Busuu vs Pimsleur: which to choose, and what each costs
Prices checked 11 Oct 2026; Pimsleur's on 6 Sept 2026, Busuu's on 6 Oct 2026 · How we check
Busuu if you want a course with lessons in order.
Pimsleur if you want to learn by ear, away from a screen.
| Question | Busuu | Pimsleur |
|---|---|---|
| A year costs | $72.99 a year for all 14 languages | $149.95 a year for one language, or $19.95 month to month |
| A lesson is | Short lessons with dialogues, grammar tips and exercises; you can send spoken or written answers for the community, native speakers included, to correct. | A 30-minute audio lesson: you hear a prompt, answer aloud, then hear the right answer. |
| Try it | A free account, then a 14-day money-back guarantee on your first Premium payment. | A 7-day free trial on subscriptions; the 30-day money-back guarantee covers only plans bought on pimsleur.com without such a trial. |
| App Store rating, 10 Oct 2026 | 4.7 out of 5 from 101,167 ratings | 4.7 out of 5 from 30,200 ratings |
| Google Play rating, 12 Oct 2026 and 11 Oct 2026 | 4.7 out of 5 from 1.2 million ratings | 4.1 out of 5 from 16,679 ratings |
How a lesson works in each
Busuu: course app
Pimsleur: audio course
Side by side
| Compare | Busuu | Pimsleur |
|---|---|---|
| CEFR levels | A1 to C1 (by course) | — |
| A year costs | $72.99 a year for all 14 languages | $149.95 a year for one language, or $19.95 month to month |
| What it is | Course app: corrections from native speakers and CEFR-labelled levels | Audio course: Half-hour audio lessons built on spoken recall, made for commutes |
| Per month at annual billing | $6.08/mo ($72.99 a year) | $12.50/mo ($149.95 a year) |
| Monthly plan | — | $19.95 for one language, $20.95 for all its languages |
| Lifetime plan | No lifetime plan | $798 once, all languages. Also sold: the complete course for one language, owned for good, $575; one level of one language, owned for good, $150 |
| Free tier | Free account with the complete course in each language, community feedback and basic progress tracking; Premium adds review tools, offline mode and no ads. | None |
| Languages offered | 14 | 51 |
| Speech recognition | Yes | Yes |
| Live tutoring | No · Live Lessons are exclusive to Busuu for Business, outside the consumer subscription | — |
| Offline mode | Yes | Yes |
| Placement test | Yes · Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese and Spanish | — |
| Refund or trial | 14-day money-back guarantee on the initial Premium payment; no renewal refunds. Apple and mobile-operator purchases require a refund from that provider. | A 7-day free trial on subscriptions. Pimsleur's 30-day money-back guarantee covers only a subscription bought on pimsleur.com or by phone without a free trial of 7 days or more, once per customer; App Store and Google Play purchases are not covered. |
| Platforms | iOS, Android, Web | iOS, Android, Web |
| Company | Busuu Limited, United Kingdom | Simon & Schuster, LLC (Pimsleur is an imprint of Simon & Schuster Audio) |
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Busuu
Course app
In our comparison: strongest on teaching depth and price, weakest on the number of languages.
$72.99 a year $6.08 a month, billed yearly · Premium
A structured course gives you a path through lessons, with corrections from native speakers. You can start with a free account before deciding whether the paid extras are useful.
Pimsleur
Audio course
In our comparison: strongest on the number of languages and trial and refund terms, weakest on the free tier.
$149.95 a year $12.50 a month, billed yearly · PremiumMonthly plans: $19.95 for one language, $20.95 for all its languages
Half-hour audio lessons get you answering aloud, which suits a commute or a walk. Download lessons before you leave and you can practise without a connection.
Busuu is a course app and Pimsleur is an audio course. Both teach French, Spanish, Chinese, German and 9 more languages.
Which to choose
You want a course with lessons in order
Busuu
Busuu is a course app: short lessons with dialogues, grammar tips and exercises; you can send spoken or written answers for the community, native speakers included, to correct.
You want to learn by ear, away from a screen
Pimsleur
Pimsleur is an audio course: a 30-minute audio lesson: you hear a prompt, answer aloud, then hear the right answer.
You want the smaller yearly bill
Busuu
A year of Busuu costs $72.99 for all 14 languages; a year of Pimsleur, $149.95 for one language.
You would rather pay once than subscribe
Pimsleur
Pimsleur can be bought once and kept: $798 once, all languages. Also sold: the complete course for one language, owned for good, $575; one level of one language, owned for good, $150. Busuu's paid plans are subscriptions.
Where they really differ
- Price: Busuu: $72.99 a year for all 14 languages. Pimsleur: $149.95 a year for one language, or $19.95 month to month.
- A lesson: Busuu: Short lessons with dialogues, grammar tips and exercises; you can send spoken or written answers for the community, native speakers included, to correct. Pimsleur: A 30-minute audio lesson: you hear a prompt, answer aloud, then hear the right answer.
- A real person: Busuu has no live tutors. Pimsleur doesn't mention live tutors.
- Levels: Busuu states a CEFR range for each course, up to C1. Pimsleur doesn't state CEFR levels.
- Trying it: Busuu: A free account, then a 14-day money-back guarantee on your first Premium payment. Pimsleur: A 7-day free trial on subscriptions; the 30-day money-back guarantee covers only plans bought on pimsleur.com without such a trial.
- Both: Listen to you speak and work offline.
Plans and prices
Busuu
| Plan | Billing | Price | Per month | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premium, 12 monthsPremiumA sale price; the crossed-out $149.88 is twelve months at the monthly rate. | Annual | $72.99 | $6.08/mo | all languages |
| Premium Plus, 12 monthsPremium PlusA sale price, against a crossed-out $178.80. Adds AI conversations, pronunciation practice and extra content to Premium. | Annual | $87.90 | $7.33/mo | all languages |
| 1 monthPremiumBusuu's site doesn't show its monthly price. Apple's US App Store lists a "Monthly Premium Plan" at $23.49. | Monthly | — | — | all languages |
Pimsleur
| Plan | Billing | Price | Per month | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premium AnnualPremiumRead on the Spanish (Latin American) course page, whose plan data prices the Premium Annual plan for French and Japanese the same; the year starts with a 7-day free trial. | Annual | $149.95 | $12.50/mo | one language |
| All Access AnnualAll AccessA sale took 20% off the first year, charging $131.96. | Annual | $164.95 | $13.75/mo | all languages |
| Premium MonthlyPremiumAs shown on Pimsleur's Latin American Spanish course page. | Monthly | $19.95 | $19.95/mo | one language |
| All Access MonthlyAll Access | Monthly | $20.95 | $20.95/mo | all languages |
| Individual level (one language)PremiumOne level of one language; the price varies by language and level. A sale offered Level 1 for $105. | Lifetime | $150 | one-time | one language |
| Complete course, Levels 1-5 (one language)PremiumOne language's complete course; the price varies by language. A sale offered the Latin American Spanish course for $402.50. | Lifetime | $575 | one-time | one language |
| All Access LifetimeAll AccessA Labor Day sale offered it for $399. | Lifetime | $798 | one-time | all languages |
What will Pimsleur cost you for the months you study?
Total billed over 12 months
$89.45 less on annual billingOne yearly payment of $149.95.
What each plan covers. Monthly: one language. Yearly: one language.
Questions people ask
Is Busuu better than Pimsleur?
Neither is better for every learner. Choose Busuu if you want a course with lessons in order, the smaller yearly bill, a free account to learn on and a course that states its CEFR levels. Choose Pimsleur if you want to learn by ear, away from a screen, to pay once rather than subscribe, a trial or money back and more languages to choose from. In our comparison, Busuu is strongest on teaching depth and price, weakest on the number of languages, and Pimsleur strongest on the number of languages and trial and refund terms, weakest on the free tier.
Which is cheaper, Busuu or Pimsleur?
Busuu costs less by the year: $72.99 for all 14 languages, where a year of Pimsleur is $149.95 for one language. Month to month, and with any lifetime plan, the plans tables above give both.
Do Busuu and Pimsleur teach the same languages?
Busuu lists 14 languages and Pimsleur 51, each counting varieties its own way; 13 languages are taught by both. Each app's page here lists its languages, with a page for each language two or more apps teach.