Alternatives
Duolingo alternatives
People look for a Duolingo alternative for four reasons: they want grammar explained, they want to actually speak, they want real people instead of a cartoon owl, or they want to stay free without the ads and the caps. The picks answer each of those; the table below holds every other app in the dataset so you can check the language you want and what it costs.
23 of the 24 apps in the dataset are alternatives to Duolingo.
Our picks
Best if you want structure and grammar
Course app with corrections from native speakers and CEFR-labelled levels. Reviewers report people keep using it and few bugs.
3.9/5for this · 3.4 overall · 2 reviews
Best if you want real people to correct you
Real native speakers to talk and write to. The whole product is free, with ads or limits. 300 languages.
4.3/5for this · 3.2 overall · 2 reviews
Best for real speech and vocabulary
Fill-in-the-blank sentences for vocabulary in context. The whole product is free, with ads or limits. Works offline.
4.3/5for this · 3.2 overall · 2 reviews
Best if you want to stay free
The whole product is free, with ads or limits. Chat and call with native speakers, with a paid tier that lifts the daily limits.
3.8/5for this · 3.2 overall · 2 reviews
Best if you want to speak from week one
Half-hour audio lessons built on spoken recall, made for commutes. Speech recognition scores your pronunciation.
4.0/5for this · 3.3 overall · 2 reviews
Best for the same daily-habit feel
The first lesson is free, and the whole course is free through many public libraries. Reviewers report people keep using it and few bugs.
3.6/5for this · 3.4 overall · 2 reviews
Links to apps on this page are plain, untracked links to the vendor today. This site is funded by affiliate links: when an app's programme is joined, its link will earn a commission at no cost to you and will be listed on the affiliate disclosure page. That never changes which apps appear or the order they are in. Affiliate disclosure and how the data is collected.
Every alternative, compared
Grouped by what each app is; our score first within each group. Sort any column or filter by what matters to you.
| Best for | Free tier | Speech | Tutor | Offline | CEFR | Refund or trial | Where to buy | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course apps | |||||||||||||
| BusuuCourse app | Corrections from native speakers | 3.42 reviews | $6.08$72.99 a year | not published | no lifetime plan | Free account with limited features; paid tiers remove ads and add review tools. | 14 | not stated | not stated | Yes | not stated | not stated | |
| Mango LanguagesCourse app | Free through many public libraries | 3.42 reviews | $10annual plan | $13.99 | no lifetime plan | 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 | 73 | No | No | Yes | not stated | Free trial on Individual and Family plans; cancel before it ends and you are not charged | |
| LingCourse app | Asian and less-taught languages | 3.32 reviews | $12.50$149.99 a year | $16.99 | no lifetime plan | Free tier with limited lessons and limited dialogue practice, with ads | 80 | Yes | Ling Live Online Tutor | not stated | not stated | 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) | |
| BabbelCourse app | A structured course with grammar explained | 3.13 reviews | $8.95$107.40 a year | $17.99 | $299.99 | Free account; the first lesson of every course is free, and up to 80 free lessons depending on the language. | 14 | Yes | not stated | not stated | A1 to C1 | not stated | |
| Rosetta StoneCourse app | Immersion without translation | 3.12 reviews | $13.25$159 a year | $19.99 | no lifetime plan | Free sample lessons from the site (TRY A LESSON); no ongoing free plan is described on the pricing page. | 25 | Yes | Tutoring | Yes | not stated | 14-day money-back guarantee | |
| MondlyCourse app | A cheap yearly plan across many languages | 3.02 reviews | $4$47.99 a year | $9.99 | no lifetime plan | Free version with Daily Lessons, the Hello category and a chatbot lesson. | 41 | not stated | not stated | not stated | not stated | 7-day free trial | |
| Audio courses | |||||||||||||
| PimsleurAudio course | Audio lessons for a commute | 3.32 reviews | $13.75$164.95 a year | $19.95 | $150 | No | 51 | Yes | not stated | Yes | not stated | 7-day free trial on subscriptions; 30 Day money back guarantee on purchases | |
| GlossikaAudio course | Sentence drills by ear | 2.72 reviews | $16.58annual plan | $19.99 | no lifetime plan | 7-day full access with no credit card, plus a permanent Freemium tier covering nine minoritized languages | 63 | No | No | Yes | not stated | 7-day free trial with no credit card; monthly payments are non-refundable, annual plans refundable pro rata within 60 days of purchase | |
| Vocabulary and flashcard apps | |||||||||||||
| ClozemasterVocabulary and flashcards | Free vocabulary practice in context | 3.22 reviews | $6.67$79.99 a year | $12.99 | no lifetime plan | Free account with unlimited play; Pro unlocks advanced features | 71 | not stated | not stated | Yes | not stated | 30-day money back guarantee on the Yearly plan; no refunds on Monthly plans | |
| uTalkVocabulary and flashcards | Phrases in 160 languages | 3.02 reviews | $2.50annual plan | $4.99 | no lifetime plan | Starter Words, a free 26-word pack in every language, plus an online demo at demo.utalk.com | 160 | No | No | Yes | not stated | 28-day money-back guarantee | |
| LingvistVocabulary and flashcards | Fast vocabulary with a placement test | 2.82 reviews | $6.67$79.99 a year | $9.99 | no lifetime plan | Free level placement before subscribing, and a 14-day free trial on the annual plan; the monthly plan has no trial | 16 | Yes | No | not stated | not stated | 14-day free trial on the annual plan; cancel before it ends and you are not charged | |
| MemriseVocabulary and flashcards | Native-speaker clips and review | 2.72 reviews | $5.17$61.99 a year | $24.99 | $329.99 | Limited free version of the app; the paid plan unlocks the rest. | 149 | Yes | not stated | not stated | not stated | not stated | |
| DropsVocabulary and flashcards | Five-minute vocabulary sessions | 2.72 reviews | $5.83$69.99 a year | $12.99 | $159.99 | Free access capped at 5 minutes of play every 10 hours, with topics unlocked one at a time through gameplay | 55 | not stated | not stated | Yes | not stated | 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 | 2.72 reviews | $10$119.99 a year | $14.99 | no lifetime plan | Free account capped at 20 saved words and phrases, 5 lessons created from imported content, and 1 audio playlist | 52 | not stated | not stated | Yes | not stated | not stated | |
| LingopieImmersion (video, reading) | TV and film with interactive subtitles | 2.52 reviews | $13.98$167.80 a year | not published | $763 | No | 15 | not stated | Lingopie Lessons | not stated | not stated | 7-day free trial; yearly subscription is charged after the trial and cannot be refunded | |
| FluentUImmersion (video, reading) | Learning from real videos | 2.52 reviews | $20$239.99 a year | $29.99 | no lifetime plan | No | 10 | Yes | Group classes (select languages) | Yes | not stated | 14-day free trial with no payment up front, plus a 20-day money-back guarantee | |
| AI conversation practice | |||||||||||||
| SpeakAI conversation practice | Speaking practice with AI | 3.02 reviews | $7$83.99 a year | $17.99 | no lifetime plan | 7-day free trial; no permanently free tier is published | 6 | Yes | No | not stated | not stated | 7-day free trial; refunds for App Store and Google Play purchases go through Apple or Google, and website purchases through Speak support | |
| Tutors and live classes | |||||||||||||
| italkiTutor marketplace | Tutors priced per lesson | 3.42 reviews | not publisheda lesson | sold differently | no lifetime plan | No | 104 | not stated | italki (the whole product is 1-on-1 lessons; Group Class also sold) | not stated | not stated | 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 | |
| PreplyTutor marketplace | Booking a tutor per lesson | 3.12 reviews | $3 to $50a lesson | sold differently | no lifetime plan | No | 90 | not stated | Preply (the whole product is 1-to-1 tutoring) | not stated | not stated | Paid trial lesson; up to 2 free trial replacements per account if the trial did not meet expectations or the tutor did not attend | |
| CamblyTutor marketplace | English conversation with a tutor | 3.01 review | $12$144 a year | $24 | no lifetime plan | No | 1 | not stated | Cambly (the whole product is live 1-on-1 or small-group tutoring) | not stated | not stated | $1 trial lesson; 7-day money-back guarantee on a first plan; after that, cancel any time and pay only for days used, with long-term discounts forfeited on early cancellation | |
| LingodaTutor marketplace | Live classes by CEFR level | 3.02 reviews | €54.99Group classes, 4 classes | sold differently | no lifetime plan | not stated | 6 | not stated | Group classes and Private classes | not stated | not stated | Free 7-day trial | |
| Language exchange | |||||||||||||
| TandemLanguage exchange | Language exchange with native speakers | 3.22 reviews | $3.33$39.99 a year | not published | no lifetime plan | Free account with many features; Tandem Pro unlocks the rest | 300 | No | No | not stated | not stated | 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 | |
| HelloTalkLanguage exchange | Chatting with native speakers | 3.22 reviews | $6.67$79.99 a year | $12.99 | no lifetime plan | Free account with ads and daily limits (for example ten translations a day); occasional randomly offered 3-day VIP trials | 260 | Yes | No | Yes | not stated | Occasional randomly offered 3-day free VIP trial; refunds handled by Apple or Google for in-app purchases | |
Which one, for whom
You want the grammar explained, not guessed
Babbel or Busuu
Babbel's lessons explain the rule as you meet it, and its 12-month plan works out to $8.95 a month for all 14 of its languages. Busuu adds corrections from native speakers and labels its courses by CEFR level, at $6.08 a month for one language on its 12-month Premium plan. Both keep a free layer: Babbel's first lessons, Busuu's limited free account.
You want to actually speak to someone
Preply or italki, or Speak if a person is too much
Preply publishes a per-lesson price filter from $3 and replaces a trial lesson that disappoints; italki states a placement test and prices each teacher separately. Speak is conversation practice with an AI that tells you what you said wrong, with a 7-day free trial, for the learner who wants to rehearse before a person is involved.
You want it free, without the streak pressure
Clozemaster, Mango through a library, HelloTalk or Tandem
Clozemaster states unlimited free play. Mango Languages states that many public libraries provide its full courses free with a card. HelloTalk and Tandem are free accounts that pair you with native speakers; they are not courses, and they are the only free way in this table to practise with a person.
You liked the daily-habit feel and want more depth
Mondly or Drops, then Memrise
Mondly keeps the short daily lesson and adds a chatbot, at a yearly price that starts at $4 a month for one language. Drops is five minutes of visual vocabulary a day, free every ten hours or $5.83 a month on its yearly plan. Memrise is the step up once the basics are in: native-speaker video and spaced repetition at $5.17 a month on its annual plan.
Questions people ask
What is the best alternative to Duolingo?
It depends on why you are leaving. For grammar and structure, Babbel or Busuu; to speak with a person, Preply or italki; for real speech and vocabulary, Memrise; to stay free, Clozemaster or Mango Languages through a library. The table shows every other app with its published price and features.
Is there a free app better than Duolingo?
No other app in the dataset gives a whole course set free with ads the way Duolingo does. Clozemaster gives unlimited free vocabulary practice, Mango Languages is free through many libraries, and HelloTalk and Tandem are free ways to talk to native speakers. Which is better depends on whether you want lessons, practice or people.
Is Babbel better than Duolingo?
Babbel publishes a price list, explains grammar and states speech recognition; Duolingo is free with ads and does not publish its paid prices on the web. The full comparison is on the Babbel vs Duolingo page.
Which alternative has the most languages?
Among course apps, Mondly (41) and Rosetta Stone (25) list the most; among vocabulary apps, uTalk (160) and Memrise (149); the tutor marketplaces and exchange apps reach further still because one tutor or one native speaker is enough to list a language.