Comparison

Innovative Language Learning vs Teach Yourself Library

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

Head to head
About

Innovative Language Learning

Learn to speak new languages quickly with short, engaging audio and video lessons created by experienced teachers. Access a vast library of content for over 30 languages and practice conversations from your first session.

Highlights
  • Short audio/video lessons (3-15 minutes)
  • Lessons taught by real teachers
  • Instant practice with assessments
  • Offline lesson downloads
  • Progress syncing across devices
  • Multiple playback options
Features
Read full description

Want to speak a new language from your 1st lesson? Learn practical conversations fast with fun audio/video lessons made by real teachers. With Innovative Language Learning, you can learn up to 34 languages. Download the App for FREE and start speaking today! === 4 REASONS WHY YOU CAN & WILL LEARN A LANGUAGE === START SPEAKING IN MINUTES: Audio/video lessons are just 3-15 minutes. Just press “Play” and learn practical conversations in every lesson. LEARN FROM REAL TEACHERS Feel confident as you learn from actual teachers and hear real-life conversations. INSTANTLY PRACTICE WHAT YOU’VE LEARNED Tired of learning and forgetting immediately after? That’s why after every few lessons, you’ll get tested on what you’ve learned with our Assessments. 16+ YEARS OF TEACHING LANGUAGES With 2+ billion lesson downloads and 16 years of teaching languages, you’re learning with a time-tested, proven system. === WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING === "This is always my first port of call when starting a new language.” - The Guardian "A painless and FREE way to bone up on the language.” - PC Magazine “Of particular note is SurvivalPhrases, which offers 3- to 5-minute episodes that cover basics.” - The New York Times === 34 LANGUAGES AVAILABLE === Afrikaans Arabic Bulgarian Cantonese Chinese Czech Danish Dutch English Filipino Finnish French German Greek Hebrew Hindi Hungarian Indonesian Italian Japanese Korean Norwegian Persian Polish Portuguese Romanian Russian Spanish Swahili Swedish Thai Turkish Urdu Vietnamese === WHAT’S INSIDE THE APP === Start now and access hundreds of audio and video lessons by real teachers, lesson notes, study tools and more. You get: - A 7-Day Free Premium Trial of Any of Our Language Courses (Free) - New Audio & Video Lessons EVERY Week for LIFE (Free) - Offline Mode - Download Lessons to My Library (Free) - Daily Vocabulary Lessons Delivered to Your Email (Free) - Progress Syncing Across Devices - Start On One Device & Finish on Another (Free) - Multiple Playback Options - Stream from the App or the Lock-Screen, Skip Ahead & Control the Speed of Your Lessons (Free) - The Largest Library of Audio & Video Lessons (Basic Users & Above) - In-Depth Lesson Notes with Grammar Explanations (Basic Users & Above) - Progress Tools to Track Your Learning Progress (Basic Users & Above) - Line-by-Line Breakdowns of Lesson Dialogues (Premium Users & Above) - Word Bank - Your Own Custom Vocabulary List (Premium Users & Above) - 1-on-1 Learning with Your Own Teacher (Premium PLUS only) - Get a Personalized Learning Program & Guidance (Premium PLUS Only) === DOWNLOAD THE APP & LEARN FREE TODAY. === Download the App and sign up for your Free Lifetime Account. You get a 7-day Trial of our entire Learning System – both the mobile app and the desktop version! Want to add Basic, Premium, or Premium PLUS and learn on your device and computer? There's an option for that, too. *Please note that subscriptions made using the in-app purchases will auto-renew at the end of the subscription period and be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase unless you turn off auto-renew at least 24 hours before the end of your current subscription period. Subscriptions made through in-app purchases cannot be cancelled during active subscription period. Please see this article for managing your in-app subscriptions and auto-renewal: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4098 Monthly Premium PLUS Access: $46.99/month per language Monthly Premium Access: $24.99/month per language Monthly Basic Access: $7.99/month per language *all amounts are in US dollars. At Innovative Language Learning, we take your privacy very seriously. You can view our privacy policy here: http://www.innovativelanguage.com/privacy You can view our Terms of Service here: https://www.innovativelanguage.com/terms-of-service

About

Teach Yourself Library

Access free audio and learning resources to supplement your studies. Download materials to your personal library for anytime, anywhere learning. Sync your content across devices for a seamless experience.

Highlights
  • Free audio resources
  • Learning materials
  • Offline access
  • Cross-device syncing
  • Downloadable content
Features
Read full description

Discover a world of free audio and learning resources to accompany your Teach Yourself course. Teach Yourself has been trusted by learners for over 75 years to deliver expert learning materials across a wide range of topic areas – languages, business, careers, self-help, creative writing and hobbies. Now for the first time you can access any accompanying audio or learning resources in this free app. Download the resources to your Library and access anywhere anytime. You can even sign in from a different device and all your content will be queued for easy downloading. Teach Yourself: books that make life better.

Screenshots

Innovative Language Learning4 screens
Teach Yourself Library4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Innovative Language Learning at 4.7 against Teach Yourself Library's 3.9. Innovative Language Learning also leads on review sentiment (67% vs 31%) and ratings volume (34K vs 144). 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. Innovative Language Learning sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month and Teach Yourself Library sells 16 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Innovative Language Learning holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Innovative Language Learning has 34K ratings behind it against 144, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of Innovative Language Learning's written reviews are positive against 31% of Teach Yourself Library's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Innovative Language Learning ships an update every 2 months, Teach Yourself Library every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Innovative Language Learning versus Teach Yourself Library: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterInnovative Language LearningTeach Yourself Library
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (34K ratings) — better3.9 (144 ratings)
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews — better30.5% of reviews
Number of ratings34K — better144
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size52 MB96 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperInnovative Language Learning USA LLCHachette UK (Holdings)Limited

Customer experience

Innovative Language Learning

All ratings34,138 ratings
Positive93.1%
Neutral3.3%
Negative3.5%
Written reviews657 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral8.7%
Negative24.7%

Teach Yourself Library

All ratings144 ratings
Positive71.5%
Neutral5.6%
Negative22.9%
Written reviews95 reviews
Positive30.5%
Neutral13.7%
Negative55.8%

User reviews

Innovative Language Learning

From 34K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Well-constructed course
  • 🚀 Comprehensive learning system
  • 👍 Option to use a night screen
  • 👍 Engaging and interesting lessons
  • 👍 Helpful for learning and improving language skills

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Freezing and crashing issues
  • 🐛 Lessons getting locked after 7 days
  • 🐛 Inconsistent performance across devices
  • 🐛 Bugs with audio and video playback
  • 🐛 Errors and typos in lesson content

Teach Yourself Library

From 144 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Good content of books
  • 👍 Helpful for language learning
  • 👍 Clear audio pronunciation
  • 👍 Easy to navigate interface
  • 👍 Free titles available

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🐛 App doesn't open or crashes on launch
  • 🐛 Audio playback issues
  • 🐛 Downloads fail
  • 🐛 Poor user experience

Bugs and requests

Innovative Language Learning

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Lessons not downloading successfully
  • Screen freezing when using certain features
  • Inconsistent lesson navigation between app and website
  • Automatic subscription renewal issues

Requested features

5 requests
  • Flashcard functionality in the app
  • Ability to create custom playlists
  • Improved integration between app and website
  • More advanced features like speech recognition
  • Ability to switch between multiple languages

Teach Yourself Library

Reported bugs

89 issues
  • App doesn't open
  • Crashes on launch
  • Downloads not working
  • App keeps logging off
  • App not opening on iPhone
Show 84 more
  • App closing spontaneously
  • Requires internet connection when available
  • Crashes when features are selected
  • Arrow keys don't turn pages on Mac
  • UI is confusing
  • Clicking on buttons navigates pages
  • No way to pop from book to collection
  • Visual affordances lacking
  • Clicking page makes text appear/disappear
  • Book content broken across pages
  • Default font tiny, font settings don't work
  • App is unstable, crashes frequently
  • Doesn't save progress
  • Cannot play some downloaded audios
  • No way to re-download audios
  • App won't sign in
  • Buttons too small to click
  • Audio doesn't play
  • Yellow text on yellow background
  • No proper categories for genres
  • Little accessibility options
  • Menu is terrible, no easy way to select chapters
  • App port of a browser page
  • App says user has to pay for purchased content
  • Audio player doesn't stay on Lock Screen
  • Makes everything zoomed in and keyboard larger
  • Audio dialogues don't work well
  • App is rubbish
  • Forced to use phone, not laptop
  • Audio doesn't display track numbers
  • Video in ebook says highlighting words, but can't
  • Dictionary takes to external sites
  • App not updated for larger screens
  • Basic features like translation lookup missing
  • No support received
  • App says 'Coming Soon' for books
  • Unable to access purchased books or sign in
  • App quits or says 'coming soon' for audio
  • App closes automatically when reproducing a book
  • App closes automatically
  • App crashes when opening files
  • App crashes and won't open
  • Audio doesn't work with iOS 13
  • App keeps closed
  • App crashes when playing a chapter
  • Not compatible with iOS 13
  • App crashes constantly when tapping on a book
  • Audio app not working
  • App doesn't open and listenings can't be heard
  • Crashes on iOS 13
  • Not working since iOS 13 update
  • App crashes
  • App automatically shuts down when clicking a clip
  • Layout not compatible with iPads
  • Cannot play audio content
  • App closes when opening audio for Norwegian
  • Upgrade stopped French from working
  • Program keeps closing when trying to listen to lessons
  • Can't open ANYTHING
  • App crashing when choosing chapters/audio recordings
  • Audio no longer works
  • App crashes and shuts down when opening a new language
  • App isn't working, program closes when playing French
  • Not all languages available in audio library
  • Missing language audio (Serbian, Latvian)
  • App doesn't work from the beginning on iPhone X
  • Terrible to sign into
  • Doesn't allow profile creation or sign in via social media
  • Error message and sent back to first page when skipping sign in
  • No sound in ebook, icon present but no mention of audio
  • App crashes after each track play when switching pages
  • Downloading audio takes multiple retries
  • Confusing app, hard to find/access audio
  • No way to buy audiobooks or audio/book
  • Audio download is good, but better chapter labeling needed
  • App keeps closing even after uninstall/reinstall
  • App closes when clicking on a clip to play
  • Poor app design
  • Cannot download audio to iTunes or media player
  • Listening and re-listening is not intuitive
  • App is a mess
  • No control over content paid for
  • No clear pictures, up-to-date phrases, or easy audio access
  • Worst educational tool encountered

Requested features

15 requests
  • Track repeat functionality
  • More exercises, words, and grammar
  • Chapters listed as default
  • Shorter jump forward/back options
  • Audio player on lock screen
Show 10 more
  • Longer pause between tracks
  • Better chapter labeling for audio
  • Make all complete language audio available
  • Highlighting words in ebooks
  • Proper in-app dictionary
  • Update for larger screens
  • Allow use of other e-reader software
  • Download audio files to iTunes/media player
  • More pause time for practice
  • Add missing units

In-app purchases

13 purchases

Innovative Language Learning

Subscriptions13
  • French Basic Subscription$7.991 Month
  • Korean Basic Subscription$7.991 Month
  • Italian Basic Subscription$7.991 Month
Show 10 more
  • Japanese Basic Subscription$7.991 Month
  • Spanish Basic Subscription$7.991 Month
  • French Mobile Subscription$9.991 Month
  • Korean Mobile Subscription$9.991 Month
  • Russian Mobile Subscription$9.991 Month
  • Spanish Mobile Subscription$9.991 Month
  • Japanese Mobile Subscription$9.991 Month
  • Japanese Premium Subscription$24.991 Month
  • Spanish Premium Subscription$24.991 Month
  • Japanese Basic Subscription1 Year trial$59.991 Year
16 purchases

Teach Yourself Library

One-time16
  • Pack of 2 Tokens$1.99
  • Pack of 3 Tokens$2.99
  • Pack of 10 Tokens$9.99
Show 13 more
  • Pack of 11 Tokens$10.99
  • Pack of 13 Tokens$12.99
  • Pack of 15 Tokens$14.99
  • Pack of 17 Tokens$16.99
  • Pack of 18 Tokens$17.99
  • Pack of 20 Tokens$19.99
  • Pack of 25 Tokens$24.99
  • Pack of 26 Tokens$25.99
  • Pack of 27 Tokens$26.99
  • Pack of 30 Tokens$29.99
  • Pack of 35 Tokens$34.99
  • Pack of 50 Credits$49.99
  • Pack of 51 Credits$50.99

Questions

Is Innovative Language Learning free?
Innovative Language Learning is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Teach Yourself Library free?
Teach Yourself Library is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Innovative Language Learning or Teach Yourself Library?
Innovative Language Learning is rated higher. Innovative Language Learning averages 4.7 out of 5 from 34K ratings, while Teach Yourself Library averages 3.9 from 144 ratings.
Do Innovative Language Learning or Teach Yourself Library have ads?
Neither Innovative Language Learning nor Teach Yourself Library shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Innovative Language Learning or Teach Yourself Library?
Innovative Language Learning ships an update every 2 months, and Teach Yourself Library every 4 months. Most recently, Innovative Language Learning was updated on October 16, 2026 and Teach Yourself Library on October 10, 2026.

Other comparisons