Comparison

Babbel vs Speak and Learn

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

Speak and Learn

Practice spoken English with AI companions in realistic dialogues. Improve pronunciation and fluency with instant feedback. Track your progress and build confidence for exams, travel, or professional communication.

Highlights
  • Realistic AI conversations
  • Interactive AI companions
  • Speech recognition and feedback
  • Learning path with tailored scenarios
  • Progress tracking and analytics
Features
Read full description

Speak and Learn: Master English Conversations with AI Companions Welcome to SAL, the revolutionary app designed for non-native English speakers who wish to gain confidence in their spoken English. This innovative app offers a unique learning experience by allowing you to engage in realistic English dialogues with AI characters that resemble real people. Key Features: * Realistic Conversations: Our advanced technology simulates real-life conversations, providing you with a practical and immersive learning environment. * Learning Path: Whether you're a beginner or looking to polish your fluency, app offering tailored dialogue scenarios. * Interactive AI Companions: Engage with a diverse range of AI characters, each with their own personalities and accents, to broaden your conversational skills and cultural understanding. * Speech Recognition & Feedback: Improve your pronunciation and fluency with instant cutting-edge speech recognition technology. * Progress Tracking: Monitor your improvement with analytics on your speaking proficiency, vocabulary growth, and more. Who is it for? SAL is ideal for individuals who have a basic understanding of English but lack the confidence to speak fluently. Whether you're preparing for an English exam, planning to travel to English-speaking countries, or looking to enhance your professional communication skills, our app provides the perfect platform to practice and improve your spoken English in a stress-free environment.

Screenshots

Babbel4 screens
Speak and Learn4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Speak and Learn at free with in-app purchases against Babbel's subscription. Speak and Learn also leads on iOS requirement (14.5 vs 17.0). Babbel's advantage is ratings volume (754K vs 83) and chart position (#8 vs unranked). 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 Speak and Learn sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. 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 4.7 for Speak and Learn. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Babbel has 754K ratings behind it against 83, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Babbel ships an update every 4 days, Speak and Learn every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and August 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Babbel versus Speak and Learn: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBabbelSpeak and Learn
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (754K ratings)4.7 (83 ratings)
Positive reviews43.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings754K — better83
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 8 days
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#8 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.014.5 — better
Further details — not scored
Size263 MB204 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperBabbel GmbHERVI FIRST LLC

Customer experience

Babbel

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

Speak and Learn

All ratings83 ratings
Positive94.0%
Neutral2.4%
Negative3.6%

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

Speak and Learn

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

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
3 purchases

Speak and Learn

Subscriptions3
  • Speak and Learn - premium3 Days trial$3.997 Days
  • Speak and Learn - premium3 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Speak and Learn - premium3 Days trial$109.991 Year

Questions

Is Babbel free?
Babbel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Speak and Learn free?
Speak and Learn is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Babbel or Speak and Learn?
Babbel and Speak and Learn are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 754K and 83 ratings respectively.
Do Babbel or Speak and Learn have ads?
Both Babbel and Speak and Learn show ads.
Which is updated more often, Babbel or Speak and Learn?
Babbel ships an update every 4 days, and Speak and Learn every 8 days. Most recently, Babbel was updated on September 24, 2026 and Speak and Learn on August 22, 2026.

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