Comparison

Babbel vs Glisten · Language Podcasts

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

Head to head
About

Babbel

Learn a new language through real-life conversations and bite-sized lessons. This award-winning app, built by language experts, offers courses tailored to your native tongue and includes an AI conversation partner for pronunciation practice. Start speaking in as little as 3 weeks with a proven method.

Highlights
  • Tailored courses for native speakers
  • Real-life conversation practice
  • AI-powered pronunciation feedback
  • Bite-sized, effective lessons
  • Grammar explained in context
  • Offline lesson access
  • Smart review system
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 (Beta)*, 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 • 1.6 million 5-star ratings across platforms (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. 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: • 3 months • 6 months • 12 months • Lifetime 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/babbel Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/babbel.languages CONTACT US Questions or feedback? Email: support-mobile@babbel.com *Babbel Speak is in beta: functionality, quality, and availability may change or be withdrawn at any time. Babbel reserves the right to charge for this feature in the future. **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

Glisten · Language Podcasts

Learn languages through authentic podcasts and guided listening exercises. This app offers synchronized transcripts with instant translations to help you understand real conversations and improve your fluency. It's designed for hands-free learning on the go.

Highlights
  • Learn from thousands of podcasts
  • Guided listening workouts
  • Synchronized transcripts
  • Instant translations
  • Progress tracking
  • Hands-free learning
  • Multi-device support
Features
Read full description

Learn languages with podcasts, training your ears to understand real conversations. Glisten isn’t just another language app — it’s your companion for real-world listening practice. It actively helps you understand native speakers. Glisten combines authentic podcasts with the guidance of a language course. It’s like having a personal tutor built right into a podcast player. Whether you’re commuting, cooking, or walking the dog, Glisten turns your downtime into language learning time. WHY CHOOSE GLISTEN? Immerse in Real Conversations Glisten taps into podcasts from Apple Podcasts, giving you access to authentic conversations in your target language. Learn on the Go Glisten fits into your day — no textbooks or screens required. Just listen and improve. Guided Listening Workouts Practice with workouts that repeat sentences, slow down speech, or pause to help you catch every word. Read Along with Transcripts Follow synchronized text for each podcast — with instant translations to clarify tricky phrases. Support at Your Level Choose Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced mode to get just the right amount of guidance. Proven 'Comprehensible Input' Method Follow a proven method recommended by language experts, listening to boost fluency. It’s like a gym for your ears! FEATURES AT A GLANCE • Learn from thousands of podcasts in Spanish, French, English, Chinese, German, and more. • Practice listening with workouts that repeat sentences and slow down speech. • Read along with transcripts to see what’s being said. • Instant translations to break down tricky phrases. • Train with guided workouts to improve your comprehension. • Track your progress, maintaining your streak, and monitoring how long you’ve listened. • Hands-free learning while commuting, walking the dog, or exercising. • Use Glisten across all your devices — iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro, and Apple Watch. FREE VS PRO Glisten is free to use with unlimited podcast downloads and basic listening workouts. Upgrade to Glisten Pro to unlock powerful features like: • Inline translations • Advanced guided workouts • Workouts for practicing speech (eg shadowing) • Import of any audio file or feed link • Glisten for Apple Watch Try Glisten Pro with a free trial and experience the full power of learning through guided podcast listening. CUSTOMER REVIEWS “I just tried this application out, and I love it … It’s an awesome way to immerse yourself in Spanish, and be able to repeat things and see the transcript when needed.” Doc Molly on App Store “I love this app! It’s what I’ve been searching for … being able to change workout styles whenever you feel like it keeps the whole process fresh. ” lovin the phone on App Store “Glisten adds a whole new dimension, making difficult content much more accessible. I now recommend it to students of all levels.” Débora López Rodríguez (Español Universal) GO GLISTEN! Glisten has no ads and no time limit on free usage. Download for free, and begin your journey to fluency now with Glisten! GLISTEN TERMS OF USE (EULA) Please visit: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Babbel4 screens
Glisten · Language Podcasts4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Glisten · Language Podcasts at none against Babbel's shown. Glisten · Language Podcasts also leads on review sentiment (71% vs 44%) and device support (5 vs 2). Babbel's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 6 weeks) and ratings volume (758K vs 26). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and iOS requirement 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 10 in-app purchases, starting at $17.99 per month and Glisten · Language Podcasts sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Babbel holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Babbel has 758K ratings behind it against 26, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 44% of Babbel's written reviews are positive against 71% of Glisten · Language Podcasts's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Babbel ships an update every 4 days, Glisten · Language Podcasts every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Babbel versus Glisten · Language Podcasts: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBabbelGlisten · Language Podcasts
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (758K ratings) — better4.5 (26 ratings)
Positive reviews44.1% of reviews71.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings758K — better26
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
Best chart rank#13 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size286 MB172 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperBabbel GmbHThe Mental Faculty

Customer experience

Babbel

All ratings757,706 ratings
Positive93.7%
Neutral3.8%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews2,801 reviews
Positive44.1%
Neutral13.9%
Negative41.9%

Glisten · Language Podcasts

All ratings26 ratings
Positive88.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.5%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive71.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative28.6%

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

Glisten · Language Podcasts

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Babbel

Subscriptions10
  • Mexican Spanish – 1-month plan$17.991 Month
  • Spanish 1 month$17.991 Month
  • French 1 month$17.991 Month
Show 7 more
  • Italian 1 month$17.991 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
  • 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
2 purchases

Glisten · Language Podcasts

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$19.991 Year

Questions

Is Babbel free?
Babbel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Glisten · Language Podcasts free?
Glisten · Language Podcasts is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Babbel or Glisten · Language Podcasts?
Babbel is rated higher. Babbel averages 4.7 out of 5 from 758K ratings, while Glisten · Language Podcasts averages 4.5 from 26 ratings.
Do Babbel or Glisten · Language Podcasts have ads?
Babbel shows ads; Glisten · Language Podcasts does not.
Which is updated more often, Babbel or Glisten · Language Podcasts?
Babbel ships an update every 4 days, and Glisten · Language Podcasts every 6 weeks. Most recently, Babbel was updated on November 10, 2026 and Glisten · Language Podcasts on November 3, 2026.

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