Comparison

Lingo Bus vs Dot Languages

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Lingo Bus

Offers live, 1-on-1 Chinese language lessons for children aged 5-12. Features native teachers, an immersive curriculum aligned with international standards, and progress tracking tools. Focuses on developing cultural awareness and making learning fun.

Highlights
  • 1-on-1 live Chinese classes
  • Native Chinese teachers
  • Immersive curriculum
  • Progress tracking
  • Preview and review materials
  • Cultural awareness development
Read full description

Lingo Bus offers online 1-on-1 immersive Chinese language education for kids aged 5 to 12. At Lingo Bus, children learn Chinese from the most loving, passionate and experienced native teachers, develop cultural awareness and curiosity, and most importantly, have fun while doing it. Our immersive curriculum is developed in-house in accordance with the internationally recognized ACTFL and YCT standards, thanks to a team of experts with background in linguistics, education and developmental psychology. With our curriculum, students can learn in a Chinese-only environment, absorb the language faster and start speaking Chinese from day one. With this iPad version, you can: * Take 1-on-1 live Chinese classes with native Chinese teachers * Access preview and review materials (homework, videos, flashcards, audiobooks, etc) * Monitor study progress with unit quizzes and assessments Receive feedback from teachers and review teachers * Watch class playbacks ;) CONTACT US If you have any questions or suggestions, you can send email to us : service@lingobus.com

About

Dot Languages

Master Mandarin Chinese with engaging texts tailored to your skill level, from beginner to advanced. Practice reading, listening, and writing with daily new content covering diverse topics. Share and discover texts with a community of learners.

Highlights
  • Learn Mandarin Chinese texts
  • HSK 1-9 level categorization
  • Daily new text additions
  • Custom text creation and sharing
  • Reading, listening, and writing practice
  • Progress tracking
Features
Read full description

Dot Languages is a complete Chinese learning app: lessons carefully written and crafted by humans, advanced exercises powered by AI — all built around a structured curriculum aligned to HSK 3.0 (2021 and 2025) and TOCFL 2.0 (2023), with personalised practice. Learn at your own pace through a dynamic HSK-aligned learning path with 11,000+ lessons covering vocabulary, grammar, and reading. Read new articles daily, refreshed for every HSK level, and look up any word in a comprehensive Chinese-English dictionary with character components. Practice that adapts to you: spaced repetition for vocabulary retention, animated stroke-order character writing, speech recognition for pronunciation, multiple choice, matching, sentence arrangement, flash cards, and AI-evaluated open-ended questions. Stay motivated with awards, streaks, learning milestones, leaderboards, and social profiles. Track your performance with weekly progress charts. Bring your own content — add private articles from any source and generate study material from text you paste in. More features: family plans, teacher classroom tools, grammar with sentence-structure analysis, and variable-speed audio narration of articles.

Screenshots

Dot Languages4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Lingo Bus at none against Dot Languages's 5. Dot Languages's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 2 months) and rating (4.2 vs 3.8). On price, ratings volume, ads and iOS requirement 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Dot Languages sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $9.00 per month. Lingo Bus asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Dot Languages holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 38 and 55 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Lingo Bus's written reviews are positive against 72% of Dot Languages's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Lingo Bus ships an update every 2 months, Dot Languages every 5 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Lingo Bus versus Dot Languages: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLingo BusDot Languages
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (38 ratings)4.2 (55 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews72.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3855 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.5
Further details — not scored
Size120 MB198 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVIPTEACHER PTE. LTD.Dot Languages ApS

Customer experience

Lingo Bus

All ratings37 ratings
Positive64.9%
Neutral10.8%
Negative24.3%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral16.7%
Negative33.3%

Dot Languages

All ratings55 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral5.5%
Negative14.5%
Written reviews54 reviews
Positive72.2%
Neutral5.6%
Negative22.2%

Bugs and requests

Lingo Bus

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Dot Languages

Reported bugs

12 issues
  • App closes every time after signing up
  • App not opening
  • App crashes on startup
  • Articles disappear when hitting back icon
  • Return button partially visible after lesson
Show 7 more
  • Bug where leaving and re-entering a story counts as two reads
  • App freezes and never works again
  • Login screen freezes
  • App doesn't load at all
  • Kicks out of login every time app is opened
  • Streak and articles read does not carry across devices
  • Button of 'open more stories' doesn't work

Requested features

9 requests
  • Add Korean and Japanese language options
  • Add stories in addition to articles
  • Option for lifetime subscription
  • Speaking exercises
  • More vibrant colors and backgrounds
Show 4 more
  • Pictures to help remember words
  • Way to practice tones for each character
  • Option to switch to traditional characters
  • App for Cantonese

In-app purchases

None

Lingo Bus

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

Dot Languages

Subscriptions5
  • Standard Monthly7 Days trial$9.001 Month
  • Dot Premium - Monthly7 Days trial$18.491 Month
  • Standard Yearly7 Days trial$72.001 Year
Show 2 more
  • Dot Premium - Yearly7 Days trial$135.991 Year
  • Dot Premium - Family Plan7 Days trial$339.001 Year

Questions

Is Lingo Bus free?
Lingo Bus is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Dot Languages free?
Dot Languages is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Lingo Bus or Dot Languages?
Dot Languages is rated higher. Lingo Bus averages 3.8 out of 5 from 38 ratings, while Dot Languages averages 4.2 from 55 ratings.
Do Lingo Bus or Dot Languages have ads?
Neither Lingo Bus nor Dot Languages shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Lingo Bus or Dot Languages?
Lingo Bus ships an update every 2 months, and Dot Languages every 5 days. Most recently, Lingo Bus was updated on October 24, 2026 and Dot Languages on October 24, 2026.

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