Comparison

Cantonese Guru vs Lingora

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

Head to head
About

Cantonese Guru

Master Cantonese with a structured approach to vocabulary, writing, tones, and pronunciation. This app offers intelligent review sessions and customizable study lists, acting as both a learning tool and a comprehensive reference.

Highlights
  • Vocabulary and character study
  • Stroke-by-stroke character writing
  • Tone and pronunciation training
  • Spaced repetition system (SRS) reviews
  • Listening and reading practice
  • Customizable study lists
  • Comprehensive Cantonese dictionary
Features
Read full description

Learning Cantonese Chinese takes time, structure, and consistency. Cantonese Guru is designed for learners who want to progress seriously and sustainably, from beginner to advanced levels. Whether you are studying Cantonese at university, preparing for language exams, or learning out of personal interest, the app helps you develop all essential skills at your own pace. Cantonese Guru works both as a learning app and as a daily Cantonese reference tool, helping you build real, lasting skills. It fully supports traditional and simplified Chinese characters, as well as Cantonese-specific forms. — A COMPLETE AND STRUCTURED APPROACH Cantonese Guru combines active learning, intelligent reviews, and high-quality reference tools to support long-term memorization. • Vocabulary and Cantonese character study • Stroke-by-stroke Chinese character writing • Tone and pronunciation training • Smart review sessions based on spaced repetition (SRS) • Listening and reading practice adapted to Cantonese — CUSTOM & DOWNLOADABLE STUDY LISTS Cantonese Guru lets you study efficiently with ready-made and personalized content. • Downloadable word lists inspired by common Cantonese textbooks and learning programs • Curated vocabulary sets by level and topic • Create your own custom lists directly from the dictionary • Focus your study on exactly what you need, at your own pace This flexible system allows you to work on specific themes, reinforce weak points, or build personalized study paths. — A SERIOUS LEARNING TOOL, NOT A GIMMICK APP Cantonese Guru includes: • A comprehensive Cantonese dictionary (140,000+ entries) • Search by Cantonese, Jyutping, Yale, or English • Radical- and key-based character search • Handwriting input for character lookup • Customizable word lists and detailed entry information • Reference tools dedicated to the Cantonese language The app is used as both a reference and learning tool by students, self-learners, and language enthusiasts who want to progress with method and clarity. — SUBSCRIPTIONS Full access to all features requires a subscription. • 1-week free trial (except lifetime plan) • Automatic renewal, cancel anytime Available plans: • 1 month • 6 months • 12 months • Lifetime (one-time purchase) — LEGAL INFORMATION Privacy Policy: https://www.xamisoft.com/privacy-policy Terms of Use: https://www.xamisoft.com/cgu

About

Lingora

Learn new languages through interactive lessons, vocabulary games, and detailed grammar explanations. Progress from beginner to A1 level with sentence-centric learning and practice tools. Supports a wide range of languages with more being added.

Highlights
  • 500 lessons in 50 units
  • Sentence-centric learning approach
  • Vocabulary games and trainer
  • Grammar quizzes and breakdowns
  • Script and tone trainers
  • Progress tracking
  • Comprehensive dictionary
Features
Read full description

The most thorough language course you'll find in an app. 20+ languages, 500 lessons each, every single word of every sentence explained as thoroughly as you care to follow. One sentence might keep you busy for twenty minutes. WHAT'S IN A COURSE Each sentence gets a full lesson wrapped around it. 500 English sentences in all, hand-picked to cover every grammar structure and the full A1 vocabulary. Each word comes with its own full dictionary entry: definition with examples, any conjugation or declension it takes, the grammar topics behind it, and stroke-by-stroke guidance for new scripts. If you want to know why a word looks the way it does, the app can tell you. HOW A LESSON WORKS Each lesson opens with the intro. You hear the sentence before you see what it means. Slow it down, replay as often as you want. Then the Word Breakdown. Tap any word to see what it means and the grammar behind it. Then the literal, word-for-word translation. Then the grammar topics sitting inside the sentence. After the intros, the main session starts. Words and sentences from the current lesson get mixed with whatever's due for review, chosen by the spaced-repetition algorithm so you're practicing what you're closest to forgetting. Your own chosen exercise mix prioritizing reading, writing, or listening. Premium users can even further fine-tune exactly which exercises appear. 25+ WAYS TO PRACTICE Six word games and six sentence games. Flashcards you design yourself, picking what goes on each side. Quick-review tables. Multiple-Choice. Context-clue fill-ins where the wrong answers are similar on purpose. Character stroke practice with real-time validation. Typing exercises with a virtual keyboard. A speech trainer with per-word, color-coded feedback. An AI chat that stays on the lesson's topic and corrects you as you go. And so much more.. REFERENCE A dictionary that searches in native script, in transliteration, or in English. It finds base forms and inflected forms alike. A grammar guide covering every topic that appears in the course. Each has a thorough write-up and example sentences, plus the words and lesson sentences that show it in use. A pronunciation guide covering every consonant and vowel in the language. Tone guides for tonal languages. Script courses for writing systems you haven't learned yet. Conjugation tables for every verb and noun. Character breakdowns for CJK languages. WAYS TO FINE-TUNE Three sliders to weight reading, writing, and listening in each session. Silent mode for studying in public. Transliteration style where more than one exists (Jyutping or Yale, and so on). Diacritics on or off. Full control over what the app does. PROGRESS You'll see progress word by word and lesson by lesson. There's a streak counter, stars on completed lessons, and a weekly leaderboard if you want one. None of it is forced on you. Lifetime users can also export anything they've learned as an Anki deck. LANGUAGES Arabic · Cantonese · Catalan · Dutch · Filipino · French · German · Hindi · Indonesian · Italian · Japanese · Khmer · Korean · Malay · Mandarin · Polish · Portuguese (Brazilian & European) · Russian · Spanish (European & Mexican) · Thai · Turkish · Ukrainian · Vietnamese (Northern & Southern) No hearts. No energy. No cartoons. Just a proper course.

Screenshots

Cantonese Guru4 screens
Lingora4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Cantonese Guru at 5.0 against Lingora's 4.6. Cantonese Guru also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 77%). Lingora's advantage is ratings volume (49 vs 3) and update cadence (every 8 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Cantonese Guru sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Lingora sells 40 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Cantonese Guru holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lingora has 49 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Cantonese Guru's written reviews are positive against 77% of Lingora's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Cantonese Guru ships an update every 2 weeks, Lingora every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Cantonese Guru versus Lingora: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCantonese GuruLingora
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better4.6 (49 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better77.3% of reviews
Number of ratings349 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 8 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.616.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size464 MB126 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSamuel REAUDAlexander Stebner

Customer experience

Cantonese Guru

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Lingora

All ratings49 ratings
Positive89.8%
Neutral4.1%
Negative6.1%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive77.3%
Neutral9.1%
Negative13.6%

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Cantonese Guru

Subscriptions3
  • Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Six Months7 Days trial$17.996 Months
  • Yearly7 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time2
  • Lifetime subscription$42.99
  • Lifetime subscription$79.99
40 purchases

Lingora

Subscriptions27
  • Cantonese A1 Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Malay A1 Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Mandarin A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
Show 24 more
  • German A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Korean A1 Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Vietnamese A1 Premium (M)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Malay A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Mex. Spanish A1 Premium (M)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Korean A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Thai A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Catalan A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • French A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Polish A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Cantonese A1 Premium (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Sth. Vietnamese A1 Premium (M)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Indonesian A1 Premium (M)$3.991 Month
  • French A1 Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Bra. Portuguese A1 Premium (M)$3.991 Month
  • Turkish A1 Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Dutch A1 Premium (Monthly)$3.991 Month
  • Sth.Vietnamese A1 Premium (1m)$3.991 Month
  • All Courses Pro (Monthly)$6.991 Month
  • Polish A1 Pro (Yearly)$11.991 Year
  • Malay A1 Pro (Yearly)$11.991 Year
  • Cantonese A1 Pro (Yearly)$11.991 Year
  • Sth. Vietnamese A1 Pro Yearly$11.991 Year
  • All Courses Premium (Monthly)$12.991 Month
One-time13
  • French A1 Lifetime Access$3.99
  • Mandarin A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Eur. Spanish A1 Lifetime$49.99
Show 10 more
  • Malay A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Catalan A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Korean A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Mex.Spanish A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Thai A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Vietnamese A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Polish A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Sth. Vietnamese A1 Lifetime$49.99
  • Cantonese A1 Lifetime Access$49.99
  • Lingora Lifetime$99.99

Questions

Is Cantonese Guru free?
Cantonese Guru is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Lingora free?
Lingora is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Cantonese Guru or Lingora?
Cantonese Guru is rated higher. Cantonese Guru averages 5.0 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while Lingora averages 4.6 from 49 ratings.
Do Cantonese Guru or Lingora have ads?
Neither Cantonese Guru nor Lingora shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Cantonese Guru or Lingora?
Cantonese Guru ships an update every 2 weeks, and Lingora every 8 days. Most recently, Cantonese Guru was updated on September 23, 2026 and Lingora on September 21, 2026.

Other comparisons