# Duolingo vs uTalk

The clearest difference is ads: uTalk at none against Duolingo's shown. uTalk also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Duolingo's advantage is ratings volume (5.5M vs 987) and update cadence (weekly vs monthly). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Duolingo sells 16 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and uTalk sells 89 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Duolingo holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Duolingo has 5.5M ratings behind it against 987, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of Duolingo's written reviews are positive against 63% of uTalk's.

Duolingo ships an update weekly, uTalk monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Duolingo | uTalk |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (5.5M ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/duolingo-language-lessons/id570060128/reviews)** | [4.4 (987 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/utalk-learn-150-plus-languages/id1085013031/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **5.5M** | 987 |
| Positive reviews | **64.6% of reviews** | 62.6% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#1** | — |
| Size | 489 MB | 287 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Duolingo, Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/570060151) | [EuroTalk](https://appshunter.io/developer/296241477) |

## What reviewers say

### Duolingo

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/duolingo-language-lessons/id570060128)

**Currently charting:** #1 Top Free · Education, #1 Top Grossing · Education, #25 Top Grossing, #72 Top Free (US App Store)

Learn languages, math, music, and chess through fun, bite-sized lessons. Build vocabulary, grammar, and real-world skills with a science-based methodology. Track progress and stay motivated with a global community.

**Highlights:** Bite-sized language lessons, Speaking, reading, listening, writing practice, Math skills development, Music reading and playing, Chess strategy and gameplay, Progress tracking and rewards

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (16)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Super Duolingo | $9.99 | per month |
| Super Duolingo | $12.99 | per month |
| Super Duolingo | $12.99 | per month |
| Super Duolingo | $59.99 | per year |
| Super Duolingo | $79.99 | per year |
| Super Duolingo | $83.99 | per year |
| Super Duolingo | $83.99 | per year |
| Super Duolingo | $95.99 | per year |
| Super Duolingo | $119.99 | per year |
| Super Duolingo | $119.99 | per year |
| Chest of Gems | $0.99 | one-time |
| Barrel of Gems (1200) | $4.99 | one-time |
| Chest of Gems (1200) | $4.99 | one-time |
| Cart of Gems (3000) | $9.99 | one-time |
| Barrel of Gems (3000) | $9.99 | one-time |
| Cart of Gems (6500) | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🤩 Fun and entertaining learning experience
- 🎉 Motivating streak and league features
- 🎨 Cute and engaging animations
- 📚 Effective for learning vocabulary and basics
- 🤖 Useful AI-powered features like voice lessons

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤖 Issues with voice recognition and pronunciation feedback
- 🤑 Aggressive monetization tactics and paywall for key features
- 🤯 Frustrating heart/health system that penalizes mistakes
- 🤔 Lack of grammar explanations and focus on just memorizing phrases
- 🤷‍♀️ Inconsistent app experience across platforms

**Reported bugs**

- Freezing or crashing during lessons
- Incorrect translations or answers marked wrong
- Inconsistent behavior of certain features like leagues

**Requested features**

- Add more languages, especially less common ones
- Improve grammar lessons and explanations
- Allow more flexibility in navigating the course content
- Provide better feedback and corrections for mistakes
- Sync progress and features consistently across app and web


### uTalk

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/utalk-learn-150-plus-languages/id1085013031)

Learn over 150 languages with native speaker audio and interactive games. Build vocabulary and pronunciation skills through useful everyday phrases and 60+ topics. Progress through difficulty levels and track your learning journey.

**Highlights:** Learn from native speakers, Interactive games, 60+ learning topics, Offline content download, Progress tracking, Pronunciation practice

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (89)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Learn Latin American Spanish | $3.99 | per month |
| Learn Hebrew | $3.99 | per month |
| Learn Neapolitan | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Luganda | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Wolof | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Amharic | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Sesotho (Southern Sotho) | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Argentinian Spanish | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Canadian French | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Swiss German | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Cebuano | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Flemish | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Georgian | $7.99 | per month |
| Learn Ilocano | $7.99 | per month |
| uTalk Monthly Subscription | $10.99 | per month |
| uTalk's 150+ Languages | $11.99 | per month |
| Learn Kinyarwanda | $34.99 | per 6 months |
| Single Topic Purchase | $0.99 | one-time |
| Taster uCoin Pack | $1.99 | one-time |
| 200 uCoins | $8.99 | one-time |
| 800 uCoins | $32.99 | one-time |
| Learn Russian | $49.99 | one-time |
| Learn Latin American Spanish | $49.99 | one-time |
| Learn French | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Spanish (European) | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Modern Standard Arabic | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Slovenian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Kazakh | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Dari | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Luganda | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Xhosa | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Portuguese | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Maltese | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Neapolitan | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Bosnian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Chinese (Mandarin) | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Armenian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Basque | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Estonian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Italian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Dutch | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Kinyarwanda | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Pashto | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Dzongkha | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Malayalam | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Gujarati | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Catalan | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Latvian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Japanese | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Shona | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Korean | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Tswana | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Flemish | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Yoruba | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Khmer | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Greenlandic | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Argentinian Spanish | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Filipino (Tagalog) | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Amharic | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Swiss German | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Irish | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Macedonian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Haitian Creole | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Nepali | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Egyptian Arabic | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Albanian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Kurdish (Sorani) | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Georgian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Shanghainese | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Urdu | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Bengali | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Tibetan | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Tigrinya | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Sicilian | $54.99 | one-time |
| Learn Sinhala | $54.99 | one-time |
| Pack of 2600 uCoins | $64.99 | one-time |
| Learn Croatian | $69.99 | one-time |
| Learn Chichewa | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Lao | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Scots | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Ilocano | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Samoan | $99.99 | one-time |
| Arabic (Gulf) | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Wolof | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Cebuano | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Moroccan Arabic | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Lebanese Arabic | $99.99 | one-time |
| Learn Canadian French | $99.99 | one-time |
| uTalk's 150+ Languages | $199.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy and fun to use
- 👍 Variety of languages available
- 💡 Rare languages like Kurdish and Cebuano
- 👍 Native speaker audio for pronunciation
- 🚀 Effective for learning vocabulary

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and bugs
- 💰 Expensive subscription and in-app purchases
- 🤔 Inconsistent translations and pronunciations
- 🤔 Lack of grammar and sentence structure lessons
- 🤔 Difficulty cancelling subscription

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes on launch or during use
- Syncing and login issues
- Incorrect translations or pronunciations
- Compatibility problems on newer devices

**Requested features**

- Add more grammar and sentence structure lessons
- Improve user interface for larger screens
- Allow users to record and compare their own pronunciation
- Provide more localized content for each language
- Improve subscription management and cancellation process


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Duolingo free?

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

### Is uTalk free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Duolingo or uTalk?

Duolingo is rated higher. Duolingo averages 4.7 out of 5 from 5.5M ratings, while uTalk averages 4.4 from 987 ratings.

### Do Duolingo or uTalk have ads?

Duolingo shows ads; uTalk does not.

### Which is updated more often, Duolingo or uTalk?

Duolingo ships an update weekly, and uTalk monthly. Most recently, Duolingo was updated on September 24, 2026 and uTalk on September 25, 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.*