Comparison

Japanese Dictionary + vs Babbel

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

Head to head
About

Japanese Dictionary +

This app offers a comprehensive bilingual dictionary for English and Japanese, with translation capabilities for words and phrases. It supports offline use for over 350,000 entries, including pronunciation and text scanning from images. Gamified learning tools and vocabulary builders are included to aid language acquisition.

Highlights
  • Bilingual English-Japanese dictionary
  • Offline translation for words and phrases
  • Image text scanning
  • Pronunciation and vocabulary games
  • Flashcards and Word of the Day
  • Phrasebook for common phrases
Features
Read full description

• Bilingual English to Japanese and Japanese to English dictionary • Japanese to English word and phrase translator and translation • Over 350K words and phrase can be used in offline • Offline pronunciation and translate any sentences • Scan text in image by pointing camera to search in dictionary • Designed for student, teacher, tourist and language learners • Having thesaurus, synonyms and antonyms • Translate individual words, phrases, or whole sentences • Tap a word for cross searching • Bookmark and Recent history for instant recall • Word of the day to learn IELTS, TOEFL and SAT words • Multiple games help to improve English and Japanese vocabulary • Offline Pronunciation helps to learn words properly • Flash card and Word of the Day helps to improve vocabulary • Phrase book, Phrase of the day and Phrase Card helps to speak common phrases • Quote of the Day improves wisdom and motivation

About

Babbel

Master a new language with expert-designed, bite-sized lessons that fit your schedule. Build conversational confidence quickly through interactive practice and a smart review system. Learn Spanish, French, German, and more for travel, work, or fun.

Highlights
  • Bite-sized lessons
  • Expert-built courses
  • Interactive conversation practice
  • Smart review system
  • Grammar in context
  • Offline mode
  • Learn 14 languages
Features
Read full description

Speak a new language with real-life conversations. Babbel is the award-winning language learning app with courses tailored to your native language, built by 200+ language experts and trusted by millions worldwide. Because lessons are built for speakers of your language, an English speaker learning Spanish gets different lessons than a French speaker does. You learn to speak, listen, and understand grammar in context, then practice real conversations with Babbel Speak, an AI conversation partner that gives you personalized feedback. Learn a new language faster with bite-sized lessons designed to fit your everyday life. With Babbel’s proven method, you could start having real conversations in as little as 3 weeks. Your language learning adventure starts with a lesson. WHY BABBEL WORKS • Tailored to your native language: Courses are created by language experts and tailored to your native language, so you learn naturally and efficiently. • Real-life conversations: Learn the language people actually speak, for travel, work, and everyday life. • Speak with confidence: Practice out loud with speech recognition and Babbel Speak, an AI conversation partner to improve your pronunciation. • Research-proven results: Efficacy backed by researchers at Yale University: 100% improved their oral proficiency in 3 months.* TRUSTED BY MILLIONS • 25 million subscriptions sold • 1.5 million 5-star ratings (based on App store ratings) • After 10 hours with Babbel, 96% of learners saw better test scores on grammar and vocabulary** BUILT FOR REAL LIFE • Short, effective lessons: Learn in as little as 10 minutes a day • Lessons for every motivation: Learn for travel, work, or fun • Listen, speak, write: Options for every learning style • Stress-free conversation practice: Build confidence with Guided Conversations, then practice freely with Babbel Speak (Beta) • Smart review system: Boosts learning and retention • Grammar in context: Clear explanations exactly when you need them • Offline mode: Download lessons and learn anywhere, anytime • 5,000+ courses: Over 60,000 lessons across all languages LEARN 14 LANGUAGES Spanish (Latin American or Spain), French, Italian, German, Portuguese, English (American or British), Russian, Polish, Turkish, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Dutch, and Indonesian. TRY BABBEL TODAY Download Babbel now and take a free lesson. SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS A subscription is required to access full courses. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Payment will be charged to your Apple account. Available plans: • 3 months • 6 months • 12 months • Lifetime Privacy policy: https://about.babbel.com/en/privacy/ Terms of use: https://about.babbel.com/en/terms/ LEARN MORE Read Babbel Magazine for tips and insights: https://www.babbel.com/en/magazine Follow us: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/babbelusa Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Babbel.usa CONTACT US Questions or feedback? Email: support-mobile@babbel.com *Based on a study conducted with Babbel users learning Spanish. Available at http://bit.ly/BabbelYale. **Based on a study conducted with Babbel users learning Spanish. Available: http://bit.ly/BabbelMSU.

Screenshots

Japanese Dictionary +4 screens
Babbel4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Japanese Dictionary + at free with in-app purchases against Babbel's subscription. Babbel's advantage is update cadence (every 6 days vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (757K vs 223). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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. Japanese Dictionary + sells 6 one-off in-app purchases and Babbel sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $17.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Japanese Dictionary + against 4.7 for Babbel. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Babbel has 757K ratings behind it against 223, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 48% of Japanese Dictionary +'s written reviews are positive against 44% of Babbel's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Japanese Dictionary + ships an update every 2 months, Babbel every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Japanese Dictionary + versus Babbel: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJapanese Dictionary +Babbel
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (223 ratings)4.7 (757K ratings) — better
Positive reviews47.5% of reviews — better44.0% of reviews
Number of ratings223757K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 6 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
Best chart rank—#11 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.617.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size54 MB256 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperiThinkdiffBabbel GmbH

Customer experience

Japanese Dictionary +

All ratings223 ratings
Positive89.2%
Neutral3.6%
Negative7.2%
Written reviews61 reviews
Positive47.5%
Neutral8.2%
Negative44.3%

Babbel

All ratings756,397 ratings
Positive93.7%
Neutral3.8%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews2,750 reviews
Positive44.0%
Neutral14.0%
Negative42.0%

User reviews

Japanese Dictionary +

From 223 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 📚 Helpful for learning Japanese
  • 💡 Word of the day feature
  • ✅ Good dictionary overall
  • ✈️ Handy while traveling
  • 🔊 Pronunciation audio works well

Room to improve

  • ❌ Data loss of saved words
  • 📉 Limited saving capacity
  • ⚠️ Inaccurate translations
  • 🚫 No Romanji input/dictionary
  • 😵 Camera scan feature not working

Babbel

From 757K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent structured learning
  • 🚀 Effective vocabulary and grammar teaching
  • 👍 Helpful pronunciation guides
  • 👍 Engaging and practical lessons
  • 👍 Useful review and repetition features

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Inconsistent voice recognition
  • 🐛 Lack of flexibility in lesson progression
  • 🐛 Confusing user interface and navigation
  • 🐛 Overly strict scoring and lack of forgiveness for minor errors
  • 🔋 Drains battery quickly

Bugs and requests

Japanese Dictionary +

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • App erases saved words without warning
  • App stops functioning after purchase
  • App frequently forgets purchase
  • Camera scan feature does not work
  • OCR is only for English
Show 4 more
  • Pronunciation in-app feature not working
  • Ads are intrusive and unclosable
  • Word of the day repeats
  • Reminder for word of the day cannot be dismissed

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add Romanji input/dictionary
  • Enable scanning Japanese characters (especially Kanji)
  • Add keyboard option
  • Make pricing for audio pronunciation clearer (one-time vs. per word)
  • Improve saving capacity for words
Show 1 more
  • Fix data loss issue with saved words

Babbel

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Lessons sometimes freeze or crash the app
  • Subscription cancellation process is overly complicated
  • Inconsistent behavior when switching between languages
  • Keyboard issues and inability to use system keyboard

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more language options, especially Asian languages like Japanese, Korean, and Chinese
  • Improve review and practice tools to better reinforce learned material
  • Provide more customization options for lesson pacing and content
  • Implement a more forgiving scoring system and allow users to revisit past lessons
  • Add a dark mode and optimize the app for better readability

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Japanese Dictionary +

One-time6
  • Pronunciation$0.99
  • Online Translator$0.99
  • Flash Card$0.99
Show 3 more
  • Phrase Book$0.99
  • Pro Upgrade$2.99
  • Unlock Full Version$9.99
12 purchases

Babbel

Subscriptions12
  • Mexican Spanish – 1-month plan$17.991 Month
  • Spanish 1 month$17.991 Month
  • French 1 month$17.991 Month
Show 9 more
  • Italian 1 month$17.991 Month
  • Mexican Spanish - 1-month plan$19.991 Month
  • Mexican Spanish – 3-month plan$45.993 Months
  • Learn French – 3-month plan$45.993 Months
  • Learn Spanish – 3-month plan$45.993 Months
  • All Languages – 3-month plan$53.993 Months
  • Mexican Spanish – 1-year plan$89.991 Year
  • All Languages – 12-month plan$107.991 Year
  • All Languages – 12-month plan7 Days trial$107.991 Year

Questions

Is Japanese Dictionary + free?
Japanese Dictionary + is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Babbel free?
Babbel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Japanese Dictionary + or Babbel?
Babbel is rated higher. Japanese Dictionary + averages 4.6 out of 5 from 223 ratings, while Babbel averages 4.7 from 757K ratings.
Do Japanese Dictionary + or Babbel have ads?
Both Japanese Dictionary + and Babbel show ads.
Which is updated more often, Japanese Dictionary + or Babbel?
Japanese Dictionary + ships an update every 2 months, and Babbel every 6 days. Most recently, Japanese Dictionary + was updated on October 16, 2026 and Babbel on October 21, 2026.

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