Busuu vs Rocket Languages: which to choose, and what each costs
Prices checked 12 Oct 2026; Busuu's on 6 Oct 2026 · How we check
Busuu if you want every language for one price.
Rocket Languages if you want to pay once rather than subscribe.
| Question | Busuu | Rocket Languages |
|---|---|---|
| A year costs | $72.99 a year for all 14 languages | $149.95 once |
| 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. | Audio lessons built on conversations, with language and culture lessons and voice-recognition drills alongside. |
| Try it | A free account, then a 14-day money-back guarantee on your first Premium payment. | A free trial, then a 60-day money-back guarantee on purchases. |
| App Store rating, 10 Oct 2026 | 4.7 out of 5 from 101,167 ratings | 4.6 out of 5 from 2,472 ratings |
| Google Play rating, 12 Oct 2026 and 11 Oct 2026 | 4.7 out of 5 from 1.2 million ratings | 4.7 out of 5 from 3,762 ratings |
How a lesson works in each
Both are course apps, so a lesson has the same shape
Side by side
| Compare | Busuu | Rocket Languages |
|---|---|---|
| CEFR levels | A1 to C1 (by course) | A1 to B2 (by course) |
| A year costs | $72.99 a year for all 14 languages | $149.95 once |
| What it is | Course app: corrections from native speakers and CEFR-labelled levels | Course app: Audio lessons, language and culture lessons and voice-recognition practice, bought once per level |
| Per month at annual billing | $6.08/mo ($72.99 a year) | — |
| Monthly plan | — | — |
| Lifetime plan | No lifetime plan | $99.95 to $449.85 once, for one language's course; the price depends on the language and how many levels you buy |
| 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. | A free trial; the page does not say what it includes or for how long. |
| Languages offered | 14 | 13 |
| Speech recognition | Yes | Yes |
| Live tutoring | No · Live Lessons are exclusive to Busuu for Business, outside the consumer subscription | No |
| Offline mode | Yes | Yes · audio lessons download in the app; voice recognition needs a connection |
| 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 free trial; 60-day money-back guarantee on purchases. |
| Platforms | iOS, Android, Web | iOS, Android, Web |
| Company | Busuu Limited, United Kingdom | Libros Media Limited |
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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.
Rocket Languages
Course app
In our comparison: strongest on teaching depth and trial and refund terms, weakest on the free tier.
$149.95 once one language's course or first level, in 11 of its 13 languages; American Sign Language and English $99.95
Audio lessons, language and culture lessons and voice-recognition practice, bought once per level. Speech recognition scores your pronunciation.
Busuu is a course app and Rocket Languages is one too. Both teach French, Spanish, Chinese, German and 7 more languages.
Which to choose
You want to learn more than one language
Busuu
One plan covers all of Busuu's 14 languages: $72.99 a year. On Rocket Languages, each language is bought on its own.
You would rather pay once than subscribe
Rocket Languages
Rocket Languages can be bought once and kept: $99.95 to $449.85 once, for one language's course; the price depends on the language and how many levels you buy. Busuu's paid plans are subscriptions.
You want to learn without paying
Busuu
Busuu has a free account with limits; Rocket Languages has a free trial, not a free plan. What each free route includes is in the table above.
Where they really differ
- Price: Busuu: $72.99 a year for all 14 languages. Rocket Languages: $149.95 once.
- 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. Rocket Languages: Audio lessons built on conversations, with language and culture lessons and voice-recognition drills alongside.
- A real person: Neither has live tutors.
- Levels: Busuu states a CEFR range for each course, up to C1. Rocket Languages states a CEFR range for each course, up to B2.
- Trying it: Busuu: A free account, then a 14-day money-back guarantee on your first Premium payment. Rocket Languages: A free trial, then a 60-day money-back guarantee on purchases.
- 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 |
Rocket Languages
| Plan | Billing | Price | Per month | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rocket Sign LanguageComplete courseOne-time payment with lifetime access; 96 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $99.95 | one-time | American Sign Language, beginner to intermediate |
| Rocket EnglishComplete courseOne-time payment with lifetime access; 132 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $99.95 | one-time | English, beginner to intermediate |
| Rocket Spanish Level 1Level 1One-time payment with lifetime access; 138 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Spanish, Level 1 |
| Rocket French Level 1Level 1One-time payment with lifetime access; 138 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | French, Level 1 |
| Rocket Italian Level 1Level 1One-time payment with lifetime access; 134 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Italian, Level 1 |
| Rocket German Level 1Level 1One-time payment with lifetime access; 136 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | German, Level 1 |
| Rocket Japanese Level 1Level 1One-time payment with lifetime access; 175 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Japanese, Level 1 |
| Rocket Chinese Level 1Level 1One-time payment with lifetime access; 156 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Chinese, Level 1 |
| Rocket KoreanComplete courseOne-time payment with lifetime access; 156 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Korean, beginner to intermediate |
| Rocket Russian Level 1Level 1One-time payment with lifetime access; 146 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Russian, Level 1 |
| Rocket ArabicComplete courseOne-time payment with lifetime access; 155 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Arabic, beginner to intermediate |
| Rocket HindiComplete courseOne-time payment with lifetime access; 151 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Hindi, beginner to intermediate |
| Rocket PortugueseComplete courseOne-time payment with lifetime access; 138 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $149.95 | one-time | Portuguese, beginner to intermediate |
| Rocket Spanish Levels 1 & 2Levels 1-2One-time payment with lifetime access; 260 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $299.90 | one-time | Spanish, Levels 1 and 2 |
| Rocket French Levels 1 & 2Levels 1-2One-time payment with lifetime access; 262 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $299.90 | one-time | French, Levels 1 and 2 |
| Rocket Italian Levels 1 & 2Levels 1-2One-time payment with lifetime access; 257 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $299.90 | one-time | Italian, Levels 1 and 2 |
| Rocket German Levels 1 & 2Levels 1-2One-time payment with lifetime access; 266 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $299.90 | one-time | German, Levels 1 and 2 |
| Rocket Japanese Levels 1 & 2Levels 1-2One-time payment with lifetime access; 314 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $299.90 | one-time | Japanese, Levels 1 and 2 |
| Rocket Chinese Levels 1 & 2Levels 1-2One-time payment with lifetime access; 304 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $299.90 | one-time | Chinese, Levels 1 and 2 |
| Rocket Russian Levels 1 & 2Levels 1-2One-time payment with lifetime access; 231 hours of lesson time. | Lifetime | $299.90 | one-time | Russian, Levels 1 and 2 |
| Rocket Spanish Levels 1, 2 & 3Levels 1-3One-time payment with lifetime access; 382 hours of lesson time. A 6-month payment plan is also offered. | Lifetime | $449.85 | one-time | Spanish, Levels 1 to 3 |
| Rocket French Levels 1, 2 & 3Levels 1-3One-time payment with lifetime access; 385 hours of lesson time. A 6-month payment plan is also offered. | Lifetime | $449.85 | one-time | French, Levels 1 to 3 |
| Rocket Italian Levels 1, 2 & 3Levels 1-3One-time payment with lifetime access; 374 hours of lesson time. A 6-month payment plan is also offered. | Lifetime | $449.85 | one-time | Italian, Levels 1 to 3 |
| Rocket German Levels 1, 2 & 3Levels 1-3One-time payment with lifetime access; 389 hours of lesson time. A 6-month payment plan is also offered. | Lifetime | $449.85 | one-time | German, Levels 1 to 3 |
| Rocket Japanese Levels 1, 2 & 3Levels 1-3One-time payment with lifetime access; 451 hours of lesson time. A 6-month payment plan is also offered. | Lifetime | $449.85 | one-time | Japanese, Levels 1 to 3 |
| Rocket Chinese Levels 1, 2 & 3Levels 1-3One-time payment with lifetime access; 451 hours of lesson time. A 6-month payment plan is also offered. | Lifetime | $449.85 | one-time | Chinese, Levels 1 to 3 |
| Rocket Russian Levels 1, 2 & 3Levels 1-3One-time payment with lifetime access; 312 hours of lesson time. A 6-month payment plan is also offered. | Lifetime | $449.85 | one-time | Russian, Levels 1 to 3 |
Questions people ask
Is Busuu better than Rocket Languages?
Neither is better for every learner. Choose Busuu if you want every language for one price and a free account to learn on. Choose Rocket Languages if you want to pay once rather than subscribe. In our comparison, Busuu is strongest on teaching depth and price, weakest on the number of languages, and Rocket Languages strongest on teaching depth and trial and refund terms, weakest on the free tier.
Which is cheaper, Busuu or Rocket Languages?
They are priced differently. On Busuu, a year costs $72.99 for all 14 languages. On Rocket Languages, you pay $99.95 to $449.85 once, for one language's course; the price depends on the language and how many levels you buy.
Do Busuu and Rocket Languages teach the same languages?
Busuu lists 14 languages and Rocket Languages 13, each counting varieties its own way; 11 languages are taught by both. Each app's page here lists its languages, with a page for each language two or more apps teach.