Babbel vs Duolingo: which one fits you
Prices checked 17 Oct 2026; Babbel's on 6 Sept 2026, Duolingo's on 7 Oct 2026 · How we check
Babbel if you want the grammar explained and a published price.
Duolingo if you want a free daily habit.
| Question | Babbel | Duolingo |
|---|---|---|
| A year costs | $107.40 a year for all 14 languages, or $17.99 month to month | Free. Super's yearly price is not published; its US App Store purchases run $9.99 to $119.99 |
| A lesson is | 10 to 15-minute lessons built on short dialogues, with grammar notes in English and speaking exercises. | A few minutes of game-like exercises (translate, match, listen, speak), with English throughout. |
| Try it | The first lesson of every course is free. | Free for good; Super has a 1-week free trial. |
| App Store rating, 10 Oct 2026 | 4.7 out of 5 from 755,567 ratings | 4.7 out of 5 from 5.5 million ratings |
| Most mentioned in 1- and 2-star App Store reviews, 15 Oct 2026 | the price, billing or the subscription (69 of 204) | the price, billing or the subscription (16 of 102) |
| Google Play rating, 11 Oct 2026 | 4.6 out of 5 from 1.1 million ratings | 4.7 out of 5 from 50.8 million ratings |
How a lesson works in each
Both are course apps, so a lesson has the same shape
Side by side
| Compare | Babbel | Duolingo |
|---|---|---|
| CEFR levels | A1 to C1 | A1 to B2 |
| A year costs | $107.40 a year for all 14 languages, or $17.99 month to month | Free. Super's yearly price is not published; its US App Store purchases run $9.99 to $119.99 |
| What it is | Course app: Short structured lessons with grammar notes and review sessions | Course app: Game-shaped lessons for every course; paid tiers remove the ads and the daily limits, and Max adds AI practice |
| Per month at annual billing | $8.95/mo ($107.40 a year) | — |
| Monthly plan | $17.99 | — |
| US in-app purchases | — | Super in the US App Store: $9.99 to $119.99, depending on the plan. |
| Lifetime plan | $299.99 once, all languages | No lifetime plan |
| Free tier | Free account; the first lesson of every course is free, and up to 80 free lessons depending on the language. | Full free tier with ads and limits; Super removes the ads and limits, and Max adds AI practice (Video Call and Roleplay). |
| Languages offered | 14 | 40 |
| Speech recognition | Yes | Yes |
| Live tutoring | No · Babbel Live is no longer available to individual consumers | No |
| Offline mode | Yes · Downloaded lessons, vocabulary review and podcasts in the mobile app | Yes · Limited lessons available offline; progress syncs when connected |
| Placement test | Yes · Spanish, French, Italian and German | Yes |
| Refund or trial | Bought from Babbel in the US: no refund promised if you cancel early. Outside the US: 14 days to change your mind, less what you have used. App store purchases: the store's rules. | 1 week free trial on Super |
| Platforms | iOS, Android, Web | iOS, Android, Web |
| Company | Babbel GmbH (Lesson Nine GmbH), Germany | Duolingo, Inc |
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$107.40 a year $8.95 a month, billed yearly$17.99 on the monthly plan
Short dialogues and grammar notes help you understand why a sentence works. Speaking exercises let you practise saying it aloud before you need it in conversation.
Amazon offers a free 30-day Prime trial, with free delivery on eligible items. Try Prime free; a paid link, like the Amazon buttons.
Duolingo
Course app
In our comparison: strongest on the free tier and teaching depth, weakest on speaking practice.
Free Super removes the ads and limits: $9.99 to $119.99 in Apple's US App Store, depending on the plan, after a 1-week free trial.
Short, game-like lessons make it easy to practise a little every day. You can follow the whole course free, with ads and limits.
Choose Duolingo if you want to start free and build a daily habit. Choose Babbel if you want short dialogues with grammar explained as you go. Try the lessons before paying: removing ads from Duolingo will not turn it into a Babbel-style course.
Which to choose
You want a habit, not a syllabus
Duolingo, and keep it free
If the job is ten minutes a day that you will actually do, Duolingo's free tier is the whole product: every course, with ads and daily limits. Its paid tiers remove the ads and lift the limits: Super costs $9.99 to $119.99 in Apple's US App Store, depending on the plan. Start free and decide later whether the ads bother you enough to pay.
Duolingo publishes CEFR-aligned course information, but depth varies by language pair. Compare the course you will actually take, then read how Duolingo's lessons work to check what kind of practice it offers.
You want to reach a level, with grammar explained
Babbel, on the 12-month plan
Babbel publishes its price list and its structure. The 12-month plan on babbel.com was $107.40 when checked, which works out to $8.95 a month for all 14 languages; the one-month plan is $17.99 for a single language on Apple's US store. Lessons include grammar notes and speech recognition for pronunciation, and Babbel states which lesson counts are free: the first lesson of every course, and up to 80 free lessons depending on the language.
The gap to notice is refund policy: Babbel states no money-back guarantee on any of its pages, so the free first lessons are the trial. Babbel no longer sells its live classes to individual learners.
You are choosing on price alone
Duolingo free, then Babbel annual
At zero, Duolingo wins by definition. The moment you decide to pay, the comparison flips: Babbel's annual plan has a published price that lands under nine dollars a month, while Duolingo's Super price is only visible inside the app. A published price you can check beats an in-app price you have to sign up to see.
You have a trip in three months
Babbel for phrases you will say, Duolingo for the daily nudge
Babbel's lessons are built around dialogues you would have, and its speech recognition lets you say them back. Duolingo's daily streak is better at making you open the app. If you can only have one, take Babbel's monthly plan for the language you need and cancel after the trip; if you can have both, run Duolingo's free tier as the reminder.
Where they really differ
- Price: Babbel: $107.40 a year for all 14 languages, or $17.99 month to month. Duolingo: Free. Super's yearly price is not published; its US App Store purchases run $9.99 to $119.99.
- A lesson: Babbel: 10 to 15-minute lessons built on short dialogues, with grammar notes in English and speaking exercises. Duolingo: A few minutes of game-like exercises (translate, match, listen, speak), with English throughout.
- A real person: Neither has live tutors. The Video Call in Duolingo Max is an AI character.
- Levels: Babbel states CEFR levels A1 to C1. Duolingo states CEFR levels A1 to B2.
- Trying it: Babbel: The first lesson of every course is free. Duolingo: Free for good; Super has a 1-week free trial.
- Both: Listen to you speak and work offline.
Plans and prices
Babbel
| Plan | Billing | Price | Per month | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 monthsSold as "Save 50%" against $215.40, which is twelve months at the monthly price. Apple's US App Store sells the same plan for $107.99. | Annual | $107.40 | $8.95/mo | all languages |
| 3-month plan (iOS in-app purchase)Apple's US App Store price for one language. | Every 3 months | $45.99 | $15.33/mo | one language |
| 1-month plan (iOS in-app purchase)Apple's US App Store price for one language. | Monthly | $17.99 | $17.99/mo | one language |
| LifetimeBabbel sells Lifetime for less during sales: a Labor Day sale offered it for $199. | Lifetime | $299.99 | one-time | all languages |
Duolingo
| Plan | Billing | Price | Per month | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Super Duolingo, in the app (US)Apple's listing doesn't say which price is monthly, yearly or Family; the app shows yours at checkout. | Shown at checkout | $9.99, $12.99, $79.99, $83.99, $95.99, $119.99 | — | No ads or limits; 1-week free trial |
| FreeEvery course, with ads and daily limits. | Other | $0 | $0/mo | all languages |
| Super DuolingoSuper | Other | — | — | all languages |
| Super Family | Family | — | — | family up to 6 |
| Duolingo MaxMaxFor English speakers, Max has Video Call and Roleplay in Spanish, French, German, Italian and Portuguese, and Video Call in Japanese, Korean and Chinese (blog.duolingo.com/duolingo-max, read 13 Oct 2026: 'English speakers learning Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Portuguese have access to both Video Call and Roleplay, and those learning Japanese, Korean, and Chinese can use the new Video Call feature'). | Other | — | — | every course; its AI only in some (see the note) |
What will Babbel cost you for the months you study?
Total billed over 12 months
$108.48 less on annual billingOne yearly payment of $107.40.
What each plan covers. Monthly: one language. Yearly: all languages.
Questions people ask
Is Babbel better than Duolingo?
Neither is better overall. Babbel publishes a price list, grammar notes and speech recognition and suits a learner working toward a level. Duolingo's free tier suits a learner who wants a daily habit and does not need structure. The side-by-side table above shows what each app says about itself.
How much does Babbel cost compared with Duolingo?
When checked, Babbel's 12-month plan was $107.40, or $8.95 a month, and its one-month plan $17.99 for one language on Apple's US store. Duolingo is free with ads; Super costs $9.99 to $119.99 in Apple's US App Store, depending on the plan, and the app shows Family and Max prices at checkout.
Can I use Duolingo and Babbel together?
Yes, and many people do: Duolingo's free tier for the daily streak, Babbel's course for grammar and dialogue. Nothing in either app's published terms prevents it.
Which has more languages?
Babbel states 14. Duolingo's list is on its site and on Duolingo's page here; it is the longer list, but the depth of each course differs and neither gives a CEFR range for every language.
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