Comparison

Lingvist vs Bunpo

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

Head to head
About

Lingvist

This app uses AI and scientific methods to teach vocabulary efficiently for faster language acquisition. It offers personalized learning plans, speech recognition, and spaced repetition to help users remember words long-term. Learn 16 languages with a focus on practical, high-frequency vocabulary.

Highlights
  • AI-powered vocabulary learning
  • Spaced repetition for long-term memory
  • Speech recognition for pronunciation
  • Learn grammar in context
  • Personalized learning plans
  • Customizable vocabulary lists
Features
Read full description

Lingvist is the language learning app built by scientists and language experts that teaches vocabulary better than anyone else in the world. The depth of our AI-powered courses combined with the latest research in machine learning gets you using a language with high proficiency, fast. GET LEVEL PLACED FOR FREE - TRY LINGVIST LEARN 16 LANGUAGES: English, Spanish, German, French, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, Italian, Brazilian Portuguese, Norwegian, Latin American Spanish, Estonian, Polish, Japanese, Korean and Russian. ===== WHY LINGVIST? FOLLOW CONVERSATIONS QUICKLY Learn the vocabulary that appears most often in a language first, allowing you to accelerate your learning. READ, WRITE, SPEAK, AND LISTEN Perfect your pronunciation using sophisticated speech recognition technology or type your answers. Every sentence has audio to ensure you hone your listening skills. FOR SERIOUS LEARNERS Your learning efficiency is our focus. Enjoy a clean UI with no advertising, no unnecessary clicks, and no distractions. REMEMBER A LANGUAGE FOREVER Using scientifically proven spaced repetition methodology, the vocabulary gets fixed in your long-term memory over time. LEARN GRAMMAR IN CONTEXT OR AS A FOCUS Acquire grammar passively like a native with our bite-sized sentences, or practice conjugating French verbs in our French course. SPECIALIST VOCABULARY FOR YOU Submit your own words, images, or text and Lingvist will automatically gather vocabulary related to the theme for you to learn. Whether it’s Harry Potter in German or Spanish colors, you can learn the words most important to you. Our AI works intelligently to provide appropriate context for vocabulary. MOTIVATIONAL STATISTICS Packed with data on your learning progress, you’ll be able to chart your path to success. A MUST-HAVE TOOL IN YOUR BAG Do you live in your target country, use a tutor or language school, or even read books, listen to podcasts, or watch content in your target language? Lingvist works best when used in parallel with other learning methods. It’s the difference between passing your test or acing it. Lingvist is the perfect complement to learn faster and boost your vocabulary. LEARN BY DOING Getting it wrong is one of the fastest ways to learn, and your brain will start to remember very quickly. PERSONALIZED SETTINGS Every learner is different. Personalize your learning to suit you, with various settings allowing you to learn with extra slow speech, strict diacritics, and even grammar tables. PERSONALIZED LEARNING PLAN We'll serve you new words that are most relevant to you. As we measure your memory curves, we ask you to repeat words at the optimal time – just before you forget them. This way, you'll always know what to learn next. LANGUAGE LEARNING MADE EASY Whether you are planning on spending this summer in Italy and need to learn Italian, or your next adventure is taking up a course in Germany and you need an app to learn German, or you're heading to Korea and you need to learn Korean, we have you covered. Our language learning techniques will help you to get fluent in over 16 languages. ===== SUBSCRIPTION You will need a subscription in order to get access to the full learning materials for all languages we offer. Each subscription will be automatically renewed unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current payment period. When a subscription is canceled, access to the app's courses and features will expire at the end of the current payment period. Visit our blog to get tips, tricks, and interesting facts on how to learn languages: ▸▸ Lingvist blog: https://lingvist.com/blog/ Follow us to get interesting facts on how to learn languages: ▸▸ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theLingvist ▸▸ Instagram: instagram.com/thelingvist/ ▸▸ Twitter: https://twitter.com/lingvist ▸▸ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lingvist Privacy Policy: https://lingvist.com/privacy-policy/ Terms of Use: https://lingvist.com/tos/

About

Bunpo

Master multiple languages with this comprehensive learning app. It offers detailed grammar explanations, vocabulary building, and smart review systems to help you progress from beginner to advanced levels. Learn Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, German, and Chinese with interactive exercises and personalized study plans.

Highlights
  • Learn 6 languages
  • Master grammar with detailed explanations
  • Build vocabulary and kanji knowledge
  • Spaced repetition for smart review
  • Interactive quizzes and example sentences
  • Offline learning for Spanish, French, German, Chinese
Features
Read full description

Learn languages with Bunpo! Learn Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, German, Chinese, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Arabic, English and more! Master speaking, grammar, and vocabulary from beginner to advanced, trusted by over 5 million learners worldwide. From your first Hiragana あ to JLPT N1, from "annyeong" to a real Korean conversation, or any of our 10+ languages, Bunpo takes you from day one to fluency. ========= Why Bunpo works for language learning - Speak from day one: Start speaking from your very first lesson with advanced speech recognition technology. - 10+ languages, one app: Learn Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, German, Chinese, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Arabic, and English, and switch between them anytime without juggling multiple apps. - Grammar that makes sense: Detailed explanations in plain English, plus exercises that make it stick. - Smart review: A personalized study plan powered by spaced repetition (SRS) so you remember more, faster. - From the alphabet to advanced: Start with your very first character and build all the way to advanced grammar, whatever language you choose. Whether you're learning for travel, a higher grade, JLPT, a career boost, or just to feel confident in a new conversation, Bunpo's got your back. ========= Japanese Course - Master the Japanese alphabets (Hiragana & Katakana) so you can read menus, train signs, and even your favorite manga without guessing. - Learn Japanese grammar for every JLPT level (N5 to N1) with clear, no-nonsense explanations because "This is a pen" will only get you so far. - Build real-world Japanese vocabulary and kanji knowledge you can actually use in daily conversations, not just in textbooks. - Practice with 1,800+ Japanese example sentences and 8,000+ interactive quizzes designed to make new grammar and vocab stick. - Search any topic instantly in the Japanese grammar dictionary, perfect for "What does that mean again?" moments. - Review smarter, not harder, with a spaced repetition system (SRS) that reminds you before you forget. ========= Korean Course - Master the Korean alphabet (Hangul) with a guided chart, listening, and writing practice. - Build Korean vocabulary you'll actually use in everyday conversations. - Practice reading, writing, listening, and speaking so every skill grows together. ========= Spanish Course - Learn Spanish offline - Master Spanish grammar from A1 to B1 level - Spanish verb conjugation - Perfect your Spanish pronunciation ========= French Course - Learn French offline - Master French grammar from A1 to A2 level - French verb conjugation - Perfect your French pronunciation ========= German Course - Learn German offline - Master German grammar from A1 to C1 level - German verb conjugation - Perfect your German pronunciation ========= Chinese Course - Learn Chinese offline - Master Chinese vocabulary and phrases - Listen, speak, and write Chinese ========= Privacy Policy and Terms of Use: https://bunpo.app/privacy.html Any feedback? Feel free to contact us at: iphone@bunpo.app

Screenshots

Lingvist4 screens
Bunpo4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Bunpo at 4.9 against Lingvist's 4.6. Bunpo also leads on update cadence (every 9 days vs monthly) and review sentiment (72% vs 59%). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Lingvist sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Bunpo sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Bunpo holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3.7K and 18K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 59% of Lingvist's written reviews are positive against 72% of Bunpo's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Lingvist ships an update monthly, Bunpo every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Lingvist versus Bunpo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLingvistBunpo
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (3.7K ratings)4.9 (18K ratings) — better
Positive reviews59.3% of reviews72.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3.7K18K — better
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size94 MB202 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperLingvist Technologies OUBunpo Language Learning

Customer experience

Lingvist

All ratings3,703 ratings
Positive90.4%
Neutral3.1%
Negative6.5%
Written reviews457 reviews
Positive59.3%
Neutral9.8%
Negative30.9%

Bunpo

All ratings18,129 ratings
Positive98.0%
Neutral0.7%
Negative1.2%
Written reviews1,151 reviews
Positive72.3%
Neutral9.3%
Negative18.4%

User reviews

Lingvist

From 3.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Efficient vocabulary learning
  • 👍 Useful sentence-based learning
  • 📚 Comprehensive vocabulary coverage
  • 📊 Helpful progress tracking
  • 🔊 Good pronunciation examples

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription
  • 🔒 Limited free version
  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches
  • 🤔 Inconsistent word acceptance
  • 🤖 Robotic voice quality

Bunpo

From 18K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Helpful for learning Japanese
  • 👍 Well-designed and organized
  • 👍 Explains grammar and usage well
  • 👍 Customizable to learning needs
  • 👍 Effective spaced repetition

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Too much content locked behind paywall
  • 🐛 Bugs and crashes reported
  • 🐛 Issues with keyboard and text display
  • 🐛 Inconsistencies in question answers
  • 🔒 Lack of offline access to paid content

Bugs and requests

Lingvist

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Progress reset issues
  • Keyboard blocking UI elements
  • Inconsistent audio playback
  • Placement test bugs

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more language options
  • Improve grammar explanations
  • Allow custom word lists
  • Provide more context-based learning
  • Add speech recognition practice

Bunpo

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes during lesson reviews
  • Incorrect answers marked as wrong
  • Text and keyboard issues on smaller screens
  • Audio playback problems

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add landscape mode support for tablets
  • Improve review options to revisit specific grammar points
  • Expand vocabulary lessons and practice
  • Add more languages beyond Japanese

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Lingvist

Subscriptions10
  • Learn languages: 1-month plan2 variants$9.991 Month
  • Learn languages: 1-month plan7 Days trial$19.991 Month
  • Learn languages: 1-month plan7 Days trial$49.991 Month
Show 7 more
  • Learn languages: 1-month plan$49.991 Month
  • Learn languages: 1-month plan3 Days trial$49.991 Month
  • Learn languages: 12-month plan14 Days trial$55.991 Year
  • Learn languages: 12-month plan14 Days trial2 variants$79.991 Year
  • Learn languages: 12-month plan$79.991 Year
  • Learn languages: 12-month plan7 Days trial$79.991 Year
  • Learn languages: 12-month plan14 Days trial$199.991 Year
7 purchases

Bunpo

Subscriptions5
  • Bunpo Plus Monthly2 variants$9.991 Month
  • Bunpo Platinum Monthly7 Days trial2 variants$19.991 Month
  • Bunpo Plus Yearly$29.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Bunpo Plus Yearly$39.991 Year
  • Bunpo Platinum Yearly7 Days trial2 variants$79.991 Year
One-time2
  • Bunpo Plus Lifetime$39.99
  • Bunpo Plus Lifetime$44.99

Questions

Is Lingvist free?
Lingvist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Bunpo free?
Bunpo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Lingvist or Bunpo?
Bunpo is rated higher. Lingvist averages 4.6 out of 5 from 3.7K ratings, while Bunpo averages 4.9 from 18K ratings.
Do Lingvist or Bunpo have ads?
Neither Lingvist nor Bunpo shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Lingvist or Bunpo?
Lingvist ships an update monthly, and Bunpo every 9 days. Most recently, Lingvist was updated on October 20, 2026 and Bunpo on October 21, 2026.

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