# Babbel vs The Planet Speaks

The clearest difference is review sentiment: The Planet Speaks at 100% against Babbel's 44%. The Planet Speaks also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Babbel's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.0) and ratings volume (757K vs 4). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Babbel sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $17.99 per month and The Planet Speaks sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Babbel holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Babbel has 757K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 44% of Babbel's written reviews are positive against 100% of The Planet Speaks's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Babbel ships an update every 5 days, The Planet Speaks monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Babbel | The Planet Speaks |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (757K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/babbel-language-learning/id829587759/reviews)** | [4.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-planet-speaks-languages/id1460207993/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **757K** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 44.0% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 days** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Subscription | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | **#9** | — |
| Size | 272 MB | 224 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Babbel GmbH](https://appshunter.io/developer/357018535) | [Alexey Demidov](https://appshunter.io/developer/1070504790) |

## What reviewers say

### Babbel

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/babbel-language-learning/id829587759)

**Currently charting:** #9 Top Grossing · Education, #41 Top Free · Education (US App Store)

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:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mexican Spanish – 1-month plan | $17.99 | per month |
| Spanish 1 month | $17.99 | per month |
| French 1 month | $17.99 | per month |
| Italian 1 month | $17.99 | per month |
| Mexican Spanish - 1-month plan | $19.99 | per month |
| Mexican Spanish – 3-month plan | $45.99 | per 3 months |
| Learn French – 3-month plan | $45.99 | per 3 months |
| Learn Spanish – 3-month plan | $45.99 | per 3 months |
| All Languages – 3-month plan | $53.99 | per 3 months |
| Mexican Spanish – 1-year plan | $89.99 | per year |
| All Languages – 12-month plan | $107.99 | per year |
| All Languages – 12-month plan | $107.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

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

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 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

**Reported bugs**

- 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**

- 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


### The Planet Speaks

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-planet-speaks-languages/id1460207993)

Learn new languages effectively with a scientifically proven spaced repetition system enhanced by machine learning. This app offers a diverse learning experience using visuals, audio, and video from native speakers to build strong connections to the content.

**Highlights:** Spaced repetition system with machine learning, Audio and video from native speakers, Over 70 hours of video content, Covers 9 essential languages, 5800+ essential words and phrases, Privacy-focused data handling

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $5.99 | per month |
| Quarterly | $14.99 | per 3 months |
| Annually | $49.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Babbel free?

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

### Is The Planet Speaks free?

The Planet Speaks is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Babbel or The Planet Speaks?

Babbel is rated higher. Babbel averages 4.7 out of 5 from 757K ratings, while The Planet Speaks averages 4.0 from 4 ratings.

### Do Babbel or The Planet Speaks have ads?

Babbel shows ads; The Planet Speaks does not.

### Which is updated more often, Babbel or The Planet Speaks?

Babbel ships an update every 5 days, and The Planet Speaks monthly. Most recently, Babbel was updated on October 26, 2026 and The Planet Speaks on October 24, 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.*