HelloChinese vs Cram Lock
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
HelloChinese
This app offers a fun and effective way to learn Mandarin Chinese from beginner to conversational levels. It combines game-based lessons, stories, videos, and speech recognition to help you master pronunciation, characters, and practical conversations while exploring Chinese culture.
- Game-based learning
- Graded stories
- Immersive lessons
- Video lessons
- Speech recognition
- Character handwriting
- HSK level courses
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HelloChinese is the best Mandarin Chinese learning app for beginners! Featured on the App Store in New Apps We Love and Notable Education Apps! Designed in a fun and highly effective manner, HelloChinese helps you rapidly learn Mandarin Chinese from scratch to a conversational level. With HelloChinese, learners can "learn the Chinese language, explore Chinese culture" – you will not only learn Mandarin Chinese but also enjoy the process of delving into the culture intertwined with the language. Features: ◉ Game-based Chinese learning: You will never get bored. ◉ 1000+ graded stories: read engaging stories at your level! ◉ Immersive lessons help you to have real-life, practical conversations quickly. ◉ Over 2,000 videos - all featuring authentic Chinese speakers! ◉ Innovative self-adaptive learning games that incorporate Chinese cultural education. ◉ Speech recognition corrects your pronunciation and makes speaking Chinese a breeze. ◉ Handwriting specially designed to learn Chinese characters at a faster rate. ◉ Systematic courses based on HSK levels. ◉ A well-designed Pinyin (pronunciation) course for newbies. ◉ Bite-sized curriculum to fortify your Chinese listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. ◉ Simplified and traditional Chinese(Mandarin) are both supported. ◉ Offline accessibility: Once a course is downloaded, no internet connection is required. ◉ Study progress tracking across multiple devices. With these tools at your disposal, nothing can stop you from mastering Chinese. Start on your path to fluency today! HelloChinese Premium offers: One-month subscription for $11.99 Three-month subscription for $25.99 Twelve-month subscription for $69.99 The above prices are for U.S. customers. Pricing in other countries may vary, and charges may be converted to your local currency depending on your country of residence. Once purchased, subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off in your iTunes Account settings at least 24 hours before the end of the payment period. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HelloChineseApp/ Privacy Policy: https://www.hellochinese.cc/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.hellochinese.cc/terms.html Premium users can always reach us at premium@hellochinese.cc if they need any help.
Cram Lock
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cram lock locks the apps that eat your day until you learn one flashcard from your real class. answer it, get 15 minutes, then it locks again. failed two classes at 18. spent a decade at meta and tiktok building the thing that did it. built cram lock to undo it. how it works - pick the apps that wreck you (tiktok, instagram, games, whatever). cram lock uses apple's screen time controls to block them. - when you try to open one, you get a flashcard instead. - answer it, unlock, and get back to it. tap the lock to relock early. - want longer? set the unlock window anywhere from 5 to 60 minutes. built for berkeley first-years every card is written to the current syllabus and links to its source so you can go deeper: - chem 1a - bio 1a - math 51 (formerly math 1a) - cs 61a - data c8 - physics 7a - math 52 (formerly math 1b) - cs 61b - chem 1b - physics 7b pick your classes. narrow to a module or a single topic before a midterm. thousands of cards, ten cards per topic, no filler. what it is not - not a timer you can dismiss. - not a productivity dashboard. - not a chatbot. every card was written from the course sources and checked. a card streak counts every card you get through, so the number only goes up. three looks: black on white, white on black, or green on black in monospace for the 61a and 61b crowd. free, and it stays free all ten courses are free. every card, every class, no trial, no card required. no ads, no selling your data, no nagging. we think the lock should be free -- you already have enough working against you. about the subscription you'll see listed it is not for the classes. those are free and they stay free. it will unlock uploading your own flashcards -- any course, any school -- which is in development. nothing in the app charges you today, and the ten built-in courses will stay free when it arrives. privacy cram lock never sees which apps you block or what you do in them. screen time permissions are handled entirely by ios on your device. support: cramlock.app privacy policy: https://cramlock.app/privacy.html terms of use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is chart position: HelloChinese at #117 against Cram Lock's unranked. HelloChinese also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. HelloChinese sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month and Cram Lock sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
HelloChinese ships an update weekly, Cram Lock every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | HelloChinese | Cram Lock |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (24K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 94.8% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 24K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 11 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Best chart rank | #117 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 98 MB | 52 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | HelloChinese Technology Co., Ltd. | Mack Ortis |
Bugs and requests
HelloChinese
Reported bugs
2 issues- Occasional login issues
- Inconsistent performance on older devices
Requested features
5 requests- More advanced lessons beyond HSK3
- Option to toggle pinyin on a per-word basis
- Improved review system with more customization
- Addition of traditional Chinese characters
- More real-life conversation practice
Cram Lock
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
HelloChinese
- HelloChinese Premium$11.991 Month
- HelloChinese Premium+$16.991 Month
- HelloChinese Premium+$19.991 Month
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- HelloChinese Premium$25.993 Months
- HelloChinese Premium$48.991 Year
- HelloChinese Premium+$62.996 Months
- HelloChinese Premium$69.991 Year
- HelloChinese Premium+$89.996 Months
- HelloChinese Premium+$104.991 Year
- HelloChinese Premium+$149.991 Year
- 300 coins$4.99
- 750 coins$9.99
- 1650 coins$19.99
Cram Lock
- Weekly3 Days trial$9.997 Days
- Yearly3 Days trial$49.991 Year
Questions
Is HelloChinese free?
Is Cram Lock free?
Do HelloChinese or Cram Lock have ads?
Which is updated more often, HelloChinese or Cram Lock?
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