Best app to learn Swahili: the 15 apps that teach it, compared
Of the apps that teach Swahili, Duolingo (free) scores highest on our method overall. Duolingo, Ling, Clozemaster, Talkpal and 4 more teach Swahili free for good, with limits, and Pimsleur, Glossika and Dinolingo have free trials. Mango Languages is free through many public libraries.
Prices checked 6 Sept to 13 Oct 2026 · How we check
Our picks
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Our pick for Swahili
Duolingo
Course app
FreeSuper 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.
Why it's here. Short, game-like lessons make it easy to practise a little every day. You can follow the whole course free, with ads and limits.
Free: Every course, with ads and daily limits.
Skip it if you want a person to talk to: Duolingo has no tutors, and Max's Video Call is an AI character.
40 languages · offline lessons
15 of the 52 apps we cover list Swahili; 12 of them have a free tier.
They are 4 course apps, 3 audio courses, 4 vocabulary apps, 1 app for real video, text or audio, 1 AI conversation app, 1 tutor marketplace and 1 language exchange.
To practise with a person, italki lists Swahili tutors, and Tandem pairs you free with Swahili speakers.
What a year of Swahili costs
Every app that teaches Swahili and sells a yearly plan, cheapest first, from the plans on each app's own pages. Not on it, because they sell no yearly plan in dollars: italki and Language Transfer.
The yearly planPaying month to month for 12 monthsA price range; the app doesn't say which plan costs what
- Duolingoevery course free; Super's plan lengths not given $0 · Super $9.99 to $119.99 in the App Store
- uTalkone language, from; up to $39.99 by language $24.99
- Tandemall its languages · free tier $39.99
- Memriseall its languages · free tier $61.99 · $299.88 if you pay monthly
- Dropsall its languages · free tier $69.99 · $132 if you pay monthly
- Clozemasterall its languages · free tier $79.99 · $155.88 if you pay monthly
- LingQall its languages · free tier $119.99 · $179.88 if you pay monthly
- Talkpalall its languages · free tier $119.99 · $239.88 if you pay monthly
- Mango Languagesall its languages about $120 · $167.88 if you pay monthly
- Pimsleurone language $149.95 · $239.40 if you pay monthly
- Lingall its languages · free tier $149.99 · $203.88 if you pay monthly
- Dinolingoall 50 languages, up to 6 children $199 · $228 if you pay monthly
- Glossikaone language about $199 · $239.88 if you pay monthly
Every app that teaches Swahili
Recommended first within each type of app. Sort any column or filter by what matters to you.
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| Best for | Free tier | Speech | Tutor | Offline | CEFR | Refund or trial | Where to buy | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course apps | |||||||||||
| DuolingoCourse appSuper in the US App Store: $9.99 to $119.99, depending on the plan. | A free daily habit | Freepaid tier priced in-app | — | — | Free to keep using Full free tier with ads and limits; Super removes the ads and limits, and Max adds AI practice (Video Call and Roleplay). | Yes | No | Yes · Limited lessons available offline; progress syncs when connected | A1 to B2 | 1 week free trial on Super | |
| Mango LanguagesCourse app | Free through many public libraries | About $120 a year$10 a month, billed yearly | $13.99 | — | Free sample Free trial on both personal plans; the first lesson of any language is free; 10 endangered and indigenous language courses are free; free full access through participating public libraries | No | No | Yes | A1 to B1by course | Free trial on Individual and Family plans; cancel before it ends and you are not charged | |
| LingCourse app | Asian and less-taught languages | $149.99 a year$12.50 a month, billed yearly | $16.99 | — | Free to keep using Free tier with limited lessons and limited dialogue practice, with ads | Yes | Live online tutors, booked separately through Ling Live. | — | — | 7-day free trial on the 12-month plan; 30-day money-back refund for yearly and lifetime subscriptions bought via Ling web (app-store purchases follow Apple's or Google's refund policy) | |
| DinolingoCourse app | Children from 2 to 14, in 50 languages | $199 a year$16.58 a month, billed yearly | $19 | — | Free trial No | — | — | — | — | A 7-day free trial; cancel before it ends and nothing is charged. | |
| Audio courses | |||||||||||
| PimsleurAudio course | Audio lessons for a commute | $149.95 a year$12.50 a month, billed yearly | $19.95one language | $798 | No | Yes | — | Yes | — | 7-day free trial on subscriptions; 30 Day money back guarantee on purchases | |
| GlossikaAudio course | Sentence drills by ear | About $199 a year$16.58 a month, billed yearly | $19.99one language | — | Free trial 7-day full access with no credit card, plus a permanent Freemium tier covering nine minoritized languages | No | No | Yes | A1 to C1by course | 7-day free trial with no credit card; monthly payments are non-refundable, annual plans refundable pro rata within 60 days of purchase | |
| Language TransferAudio course | A free audio course that explains as it goes | Free | — | — | Free to keep using Every course free, with no adverts and no sign-up; it runs on donations. | No | No | Yes | — | Free; nothing to buy. | |
| Vocabulary and flashcard apps | |||||||||||
| ClozemasterVocabulary and flashcards | Free vocabulary practice in context | $79.99 a year$6.67 a month, billed yearly | $12.99 | — | Free to keep using Free account with up to 30 sentences a day; Pro adds unlimited play and advanced features | — | — | Yes · on Pro, in the mobile app | — | 30-day money back guarantee on the Yearly plan; no refunds on Monthly plans | |
| uTalkVocabulary and flashcards | Phrases in 160 languages | From $24.99 a year$24.99 to $39.99 a year for one language, depending on the language | From $3.99depending on the language | — | Free sample Starter Words, a free 26-word pack in every language, plus an online demo at demo.utalk.com | No | No | Yes | A1 to A2by course | 28-day money-back guarantee | |
| MemriseVocabulary and flashcards | Native-speaker clips and review | $61.99 a year$5.17 a month, billed yearly | $24.99 | $329.99 | Free to keep using Limited free version of the app; the paid plan unlocks the rest. | Yes | — | No · The current experience needs cloud-based tools | — | 30-day money-back guarantee; monthly plans have a 14-day refund window. Apple purchases require a refund from Apple. | |
| DropsVocabulary and flashcards | Five-minute vocabulary sessions | $69.99 a year$5.83 a month, billed yearly | $11 | $150 | Free to keep using Free access capped at 5 minutes of play every 10 hours, with topics unlocked one at a time through gameplay | — | — | Yes | — | 7-day free trial on the Yearly plan; affiliate terms reference a 14-day refund period | |
| Learning from real video, text and audio | |||||||||||
| LingQImmersion (video, reading) | Reading and listening to real content | $119.99 a year$10 a month, billed yearly | $14.99 | — | Free to keep using Free account capped at 20 saved words and phrases, 5 lessons created from imported content, and 1 audio playlist | — | — | Yes | — | Full refund during the first 30 days of an initial Premium subscription; no partial-month or unused-month refunds afterward. | |
| AI conversation practice | |||||||||||
| TalkpalAI conversation practice | AI conversation practice in many languages | $119.99 a year$10 a month, billed yearly | $19.99 | — | Free to keep using The Basic plan: 10 minutes of chat a day, with progress tracking and pronunciation checks. | Yes | No | No | — | A 14-day free trial for new users. Bought from Talkpal directly: a full refund if you ask within 30 days of a charge; not for app store purchases. | |
| Tutors and live classes | |||||||||||
| italkiTutor marketplace | Tutors priced per lesson | $10 to $30 an hourSwahili teachers' rates; each teacher sets one | — | — | No | — | Every lesson is live and one to one; italki also sells group classes. | — | — | Discounted trial lesson with a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee: up to two credit refunds on trial lessons if the teacher did not show up or did not meet expectations, requested within 48 hours | |
| Language exchange | |||||||||||
| TandemLanguage exchange | Language exchange with native speakers | $39.99 a year$3.33 a month, billed yearly | — | — | Free to keep using Free account with many features; Tandem Pro unlocks the rest | No | No | — | — | Google Play purchases refundable within 14 days of a 1-month subscription or 30 days of a 3-month or 12-month subscription; iOS refunds requested from iTunes within 14 days | |
Which to choose
You want a course with lessons in order
Duolingo
Duolingo (free) is the highest-scored course app that teaches Swahili. A few minutes of game-like exercises (translate, match, listen, speak), with English throughout. Also teaching Swahili this way: Mango Languages (about $120 a year), Ling ($149.99 a year) and Dinolingo ($199 a year).
You want to learn by ear, away from a screen
Pimsleur
Pimsleur ($149.95 a year) is the highest-scored audio course that teaches Swahili. A 30-minute audio lesson: you hear a prompt, answer aloud, then hear the right answer. Also teaching Swahili this way: Glossika (about $199 a year) and Language Transfer (free).
You want to build vocabulary a few minutes a day
Clozemaster
Clozemaster ($79.99 a year) is the highest-scored vocabulary app that teaches Swahili. Fill in the missing word in real sentences, in quick rounds. Also teaching Swahili this way: uTalk (from $24.99 a year), Memrise ($61.99 a year) and Drops ($69.99 a year).
You want to read, watch or listen to real Swahili
LingQ
LingQ ($119.99 a year) is the highest-scored app for real video, text or audio that teaches Swahili. Read and listen to a text or podcast, tapping unknown words to save and review them.
You want to practise conversation with an AI
Talkpal
Talkpal ($119.99 a year) is the highest-scored AI conversation app that teaches Swahili. Pick a scenario or a character, then talk or type with an AI tutor that answers you and checks your pronunciation.
You want a Swahili speaker to correct you
italki
italki lists Swahili tutors, who set their own price for a lesson. italki says its Swahili teachers charge $10 to $30 an hour.
You want to chat with Swahili speakers
Tandem
Tandem pairs you with Swahili speakers who want to learn your language, for text, voice and video chats. There are no lessons, and a free account is enough to start.
Questions people ask
What is the best app to learn Swahili?
It depends on how you want to learn. Duolingo if you want a course with lessons in order; Pimsleur if you want to learn by ear, away from a screen; Clozemaster if you want to build vocabulary a few minutes a day; LingQ if you want to read, watch or listen to real Swahili. Duolingo scores highest of the 15 on our method, and the table lists all of them with their prices.
Is there a free app to learn Swahili?
Yes. Duolingo, Ling, Clozemaster, Talkpal, Memrise, Drops, LingQ and Language Transfer teach Swahili free for good, with limits on the free plan. Pimsleur, Glossika and Dinolingo have free trials before you pay.
Does Duolingo teach Swahili?
Yes. Duolingo has a Swahili course, free with ads. The other 14 apps here teach Swahili too.
How much does a Swahili tutor cost?
Each tutor sets their own price. On italki, which gives a range for each language, Swahili lessons run $10 to $30 an hour, and its first trial lesson with a teacher is discounted.