Babbel vs Words
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- Bite-sized lessons
- Expert-built courses
- Interactive conversation practice
- Smart review system
- Grammar in context
- Offline mode
- Learn 14 languages
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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.
Words
Master vocabulary in 14 languages with flashcards and interactive exercises. Features native speaker audio and a structured learning list to reinforce memorization. Ideal for on-the-go language learning.
- 14 languages supported
- Thousands of words per language
- Native speaker audio
- Flashcard review
- Multiple choice exercises
- Spelling exercises
- Listening exercises
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Learn 1000's of words in 14 languages including French, Spanish, Japanese, Italian, Korean, German, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional scripts), Hebrew, Greek, Russian, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese and now Inglés! * French - 4,400 words in 111 topics * Spanish - 3,800 words in 86 topics * Japanese - 6,500 words in 111 topics * Chinese (simplified and traditional) - 5,700 words in 125 topics * Italian - 5,000 words in 110 topics * Korean - 6,200 words in 126 topics * German - 2,400 words in 98 topics * Hebrew - 4,100 words in 139 topics * Greek - 4,500 words in 119 topics * Russian - 3,400 words in 105 topics * Brazilian Portuguese - 3,300 words in 83 topics * Portuguese - 3,100 words in 60 topics * Inglés! - 5,500 words in 141 topics Each language includes 1000s of words organised by topic, And each and every word with REAL native speaker audio. Start by reviewing the words in groups of ten (the learning list). Then jump into the exercises - multiple choice, spelling and listening. Get one answer wrong and you have to redo all the exercises for that word - reinforcing the words that words that need most attention. Features and benefits: * Every language includes 1000s of words. * Every word includes a native speaker's audio recording. * Flashcard review and exercises to aid memorization. * Strict Learning-List testing technique ensures word retention. With Declan FlashCards, learning a language is as simple as turning on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch. Packed with over 1000s of words and phrases, Declan FlashCards is an easy way to learn a language's fundamentals, such as the days of the week, numbers, useful phrases and expressions, articles, verbs, and nouns. All words and phrases come with a native speaker's audio recording, making it easier for you to learn the correct pronunciation. So, whether you're a beginner, or simply need to polish up your language skills, pull out Declan FlashCards wherever you are -- on the bus, waiting at the doctor's office, or even in line at the supermarket. Details: The Learning List: The words are learned based on a Learning List. The Learning List contains a subset of all the words in the WordFile – 10 words by default (although this can be changed by users). The Learning List allows users to concentrate learning a small group of words at any one time. Once a word is learned (by reviewing the Learning List and completing the Exercises) it is removed from the Learning List and is replaced by another, as yet unlearned word from the WordFile. This continues until the whole WordFile is learned. Exercises: Words in the learning list should first be Reviewed using the “Review Learning List” option. Then users can move to the Exercises which include the Meaning Exercise, the Word Exercise, the Spelling Exercise and the Listening Exercise. Once all the exercises have been correctly completed, the word is marked as complete, removed from the Learning List and replaced by a new word. However, if the user gets one answer wrong in any of the exercises, then all the exercises must be completed again for that one word. This ensures comprehensive learning and retention. All personal data is handled under the terms and conditions of Declan Software's privacy policy here: declansoftware.com/privacy-policy.html and terms of use here: declansoftware.com/terms-conditions.html
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Words at free with in-app purchases against Babbel's subscription. Words also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (12.4 vs 17.0). Babbel's advantage is ratings volume (754K vs 39) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, rating, review sentiment and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Babbel sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $17.99 per month and Words sells 19 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Babbel against 4.6 for Words. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Babbel has 754K ratings behind it against 39, 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 50% of Words's.
Babbel ships an update every 4 days, Words every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and September 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Babbel | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (754K ratings) — better | 4.6 (39 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 43.9% of reviews | 50.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 754K — better | 39 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 days — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Subscription | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #14 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 12.4 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 263 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Babbel GmbH | Declan Software |
Customer experience
Babbel
Words
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
Words
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Babbel
- Mexican Spanish – 1-month plan$17.991 Month
- Spanish 1 month$17.991 Month
- French 1 month$17.991 Month
Show 9 moreShow fewer
- 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
Words
- Hebrew: 1 month subscription7 Days trial$7.991 Month
- Korean: 1 month subscription7 Days trial$7.997 Days
- Russian: 1 month subscription7 Days trial$7.991 Month
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- Italian: 1 year subscription7 Days trial$47.991 Year
- Hebrew: 1 year subscription7 Days trial$47.991 Year
- Korean: 1 year subscription7 Days trial$47.991 Year
- Ingles Lifetime Purchase$4.99
- French Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Chinese Lifetime Purchase$14.99
Show 10 moreShow fewer
- German Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Hebrew Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Italian Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Russian Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Brazilian Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Korean Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Traditional Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Japanese Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Spanish Lifetime Purchase$14.99
- Greek Lifetime Purchase$14.99
Questions
Is Babbel free?
Is Words free?
Which has better reviews, Babbel or Words?
Do Babbel or Words have ads?
Which is updated more often, Babbel or Words?
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