Comparison

Babbel vs Ling

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

Head to head
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 for one language. 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: • 1 month • 3 months • 6 months • 12 months 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.

About

Ling

Master over 70 languages with fun, bite-sized lessons. Develop speaking, reading, listening, and writing skills with native speaker audio and cultural insights. Science-backed methods ensure retention, making even difficult languages accessible.

Highlights
  • 70+ languages available
  • Bite-sized lessons
  • Native speaker audio
  • Cultural insights
  • Speaking, reading, listening, writing skills
  • Science-backed learning methodology
Features
Read full description

Finally, a language-learning app that helps beginner to advanced learners speak, read, write, and listen in 70+ languages. Download Ling for FREE and start learning… Afrikaans • Albanian • Amharic • Arabic • Armenian • Azerbaijani • Bengali • Bosnian • Bulgarian • Burmese • Cantonese • Catalan • Cebuano • Chinese Simplified • Chinese Traditional • Croatian • Czech • Danish • Dutch • English • Estonian • Finnish • French • German • Georgian • Greek • Gujarati • Hebrew • Hindi • Hokkien • Hungarian • Icelandic • Ilocano • Indonesian • Irish • Italian • Japanese • Javanese • Kannada • Kazakh • Khmer • Korean • Lao • Latvian • Lithuanian • Macedonian • Malaysian • Malayalam • Maori • Marathi • Mongolian • Norwegian • Nepali • Polish • Portuguese • Pashto • Persian • Punjabi • Romanian • Russian • Serbian • Sinhala • Slovak • Slovenian • Somali • Sorbian • Spanish • Sundanese • Swahili • Swedish • Tagalog • Tamil • Telugu • Thai • Turkish • Ukrainian • Urdu • Uzbek • Vietnamese • Yoruba Build speaking, reading, listening, and writing skills all in one place, plus… - Hard languages made easy: Find languages not commonly featured in other apps and enjoy lessons that make learning simple - Cultural insights: Understand the beautiful cultures behind lesser-known languages with our Culture Notes feature - Native speaker guidance: Learn correct pronunciation with audio from native speakers - Science-backed learning: Our methodology ensures you retain what you learn, making even the most difficult languages stick - Motivating: Track your progress, set language goals, and earn rewards as you practice and grow - Daily practice: Turn language learning into a habit with daily lessons that fit into your routine Experience more of Ling... https://ling-app.com/ https://www.instagram.com/ling_app/ https://www.youtube.com/@LingLearnLanguages https://www.tiktok.com/@ling_app?lang=en https://www.facebook.com/Ling.learn.languages/ https://www.quora.com/Ling-Language-Lessons If you have any comments, suggestions, or concerns, please feel free to reach out at support@ling-app.com Terms of Use: https://ling-app.com/terms-of-use/ Privacy Policy: https://ling-app.com/privacy-policy/

Screenshots

Babbel4 screens
Ling4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Ling at free with in-app purchases against Babbel's subscription. Ling also leads on review sentiment (61% vs 44%) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). Babbel's advantage is ratings volume (754K vs 15K) and chart position (#9 vs #66). On price, rating, update cadence 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. Babbel sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $17.99 per month and Ling sells 20 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 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 — 4.7 for Babbel against 4.6 for Ling. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Babbel has 754K ratings behind it against 15K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 44% of Babbel's written reviews are positive against 61% of Ling's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Babbel ships an update every 4 days, Ling weekly. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Babbel versus Ling: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBabbelLing
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (754K ratings) — better4.6 (15K ratings)
Positive reviews43.7% of reviews60.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings754K — better15K
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterWeekly
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#9 — better#66
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size263 MB176 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperBabbel GmbHSIMYA LABS COMPANY LIMITED

Customer experience

Babbel

All ratings753,872 ratings
Positive93.8%
Neutral3.8%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews2,638 reviews
Positive43.7%
Neutral13.9%
Negative42.3%

Ling

All ratings15,416 ratings
Positive91.4%
Neutral3.7%
Negative4.9%
Written reviews2,112 reviews
Positive60.8%
Neutral12.3%
Negative26.9%

User reviews

Babbel

From 754K 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

Ling

From 15K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Bite-sized lessons
  • 🎮 Gamified learning
  • 📚 Offers rare languages
  • 🗣️ Good pronunciation

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy, glitchy
  • 💰 Expensive, pay to learn
  • 🤖 Robotic voices
  • 🧠 Lessons not in logical order
  • 🔍 Lack of basic vocabulary and grammar

Bugs and requests

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

Ling

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Progress resets to zero
  • Incorrect translations and pronunciations
  • Lessons skipping ahead unexpectedly
  • Microphone issues, can't record properly
  • Sync issues across devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Allow retry/go back in lessons
  • Improve speech recognition
  • Add grammar explanations
  • Provide more review and practice options
  • Introduce alphabet/writing system first

In-app purchases

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
20 purchases

Ling

Subscriptions19
  • Ling Monthly Subscription$7.991 Month
  • Monthly Language Learning Plan$10.991 Month
  • Ling Monthly Subscription2 variants$14.991 Month
Show 16 more
  • Ling Pro 1 Month Subscription$16.991 Month
  • Ling Half Yearly Subscription$39.996 Months
  • Ling 3 Month Subscription$39.993 Months
  • Learn Language Pro Yearly 77 Days trial$48.991 Year
  • Ling Pro Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$54.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription$59.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • Black Friday Offer7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$69.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription7 Days trial2 variants$79.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription$79.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription3 Days trial$79.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription14 Days trial$79.991 Year
  • Ling Pro 12 Month Subscription7 Days trial$89.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • Ling Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$119.991 Year
One-time1
  • Ling Pro Lifetime Plan$199.99

Questions

Is Babbel free?
Babbel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ling free?
Ling is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Babbel or Ling?
Babbel is rated higher. Babbel averages 4.7 out of 5 from 754K ratings, while Ling averages 4.6 from 15K ratings.
Do Babbel or Ling have ads?
Both Babbel and Ling show ads.
Which is updated more often, Babbel or Ling?
Babbel ships an update every 4 days, and Ling weekly. Most recently, Babbel was updated on September 24, 2026 and Ling on September 24, 2026.
Which is more popular, Babbel or Ling?
Babbel currently peaks at #9 in the App Store charts, and Ling at #66. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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