# Duolingo vs J'apprends

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: J'apprends at none against Duolingo's 28. J'apprends also leads on ads (none vs shown) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). Duolingo's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (5.5M vs 5). On price, review sentiment and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Duolingo sells 16 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. J'apprends asks for nothing beyond the download.

J'apprends holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Duolingo has 5.5M ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 65% of Duolingo's written reviews are positive against 57% of J'apprends's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Duolingo ships an update weekly, J'apprends every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and June 4, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Duolingo | J'apprends |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (5.5M ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/duolingo-language-lessons/id570060128/reviews) | **[5.0 (5 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/japprends/id1479864173/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **5.5M** | 5 |
| Positive reviews | **64.6% of reviews** | 57.1% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | **#1** | — |
| Size | 489 MB | 1.1 GB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Duolingo, Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/570060151) | [Small Bang](https://appshunter.io/developer/977648096) |

## 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, #27 Top Grossing, #64 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


### J'apprends

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/japprends/id1479864173)

This app offers a fun and interactive way for adult beginners to learn French. It features mini-games, character interactions, and an audio-visual dictionary to build vocabulary and improve pronunciation. Designed by language experts, it's ideal for those who can neither read nor write.

**Highlights:** Interactive mini-games, Character-based learning, Audio-visual dictionary, Pronunciation practice, Reading and writing exercises, Vocabulary association

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Duolingo free?

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

### Is J'apprends free?

J'apprends is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Duolingo or J'apprends?

J'apprends is rated higher. Duolingo averages 4.7 out of 5 from 5.5M ratings, while J'apprends averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.

### Do Duolingo or J'apprends have ads?

Duolingo shows ads; J'apprends does not.

### Which is updated more often, Duolingo or J'apprends?

Duolingo ships an update weekly, and J'apprends every 2 months. Most recently, Duolingo was updated on September 25, 2026 and J'apprends on June 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.*