# Earworms vs Speaking

The clearest difference is ads: Earworms at none against Speaking's shown. Earworms also leads on iOS requirement (12.4 vs 15.0). Speaking's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 5 months). On price, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Earworms sells 16 one-off in-app purchases and Speaking sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Earworms ships an update every 5 months, Speaking weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Earworms | Speaking |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (357 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/earworms-language-learning/id1214721881/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **357** | — |
| Positive reviews | 72.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 48 MB | 19 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.4** | 15.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [earworms Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/391784509) | [Ryo Aoyama](https://appshunter.io/developer/1479847660) |

## What reviewers say

### Earworms

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/earworms-language-learning/id1214721881)

Learn languages effectively using the "earworm effect" with catchy music and lyrics. This method anchors foreign language words and phrases into your long-term memory through engaging, brain-based audio-visual lessons. Improve vocabulary and grammar with bite-sized tracks and native speaker pronunciation.

**Highlights:** Learn languages with music and lyrics, Brain-based learning technique, Audio-visual experience with karaoke lyrics, 6-9 minute learning tracks, Content-rich language based on CEF, Native speaker pronunciation

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (16)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Try before you buy | Free | one-time |
| Essayez avant d’acheter | Free | one-time |
| Álbum de demostración | Free | one-time |
| French Vol. 1 | $11.99 | one-time |
| Italian Vol. 1 | $11.99 | one-time |
| Spanish Lat. Am. Vol. 1 | $11.99 | one-time |
| Portuguese Vol.1 | $11.99 | one-time |
| French Vol. 2 | $11.99 | one-time |
| Dutch Vol. 1-2 | $19.99 | one-time |
| Japanese Vol. 1-2 | $19.99 | one-time |
| Spanish Lat. Am. Vol. 1-3 | $27.99 | one-time |
| Bundle deals, French Vol. 1-3 | $28.99 | one-time |
| Bundle deals, German Vol. 1-3 | $28.99 | one-time |
| Bundle deals, Italian Vol. 1-3 | $28.99 | one-time |
| Bundle, Spanish Eu. Vol. 1-3 | $28.99 | one-time |
| Portuguese Vol.1-3 | $28.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎵 Music-based learning method effectively reinforces memory
- 👍 Easy and intuitive to use
- ⭐ Excellent customer support team
- 🎯 Practical, conversational phrases for real-world use
- 🧠 Words and phrases stick in memory effortlessly

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and freezing issues
- 📱 Poor booklet formatting on mobile devices
- 💸 Pricing considered expensive by some users
- ❌ Limited number of lessons per language
- 🔧 App lacks autoplay/continuous playback feature

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes every few minutes on iPhone
- Network error on startup despite internet connection
- Infinite loop on initial setup screen
- App closes unexpectedly during playback
- Restore purchases feature not functioning

**Requested features**

- Additional volume levels for existing languages
- More lessons and expanded content library
- Autoplay feature for continuous listening
- Repeat single track functionality
- Ability to select specific lesson categories


### Speaking

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speaking-language-learning/id6450508991)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove ads | $1.99 | per month |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Earworms free?

Earworms is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Speaking free?

Speaking is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Earworms or Speaking have ads?

Speaking shows ads; Earworms does not.

### Which is updated more often, Earworms or Speaking?

Earworms ships an update every 5 months, and Speaking weekly. Most recently, Earworms was updated on October 11, 2026 and Speaking on October 4, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*