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Best app to learn English (2026) for non-native speakers
No single app is the best for everyone learning English. For daily practice at low cost, Duolingo and Mondly are the easiest to start with. For structured courses, Babbel is a serious option. To practise speaking with a real teacher, the main choices are italki and Preply, which are tutoring marketplaces rather than apps. Check prices on each vendor’s page before you subscribe, because they change.
Quick comparison
| App or service | Type | Published price (October 2026) | Strengths | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duolingo | App, short daily exercises | Super prices are shown in the app and not published on duolingo.com/super. US App Store listing: $12.99 and $83.99 (billing period not stated) | Short exercises, gradual course | Little real speaking practice |
| Mondly | App, lessons and dialogues | Premium: €12.99 a month; €59.99 a year for one language or for all 33 (in-app page, EUR, 21 Oct 2026) | App Store lists 33 free languages | Title says 41 languages, description says 33 |
| Busuu | App, courses and exercises | Premium plans; price not stated in this article’s sources | Structured courses and exercises | Check current prices on busuu.com |
| Babbel | App, structured courses | 3 months €47.97; 12 months €95.88 per year (€7.99/month); Lifetime €299.99 one-time (EUR, babbel.com, checked 21 Oct 2026) | Courses organised by level; 14 languages in every plan | Does not teach Arabic |
| italki | Tutors, live lessons | Plus: $5.99/month or $59.99/year, 30-day trial | Choice of teachers, lessons booked one at a time | Lesson price set by each teacher |
| Preply | Tutors, live lessons | From €2/hour; average €16/hour (Preply’s French site, EUR) | Large tutor pool, try another tutor if not satisfied | Price set by each tutor; see ranges below |
Sources: Duolingo Super, Duolingo on the App Store, Mondly on the App Store, Babbel prices, italki Plus, Preply, English lessons (French site), Busuu.
Who should pick which
- Starting from zero, want a daily habit: Duolingo is the simplest start. Its weak point is real speaking practice, so pair it with conversation.
- Want a course organised by level: Babbel is built for this. For how it compares with Duolingo, read our Babbel vs Duolingo comparison.
- Want vocabulary and dialogues in short sessions: Mondly and Busuu are worth trying in their free versions before paying.
- Want to speak with a teacher: italki or Preply. These cost more than an app, but you get a live conversation.
- Budget is zero: start with a free app, and move to a tutor only when you need to practise speaking.
Apps, one by one
Duolingo. Short exercises and a daily streak system. On 21 October 2026, on the web, we took lesson 1 of its English course for French speakers. Onboarding was two questions, then straight into the lesson with no paywall and no card. The lesson had about 13 exercises: picture choice, matching French and English pairs, choosing meanings, and one speaking exercise, which we skipped because we could not evaluate speech recognition. The instructions were in French. At the end, the app asked for a streak goal, warned that the streak would reset without practice the next day, and showed the Duolingo Score for English. On the free tier of the existing account we also saw 5 hearts, a Guidebook button on each unit, and leaderboards and daily quests. Duolingo’s Super page offers a one-week free trial and three tiers (Free, Super, and Super Family for up to six accounts). Super removes ads and gives unlimited hearts. The page does not publish prices, which are shown in the app. The US App Store listing shows Super at $12.99 and $83.99 without stating the billing period for each price, so check the price for your region in the app.
Duolingo, English for French speakers, lesson 1, first exercise (web, 21 October 2026).
Mondly. The App Store listing says it is free to download and offers in-app purchases. The title says 41 languages, while the description says 33 languages are available at no cost. Check the count in the app itself.
We tested Mondly on the web on 21 October 2026, with a free account the owner had created, in a French interface, learning English (US). In the Hello category, lessons alternate video and practice. The lesson 1 practice screens we completed were in English only, with no French help shown, so this category is not aimed at absolute beginners. Exercises were a definition question (the definition “to learn about a subject at school, university, etc.”, answer “to study”) and a listen-and-build sentence exercise. The in-app Premium page, in euros, showed €12.99 a month, €59.99 a year for one language, and €59.99 a year for all 33 languages, next to a crossed-out €599.90 and an “only today” countdown timer. The countdown is a sales device, and the price beside it may be the regular one, so check it in the app before you buy.
Mondly, Hello category, lesson 1 practice (web, 21 October 2026). The screen is in English.
Full test: our Mondly review. Try Mondly.
Busuu. Offers free learning and a Premium plan. Premium prices are not listed here.
Babbel. Structured courses by level. We took its free Lesson 1 on 21 October 2026. The course was Spanish taught from French, so that lesson does not show the English course. Babbel’s free tier is that one lesson, and the full course needs a subscription. Duolingo’s English lesson 1 had no paywall. Babbel’s official prices page (euros, France, checked 21 October 2026) lists 47.97 euros for 3 months, 95.88 euros per year for 12 months (7.99 euros per month), and 299.99 euros for Babbel Lifetime, a one-time payment (Babbel prices). Every plan includes all 14 languages, but Babbel does not teach Arabic. Try Babbel.
italki. The Plus plan is published at $5.99 per month or $59.99 per year, with a 30-day trial, according to the official page. Plus is a subscription on top of lessons, and each teacher sets the price of their lessons. On the English teacher list we browsed on 21 October 2026 (4,254 teachers, in euros), cards show a trial price and a regular price, and the first page ran from about €4.46 to €28.52. italki also advertises a satisfaction guarantee on trial lessons, up to two times. More in our italki review. Try italki.
Preply. Independent tutors set their own rates. On Preply’s French site, English lessons start from €2 an hour, with an average of €16 an hour. Ranges by lesson type: beginners (A1–A2) €2–28/h; intermediate (B1–B2) €4–30/h; business English €8–50/h; kids €3–25/h; conversational €3–26/h. The Preply homepage says you can try another tutor for free if you are not satisfied. On 21 October 2026 we browsed Preply’s English tutor list without booking: ten cards on the default sort showed €27 to €50 for a 50-minute lesson, and one showed €13. The €16 average covers all tutors, and the default sort puts higher-priced, highly rated tutors first, so use the price filter to find cheaper ones. See our Preply review for the French version, and Preply vs italki for a direct comparison. Try Preply.
Free options
Most of the apps above have a free version, but what it includes changes. Check the app listing before you start. A practical free combination is one app for daily exercises, plus English podcasts, videos or films with subtitles for listening. If you want a teacher, a 30-day italki trial is the easiest way to test one, because its price is published.
Pros and cons in brief
- Apps: easy to start, low cost, practical every day. They do not replace a conversation with a person.
- Tutors: real speaking practice, adapted to your goals. More expensive, and quality varies by teacher.
- Free: ideal to start. The limits of a free version can slow you down over time.
Best app for Arabic speakers
If you read Arabic and want an interface in Arabic, these are the options listed on the official pages or App Store listings used for this article:
- Duolingo: the App Store listing includes Arabic among the languages the app is available in. Duolingo also teaches Arabic. Check the interface language in your account settings.
- Busuu: the Busuu website includes Arabic in its display language list (اللغة العربية), so you can set the site to Arabic. Check how complete the translation is inside the app.
- italki: the App Store listing includes Arabic among the app languages. Tutoring in Arabic is a separate question, so check teachers’ profiles.
- Preply: the homepage links to an Arabic version of the site (preply.com/ar/). Check whether tutors are listed for the language you need.
Babbel does not teach Arabic, and no Arabic interface is listed for Mondly in the sources used here.
We did not test an Arabic interface. Our Babbel and Mondly tests used a French interface, and we did not switch any app to Arabic, so we cannot say which screens are translated or how well the exercises work for an Arabic speaker.
A quick way to choose
Answer these three questions before you pick anything:
- Do you need to speak with a person, or practise on your own? Speaking needs a tutor; vocabulary and grammar can start with an app.
- Do you want a fixed course order, or short exercises when you have a few minutes? Babbel suits the first. Duolingo suits the second.
- Can you commit to a fixed monthly cost? italki’s Plus price is published. For Preply, Preply’s French site gives hourly ranges, but each tutor’s rate is what you pay, so check the rate before you commit.
If you answer “speak with a person” and “fixed budget”, start with italki’s 30-day trial. If you answer “practise on my own” and “no budget”, start with a free app and review after a month.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free app to learn English? There is no single answer. Duolingo is the most widely known way to start, and Mondly offers a free version. Check each app’s listing for what the free version includes, because those limits change.
Do I need a paid tutor to get good at English? Not necessarily. A regular app can cover vocabulary and grammar. A tutor helps most when you want to practise speaking and get feedback on pronunciation.
Is italki cheaper than Preply? italki publishes its Plus subscription ($5.99 per month). Preply’s French site gives hourly ranges in euros, from €2 an hour for English with an average of €16. Compare the rates tutors show for the same level and lesson length.
Which app works best with an Arabic interface? Duolingo and Busuu both list Arabic as an interface language on their official pages or App Store listings. Check the settings inside each app, because a listed language does not always mean every screen is translated.
Can I learn English with an app alone? For vocabulary, grammar and listening, an app can take you a long way. Speaking fluently usually needs regular conversation, either with a tutor or with other speakers, because an app cannot correct your pronunciation in a live exchange.
Sources
- Duolingo Super
- Duolingo on the App Store
- Mondly on the App Store
- Busuu
- Babbel prices (euros, France)
- italki Plus
- italki on the App Store
- Preply, English lessons (French site, euros)
- Preply homepage
Babbel, Duolingo and Preply prices were checked on their official pages on 21 October 2026. The italki figures and App Store prices come from the sources above. Prices and free-tier limits change often, so check before you pay.