the school book room. Many U.S. schools have decodable sets that go home for short-term loan, especially if your child has a reading specialist or is in Tier 2 intervention. Ask. Most schools say yes. Skip buying full sets ahead of time. A child working at Set 3 may need 4 weeks there, or 12. Buying ahead locks you into a level that may not match their pace. Borrow what you don't yet need. The exception. Kids with dyslexia. Children with dyslexia typically need many more repetitions per phonics pattern than typical readers. For these kids, owning a full set you can reread for months makes more sense than rotating library books. Phonic Books and Flyleaf are the most-recommended buys for this case.

How to choose for your kid's level

The most common parent mistake is buying decodables at the wrong level. Too easy bores. Too hard makes your child guess. The 95% rule. Your child should read with about 95% accuracy. About one word in 20 wrong, no more. A quick at-home diagnostic. Take a one-page sample from each level of a series. Bob Books makes this easy. Set 1 is short a and i, Set 2 adds more vowels and consonants, Set 3 word families, Set 4 digraphs, Set 5 magic-e. Have your child read the first page of each. The level where they get about one error per 20 words is their level. Start there. Common patterns by age. - A pre-K kid who knows letter sounds but hasn't blended yet. Set 1, very slowly. - A kindergartener reading CVC. Sets 1–2. - A first grader with digraphs but not blends. Sets 3–4. - A second grader with most patterns but still slow. Sets 4–5, plus long vowels. - An older struggling reader (ages 8–11). Phonic Books Decodable Comics at whatever phonics level your child actually needs. When to drop down a level. If your child stumbles more than two or three times per sentence, the book is too hard. Drop a level even if it feels like backtracking. Confidence at an easier level builds faster than struggle at a harder one. When to move up. When your child reads a book at the current level smoothly, with expression, on first reading. They're ready for the next level. Don't camp at one level once it's locked in. For age-typical expectations, see reading milestones by age and the Hasbrouck-Tindal (2017) Oral Reading Fluency norms.

What comes after decodable books

Decodables are training wheels. Your child graduates when decoding is automatic enough on most patterns that they can read early chapter books without an effort tax. This usually happens around age 7 for typical readers, age 8–9 for kids with dyslexia. Signs your child is ready to graduate. - Reads a new decodable smoothly on first reading. - Reads short chapter books like Frog and Toad with reasonable fluency. - Self-corrects when they mis-decode a word. - Picks books for content, not just pictures. The next layer. Easy chapter books. - Frog and Toad (Arnold Lobel). Controlled vocabulary, charming stories, short chapters. - Henry and Mudge (Cynthia Rylant). Predictable structure, growing vocabulary. - Mercy Watson (Kate DiCamillo). Surprisingly funny, growing complexity. - Elephant and Piggie (Mo Willems). Graphic-novel format, simple text, hilarious. - Press Start!, Owl Diaries, Diary of a Pug. Early graphic-novel series. Decodable practice doesn't fully stop here. Kids with dyslexia or kids working on advanced patterns (multisyllabic words, prefixes, suffixes) may stay with decodables for years, alongside chapter book reading. But the center of gravity shifts. Most reading time is real books now, with decodables as targeted practice for specific gaps.

Tools that complement decodable practice

Decodables are paper. They don't talk back. They don't track which words your child stumbled on this week. They don't adapt difficulty when your child plateaus or surges. That's the gap a structured-literacy-aligned tool can fill. Readigo was built around this gap. The texts inside Readigo follow a phonics scope and sequence, the same kind of progression you see in Bob Books or Flyleaf. The app listens while your child reads aloud and gives word-by-word feedback on what they got and where they stumbled. The parent dashboard shows you which patterns are sticking and which need more practice. Used alongside a decodable series your child is working through, Readigo turns daily practice into practice with data. For more on the methodology, see the science of reading guide or how Readigo fits into the home routine. The honest framing. The heavy lifting is still your child reading aloud, daily. The decodable books give them the right text. The tool keeps the practice consistent and visible.