Babbel vs Phrases
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.
Phrases
Master a new language with engaging exercises and a smart learning algorithm. Offers ready-made or custom lessons, a built-in dictionary, and hands-free learning options. Track progress, earn rewards, and achieve fluency in just 20 minutes a day.
- 8 unique exercises
- Customizable lessons
- Built-in dictionary
- Accurate pronunciations
- Smart learning algorithm
- Progress tracking and rewards
- Hands-free and offline modes
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Phrases - Your Ultimate Language Learning Companion! With over 10 years of experience, we've created an app that is motivational, easy to use, and built for your success. Do you want to master a new language quickly and confidently? Phrases is your best choice for learning English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian! Why Phrases is the best app: - 8 Unique Exercises: Master specific skills with short and fun lessons. - Ready-made & Custom Lessons: Learn with expert-created lessons or make your own. - Built-In Dictionary & Examples: Get instant translations and see word usage. - Accurate Pronunciations for all phrases. - Smart Learning Algorithm: Personalised training for faster learning. - Achievements & Statistics: Track progress, earn rewards and stay motivated. - Hands-Free Mode: Learn on the go while shopping, walking, or commuting. - Offline Mode: Study anywhere, even without the internet. - iCloud Sync: Learn across all your devices. - Unlock Your Potential in Just 20 Minutes a Day. Make the most of your free time with Phrases. Learn new phrases only 20 minutes a day and boost your language fluency. Improve your language skills. Engaging exercises make learning feel like play. Each session targets skills like listening, spelling, and speaking, while our smart algorithm helps you practice tricky phrases until you master them. Earn points, win rewards, and see your progress grow! Thematic Blocks. Tailor your learning to what's most relevant right now, from people, food, and health to nature, clothing, and money and many more. Superfood for Your Brain. Join millions of users who are improving their language skills and building strong learning habits. Phrases is your fastest path to a language fluency. Subscription Information The subscription automatically renews unless auto-renewal is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours of the end of the current period, and the cost of the renewal will be provided. Subscriptions may be managed by the user. Auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user’s iTunes account settings after purchase. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication. Support: support@ulilab.com Site: https://ulilab.com Privacy policy: https://ulilab.com/privacy Terms of use: https://ulilab.com/terms
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Phrases at free with in-app purchases against Babbel's subscription. Phrases also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (75% vs 44%). Babbel's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (754K vs 140). On price, rating, in-app purchases and device support 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 Phrases sells 19 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. 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 Phrases. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Babbel has 754K ratings behind it against 140, 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 75% of Phrases's.
Babbel ships an update every 4 days, Phrases every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Babbel | Phrases |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (754K ratings) — better | 4.6 (140 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 43.7% of reviews | 74.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 754K — better | 140 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 days — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Subscription | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #10 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 17.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 263 MB | 199 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Babbel GmbH | Andrey Lebedev |
Customer experience
Babbel
Phrases
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
Phrases
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
Phrases
- Premium Plus$4.997 Days
- Premium Plus3 Days trial$5.997 Days
- Premium (English)$13.991 Month
Show 15 moreShow fewer
- Premium (Spanish)$19.991 Year
- Premium (English)$19.991 Year
- Premium (German)$19.991 Year
- Premium Plus2 variants$24.991 Year
- Premium (English)2 variants$39.993 Months
- Premium (Spanish)2 variants$39.993 Months
- Premium (French)$39.991 Year
- Premium (German)$39.991 Year
- Premium Plus$47.991 Year
- Premium (Russian)7 Days trial$79.991 Year
- Premium (German)7 Days trial$79.991 Year
- Premium (English)$79.991 Year
- Premium (English)7 Days trial$79.991 Year
- Premium (Spanish)7 Days trial$79.991 Year
- Premium Plus7 Days trial$95.991 Year
- Premium Plus$129.99








