Aren’t you glad that learning English is no longer limited to textbooks and classrooms?
In today’s digital era, English learners have access to an amazing array of apps to learn English. These make use of the latest technology such as:
- Adaptive AI to customize each lesson
- Voice recognition to help with your pronunciation
- Interactive learning features
- Community collaboration and support
- Teaching in your native language
- English courses available on every device
This leaves you spoiled for choice, and perhaps a bit confused about which are the best apps to learn English in 2024!
In this blog post, we will explore 7 of the best English learning apps and compare their pricing, features, pros, and cons. We hope this helps you choose the right app based on your learning goals.
Choosing between the top English Learning apps
Given the wide variety of English learning apps available, it’s important to choose one that aligns with your needs, goals, and preferences.
If you haven’t already considered your goals for learning English and your preferred learning style, now is a good time to do this. Knowing how you learn best and what you want to achieve will help you find the best English learning app for you personally.
Here’s a summary of the English apps we’re going to cover:
And here’s a quick summary of the top 3 best apps to learn english that cover different levels, learning styles, and budgets:
- Adaptive AI means each lesson is personal to you
- Learn from real-world interactions
- Humorous content makes learning fun
- Best for intermediate level and above
- Very detailed feedback every lesson
- 1 month free trial
- Get started for free (limited access)
- Short, engaging lessons in your native language
- Gamified learning to reward progress
- Good for beginner to intermediate learners
- Premium access from $4/month
- Short lessons with varied exercises
- AI-powered lesson reviews
- 120+ million users
- Community feedback and support
- Detailed grammar guidance
- Live classes available
Now, let’s look at our top 7 apps for learning English in more detail.
Mondly: Best app to learn English in your native language
Price
- Free version with limited content
- Premium version: $9.99 per month, $47.99 per year, $89.99 lifetime access (with discount)
Pros
- Short, fun, engaging daily lessons and quizzes (5-15 minutes/day)
- Learn English from 31 different native languages
- Affordable pricing
- Useful vocabulary for real-life scenarios
- Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) features for premium users
- Option to learn British English or American
Cons
- Free version is very basic
- Limited coverage of grammar rules
- Not much speaking practice
- Not ideal for advanced learners
Who can benefit from Mondly’s language learning app?
Mondly is best suited to beginner and intermediate learners who want short, approachable, daily lessons at a great price. For beginners especially, the fact that you receive teaching in your native language is a big plus.
The interactive exercises with spaced repetition help you learn English words, improve your spelling and grammar, and practice conversational skills. There is also a gamified element that encourages you to participate daily with streaks and awards.
Although the free version doesn’t have much to offer, the paid version is very affordable compared to some other English apps.
Mondly’s extra VR and AR features are a nice addition for anyone who likes to experiment with different ways of learning, but they are supplementary to the main course content, not a core method of learning.
If you’re interested in learning other languages as well as English, Mondly’s lifetime deal could be a great investment. It’s often discounted by as much as 96% – check out current offers here.
However, advanced learners might find the content quite shallow and may be better suited to Gymglish.
Gymglish: Best app for personalized English lessons
Price
From $13/month (free 1-month trial)
Pros
- Comprehensive courses for intermediate to advanced learners
- Short, humorous lessons (10-15 minutes)
- AI technology personalizes lesson content based on past performance
- Focus on grammar, new vocabulary, listening comprehension, and business English
- Personalized feedback and correction after each lesson
Cons
- May not be suitable for absolute beginners
- Higher price than some other apps
How can Gymglish benefit English language learners?
Gymglish is the best app to learn English if you want comprehensive, personalized lessons. Well suited to intermediate and advanced-level learners, the app uses AI technology to customize each lesson based on your previous performance.
If there is an area of grammar you struggle with or some new words you need to work on, Gymglish will automatically include this in your lessons until you feel more confident. In fact, we’d say this is the best app to learn English grammar because of the detailed explanations. You also receive corrections and feedback after each lesson so you have a record of your results and can see any mistakes.
If you want an app that takes you deeper into the English language without you having to schedule classes with a live tutor, Gymglish is a great choice.
Gymglish is also a good app to learn business English; if you select this as one of your interests then your lessons will include more business topics and vocabulary.
The pricing may be a drawback for some users, especially if you want to pay monthly. However, you can try Gymglish for free for 1 month to get a better idea of whether you want to sign up for longer.
Read our full Gymglish review for more details.
Busuu: Best for interactive lessons and community feedback
Price
- Free version with limited content
- Premium version: $13.95/month (check for current discounts here)
Pros
- Access to a community of 120+ million language learners
- Receive feedback from native speakers on your writing and speaking
- Interactive lessons with video clips of real people
- Learn English for real-life everyday situations
- Personalized grammar practice (Premium)
- AI-powered review sessions (Premium)
- Specialized courses for business English and more (Premium)
Cons
- Limited content with the free version
- Some users find vocabulary practice insufficient
- No real conversation practice
Who is Busuu best for?
If you don’t often get the chance to practice speaking English with a native speaker, you’ll appreciate Busuu’s community of language learners. Here, you can submit your English speaking and writing exercises and receive feedback and corrections from native speakers in the community. In return, you can provide corrections for people learning your native language.
The short lesson format with spaced repetition is good for anyone who doesn’t have much time to attend longer English classes. Instead, you can access the app whenever you have 10 minutes spare.
While the free version is limited, it will give you an idea of the learning style so you can decide whether to upgrade to Premium. Do keep in mind that with the Premium version, you get more detailed lesson reviews and access to more course content, so you shouldn’t judge Busuu purely by the free version.
Try Busuu for free now or check for special discounts on the Premium version.
FluentU: Best for video and audio lessons
Price
- $29.99/month or $19.99/month when purchased yearly
- 14-day free trial, 20-day money-back guarantee
Pros
- Extensive library of video content – over 3,000 English videos
- Real-world videos sorted by level
- Built-in transcripts let you explore language as you watch videos
- Gamified quizzes and lesson reviews
- Short lessons of 10-15 minutes
Cons
- Pricier than other language learning apps
- No free version, but you get 14 days to try it free
- No speaking practice exercises
Who should use FluentU to learn English?
FluentU is a great English language app for visual learners since all the lessons are based on English language videos, from music videos to movie trailers.
Why should you pay for FluentU instead of just watching YouTube videos to learn English?
Well, the main benefit is the interactive bilingual subtitles that accompany each lesson. Instead of having to pause a video, switch to another tab, and look up the meaning of a word, you can just hover over it in the subtitles to see a definition in your native language.
In addition, each video is accompanied by a quiz to test and improve your English grammar, vocabulary, and comprehension. New lessons are added regularly to keep the content fresh, and they are sorted by level.
FluentU is not as cheap as some other apps to learn English, but you can look out for discounts and purchase an annual subscription to make it cheaper.
Preply: Best for lessons with native English speakers
Price
From $5-$100 per 50-minute lesson, depending on tutor experience (50% off your first lesson)
Pros
- Private English lessons via app or website
- Search for an online tutor that suits you
- Lessons available 24/7 to suit your schedule
- Practice speaking with realistic conversations and different accents
- Lesson content tailored to your goals and needs
Cons
- No structured curriculum
- You may need to try a few tutors before you find a good match
Why practice English speaking with Preply?
Often, a language-learning app is a good way to learn English words and phrases but offers limited practice for speaking skills.
Preply’s online tutoring platform is a great way to improve your speaking and listening skills and build confidence with real-life conversations. You can use this as your main way to learn English, or take live lessons alongside other app-based English courses.
You can search for online tutors that:
- Are available in your timezone
- Specialize in the English skills you want to practice (conversation, travel, business, IELTS, etc.)
- Have a particular accent
- Offer lessons to suit your budget
Beginner English learners may want to select a tutor who speaks their own language too, so they can communicate concepts in both languages if needed.
50-minute lessons start from $5, but you can expect to pay $15-$25 for a more experienced tutor. Get 50% off your first lesson here.
Rocket Languages: Best for beginner to intermediate learners
Price
- $20/month for 6 months
- $99 for lifetime access (check for discounts)
Pros
- Affordable lifetime access, including future updates
- Practice pronunciation with voice recognition technology and audio recordings
- High-quality dialogues with real people
- 132 hours of lesson time
Cons
- Limited English content (beginner to intermediate)
- No pay monthly option
Why should you learn English with Rocket Languages?
The voice recognition feature on Rocket Languages sets it apart from some other language-learning apps, as it gives you the chance to practice and receive feedback on your English pronunciation.
The app helps you understand how the language works so you can begin forming phrases yourself rather than just copying those provided.
The main downside of using the Rocket Languages app to learn English is that the content is quite limited compared to the other languages available on the platform.
It only has one level of English courses available, from beginner to intermediate, but no advanced content. On the plus side, this means it’s cheaper to purchase the English course than, for example, French or Spanish.
All in all, Rocket Languages would be a good choice for a beginner wanting a comprehensive approach to learning the English language for an affordable fixed price.
Duolingo: Best free English learning app
Price
- Free version with limited content
- Super Duolingo: $12.99/month or $7.99/month with annual subscription
Pros
- Gamified learning experience
- Engaging and fun lessons
- Compete with friends for points
Cons
- Limited grammar instruction
- Ads in the free version
- Doesn’t teach real-life language usage
Why is Duolingo one of the best free apps to learn English?
Anyone researching the best free language-learning app will probably discover Duolingo. It has over 26 million users active daily and 88.4 million users active monthly, learning 45 different languages between them.
Duolingo is often criticized for its irrelevant lesson content and lack of grammar teaching. However, this app pioneered the gamified approach to learning languages, featuring awards and streaks, and many people find it an effective way to keep their learning consistent.
We’ve picked Duolingo as the best app to learn English free because it’s more comprehensive than others with a free version (like Mondly and Busuu). If you can put up with the ads and some limited features, you should be able to reach CEFR level B1 or B2 without paying anything.
Choosing the right English learning app for you
Now that you have read about some of the best apps for learning English, here are some questions you can ask yourself to decide which is right for you:
- Which of the main language skills do you want to focus on? (E.g. Speaking, reading, writing, listening, grammar, vocabulary)
- Do you want to learn English for a specific purpose? (E.g. business, travel, IELTS)
- Would you prefer short bite-sized lessons or longer, in-depth teaching?
- What is your current level?
- Do you prefer visual, audio, or written content?
- Do you already live in an English-speaking country or have access to native speakers to correct you?
Don’t forget, you can combine different apps to optimize your learning. You may find that one is great for grammar instruction but you love the speech recognition feature of another, for example.
Finally, make sure you set aside time to prepare for each lesson and study the notes or feedback you receive. This will help you learn a new language more effectively.
Check out some more tips for learning English.
Summary of the best apps to learn English
In short, there is no single best English learning app; each one offers unique features and focuses on different ways of learning. The right one for you will depend on your personal goals and preferred learning style.
In general, app-based courses are good for learning new vocabulary and simple grammar at your own pace. However, they offer limited chances to practice English pronunciation and speaking.
Therefore, you may want to combine your course with online lessons from an app like Preply, where you can learn with a tutor who is a native English speaker.
Language exchange apps are also a good way to practice your conversation skills.
FAQs
What is the most useful app to learn English?
The most useful English app for you will depend on your learning style and availability. Are you a visual or audio learner, or do you prefer to read and write? Are you available for hour-long lessons, or would you prefer a short 5-minute lesson? Our guide to the best apps to learn English covers all of these options, and more.
What is the best platform to speak English fluently?
Are free English learning apps any good?
Free language learning apps can be a great foundation for learning basic English vocabulary and grammar skills, but most people opt for a premium version if they want to advance to higher levels.
Can I use multiple apps simultaneously for more effective learning?
Yes, using multiple apps simultaneously can be an effective way to learn a language, as it allows you to cover different aspects of learning.
What are some tips for maximizing my experience learning English with apps?
To get the most out of apps for learning English, be consistent with your study plan and know your goals. The best apps to learn english have built-in technology to remind you when it’s time to study and help you focus on areas where you’re struggling.
