In the era of smartphones, language-learning apps have become the go-to tools for many aspiring polyglots. With a plethora of options available, including Duolingo, Memrise, Babbel, Quizlet, and Busuu, the question arises: How effective are these apps in aiding language acquisition? Can you really achieve fluency using these apps alone? As a German tutor and a student of French and modern Greek, I embarked on a journey to unravel the strengths and shortcomings of these popular language-learning platforms.
What Is the Best Language Learning App? We Have Reviewed Them for You
Duolingo: Immersive Yet Elusive Grammar
Duolingo is free, fun, and easy to use, and what I enjoyed was that you were thrown right in, as it were. Rather than just learning individual words, you learn to form sentences within minutes of using the app. Since what you're being taught seems to fit together rather nicely and is organised by topics, there is a genuine feeling of progress after just a few hours. You're also being tested in both the new language and English, which helps you remember the meaning of a word. Even though I found the app's reward system (points, streaks, achievements etc.) a bit too gimmicky, I think that it will keep many people motivated enough to continue. While the fact that grammar seems to just 'slip in' is great for those who might otherwise be intimidated by seemingly abstract grammatical terms, I found it very frustrating that no explanations of the grammar were provided at all. Here, Duolingo really lost me. There were numerous occasions when I couldn't see why a particular article or preposition was used in one sentence and not in another. Since the app doesn't offer any explanation, you have to start googling or drawing on other resources. That's a shame! In addition, the focus is too much on translating simple sentences rather than engaging in complex conversations. Duolingo is good for building a certain vocabulary foundation in a language, but achieving fluency, which involves being able to think and converse naturally in the language, would require additional practice in speaking and listening and proper training in grammar beyond what the app offers. You'll find a more detailed analysis of the pro's and con's of Duolingo in another post.
Memrise: Vocabulary-Centric with User-Generated Challenges
Unlike Duolingo, Memrise concentrates on teaching you vocabulary in the new language rather than how to form sentences. Like Duolingo, it's easy to use and great for casual learners. New words are being taught through flashcards, which is a very effective way of learning vocabulary- one I also recommend to my students. The problem is that most courses are added by users of the app, so it's impossible to know how good and effective they are other than by trying them. Here, a more rigorous quality control system should be in place. When starting as a beginner in modern Greek, for example, I sometimes encountered words that would require quite some understanding of Greek grammar for me to use them correctly. My students encountered the same with German. The courses created by Memrise are more clearly structured, though, and I liked how they spaced out the repetition of the words. Obviously, you find words easy to remember, but you don't want to be tested all the time, and Memrise gets that. I also liked the graphics and stats they used since they made it fun to use the app. But the heavy focus on vocabulary comes at a price. I felt I couldn't use the words I learned without understanding the basics of the grammar. As with Duolingo, I also felt using Memrise alone wouldn't get me very far in the language. While Memrise is fantastic for expanding your vocabulary and getting a feel for pronunciation, it doesn’t offer as much practice in constructing sentences or engaging in real conversations. Again, fluency might remain out of reach unless you supplement it with other forms of practice.
Babbel: Comprehensive, Conventional, and Paid
While Duolingo and Memrise are free of charge, Babbel is a paid service. I was fortunate enough to receive a recurring subscription from a corporate client, so I gave it a try. On first impression, you can see that Babbel is more comprehensive than the other two apps. It seeks to combine conversational practice with cultural immersion. It is a lot less gimmicky than Duolingo and Memrise, which I appreciated, but some may find boring. All courses are based on conversations, and they cover all the topics that your typical language course may cover. Babbel also understands the importance of teaching grammar, so it explained whatever I needed to know in that particular real-life situation I was currently working on. That's a good idea in general, but not for people like me who think in terms of logical patterns and want to understand whether what I have learned in one situation also applies to another. Can the preposition X, which I have just used to say that I am going somewhere by bus, also be used to say I ride my bicycle? Babbel didn't offer me an answer. So, I got the impression that I might be able to reach A2 (elementary level) with the app, but I would definitely plateau there. Babbel positions itself as a more serious alternative to Duolingo and Memrise, with a focus on real-life conversations and grammar. However, Babbel’s approach is still somewhat limited in helping users achieve true fluency, especially since it lacks the immersive experience needed to think and speak fluently in the language.
Busuu: Conversational Depth with User-Generated Caveats
Busuu is another paid service that aims to go beyond the language learning experience that Duolingo and Memrise offer. Like Babbel, it aims to be more comprehensive and serious than the other two apps. What I liked about Busuu was that its feedback on pronunciation and writing doesn't just rely on speech recognition software or any other automated system but on other users. Languages are obviously spoken by people, so that made perfect sense to me. The problem is that not all users are native speakers, let alone teachers, so I would take some of their answers with a pinch of salt. There didn't seem to be any fact-checking by the app itself, at least I didn't notice any. However, Busuu's conversational lessons provided a lot more depth than the other apps, and there is quite a lot of variety, which made the experience fairly engaging to me. Yet, here again, grammar explanations and practice are lacking, which was a real drawback for me.
The Grammar Gap in App-Based Learning with Duolingo, Memrise, Babbel, and Busuu
So much for my personal experience; let me now explain what I observed as a German tutor with students who sought my help after using one or two of the aforementioned apps. I should say that I often insist on arranging assessment sessions with new clients before they join any of my small-group German courses. The reason is quite simple: it is very difficult to gauge your level if you are not a language teacher.
Over the years, I had many new clients who reached out to me saying they wanted to join an A2, B1 or even higher-level class. When I asked where they studied German before, I sometimes received the answer that they had just been using one of the apps for months or even years. Initially, at least, I approached my assessment sessions with those new students with an open mind and a bit of curiosity about what they might have learned on the apps. Later I became a lot more cynical. At the end of my assessments, I had to recommend to 9 out of 10 clients that they should start from scratch, so join an absolute beginner course to learn the basics of German grammar properly. Only 1 of 10 clients had learned enough to join an A2.1 class, but they had used many other resources in addition to the app.
So what does that tell us? The lack of proper grammar training is the real issue with all the apps. To be fair, some clients had learned quite a lot of words, which allowed them to complete A1.1 level more quickly. I also don't think it's a terrible idea when my students use one of the apps to accelerate their progress. But what I usually find is that the selection of words chosen by the apps differs quite significantly from the vocabulary they learn in my German courses. That's why I normally advise students to use Quizlet courses that target the vocabulary in the book we're using or, better still, to write their own flash cards.
Quizlet: Bridging Vocabulary Gaps with DIY Approach
Don't expect the fun and user-friendly interfaces Duolingo offers, nor the spaced repetition of Memrise-organised courses. Quizlet just gives you flashcards in a pretty plain design and in more or less random order chosen by the users who uploaded them. Again, quality control is missing here, so it is best to choose courses structured around books you're using in your classes. The real disadvantage, though, is that Quizlet doesn't allow you to add sample sentences to the cards. Without sample sentences that show you how to use the word in context, there is a greater chance you will forget the word rather quickly because the context works as your association with the word, and you are less likely to remember how to use the word in a grammatically correct way. So, build your vocabulary range by using flash or index cards. is a highly effective strategy and caters to visual, cognitive, and haptic learners alike. More on this below. All in all, Quizlet is more of a supplementary tool rather than a comprehensive language learning platform. It’s primarily focused on helping learners memorise vocabulary through flashcards and games. While it can be a good resource for reinforcing words and phrases, it doesn’t provide the structured lessons or conversational practice needed to develop fluency.
Handwritten Flashcards: A Winning Formula
While popular apps like Memrise also use the flash card principle, writing the cards by hand is more effective. This haptic contact with the word you establish by writing down the word, in combination with phrasing sample sentences that use the word in context, seems to be the winning formula for remembering words long-term rather than just short-term. I also found that most clients who used the apps had a decent passive but very poor active vocabulary, whereas handwritten flashcards bridge the gap between the two. I explain how flash cards should be used to learn new words more effectively in a separate post.
Can Duolingo, Memrise, Babbel, Busuu or Quizlet Make You Fluent?
While these apps can significantly enhance your vocabulary and provide basic grammar and language skills, achieving fluency typically requires more. Fluency involves the ability to speak, understand, and think in a language without significant effort, and this often comes from immersive experiences—something that these apps, by their nature, cannot fully provide. To truly become fluent, I recommend using these apps as part of a broader learning strategy. This strategy might include speaking with native speakers, consuming media in the target language (like films, books, and podcasts), and even spending time in a country where the language is spoken.
Conclusion
Duolingo, Memrise, Babbel, Busuu, and Quizlet are powerful tools in the language learner's arsenal, but they are best used as stepping stones rather than the sole method to achieve fluency. Pairing these apps with real-world practice and immersion will give you the best chance of reaching fluency in your target language. In short, try to combine one of the apps with proper lessons. Otherwise, you might not go very far.
What is your experience with using the apps? Let me know in the comments section. Thanks for reading!
Would you like to read other posts on the topic of language learning? Then check out our posts on the difference between language levels A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2, a review of Linguee, dict.cc, dict.leo and Collins online dictionaries, my answer to the question how long does it take to learn German,
If you want to learn more about German grammar, read our explanation on adjective endings in German ,relative clauses in German, the four cases in the German language, and many other topics. Of course, we also have posts on the German language more generally, such as on how many words does German have compared to English.
I agree with the assessment of these apps. I would add an observation. That is that potentially they can help with pronunciation of the target language. I say, 'can' because a concerted effort to mimic the native speakers must be made. This aspect is not really emphasised in the apps. Nor in many reviews. Without that active mimicry of the native speaker, the opportunity is lost.