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Babbel vs Glossika

See which language learning app wins in this comparison of Glossika and Babbel

There are so many things that are hard about learning a new language. In fact, the hard part often starts before you even begin actually learning. Which language program should you select? No one wants to commit to one only to find out two months in that it doesn’t fit their learning style or isn’t really effective. That is why we’re taking a close look at how the language apps from Glossika and Babbel stack up in this detailed review.

  • Price
  • Lesson Length
  • Verbal Practice
  • Speech Recognition Software
  • Languages Covered
  • Grammar Instruction
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    • $8-$15/mo
    • 10-15 Minutes
    • Moderate Focus
    • 14
    • Layered Into Lessons
  • Glossika Free 7-Day Trial Check Current Offers
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    • $17/mo
    • 5-15 Minutes
    • Moderate Focus
    • 60+
    • Limited Instruction

Outline: Glossika vs Babbel

Use the jump-to links above in order to quickly navigate this post.

Video Review: Babbel or Glossika?

In the video above, team member John breaks down how the language courses from Glossika and Babbel stack up. Please keep reading for more detailed info.

Babbel

Babbel

  • Frequent Discounts
  • Money Back Guarantee
  • Frequent Discounts
  • Money Back Guarantee
Our Score

9.4

  • star
  • star
  • star
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  • star
Pros
  • More affordable than Glossika
  • Wide variety of drills that are fun to work
  • Short daily review sessions are good for increasing retention
  • Lessons are very quick, taking just 10 to 15 minutes to complete
  • Responsive and accurate speech recognition technology
Cons
  • Glossika's daily review sessions are superior (use AI)
  • Wish coursework included more in-depth conversational practice
Babbel
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Pricing Comparison

Given that price is always such a major concern with language apps, let’s start this post with a quick discussion of cost. Babbel has a few different subscription plans to choose from, ranging from around $7 to $14 per month.

Alternatively, you can purchase a lifetime pass with Babbel, which includes access to all of their languages for around $200-300. Thus, with Babbel, it ultimately just depends on how long you want to commit to and pay for in advance.

Glossika, on the other hand, offers just two different subscription options. First, there’s the Basic Plan, which costs around $17 per month and includes access to one language.

Then there’s also the Pro Plan, which costs around $30 per month and grants you unlimited access to the 60+ languages that Glossika covers.

So overall, in terms of cost, there’s no question that Babbel is the winner. You’ll likely save anywhere from roughly $10 to $20 per month by going with Babbel. Plus, both companies regularly run sales and special promotions, so be sure to keep an eye out for those.

Overview of the Babbel & Glossika Lessons

Having taken a peek at pricing, let’s compare what the lessons are like from both companies. First, in terms of length, there’s really not much difference between these two apps. The lessons from Babbel and Glossika are both on the shorter end of the spectrum.

Each one only takes around 5 to 15 minutes to complete, which is great for busy people who don’t necessarily have 30 to 45 minutes per day to dedicate to language learning.

However, when it comes to lesson format, that’s where Babbel and Glossika start to diverge. Although both companies make use of spaced repetition systems for their learning frameworks, they go about it in different ways.

Glossika lesson
Glossika focuses on words and phrases

To put it simply, Glossika’s lessons are a little more straightforward and repetitive. In each lesson, you’ll be introduced to a series of new words and phrases, and then asked to either write or record yourself repeating what you just heard. You’ll do this several times over for the same series of phrases, which Glossika calls “reps.”

This really gets to the foundation of the Glossika learning framework. In a nutshell, Glossika relies heavily on repetition until you internalize your target language.

On the other hand, the lessons from Babbel are much more diverse and engaging. Rather than completing the same exercise over and over again like you generally do with Glossika, Babbel uses a wide variety of drills and exercises.

This includes flashcards, matching pairs, mock dialogues, fill-in-the-blanks, pronunciation practice, and more.

learn german babbel
Babbel has more variety

Plus, what’s nice about Babbel is that they incorporate grammar content into their lessons as well, which is something that is missing from the Glossika program. Babbel smartly weaves grammar notes and tips right into their drills with callout boxes and quick questions.

Overall, I would say that Babbel’s lessons do a better job of holding your attention, and honestly, are simply more fun in my opinion. But more on wins and losses below.

Why Babbel Is Better Than Glossika

Having covered the pricing and lesson format of these two language programs, let’s next dive into the main advantages of using Babbel over Glossika, and vice versa. And let’s start with Babbel.

Varied, Quick Lessons

First off, I really like the fast-moving, varied nature of Babbel’s lessons. Frankly, they’re just more engaging than Glossika’s. One lesson you’ll start with picture-based flashcards, then transition into a matching game, then you’ll do a fill-in-the-blanks drill, before moving onto a simulated dialogue exercise. Then boom, before you know it, the lesson is over.

Babbel French lessons
Babbel’s lessons are varied

Plus, the next lesson in your queue will be in a different order. This variety of exercises just makes the lessons go by very quickly, and honestly, I think helps to make the language learning process more fun.

Not to mention, I really like all the visuals that Babbel includes throughout their drills and exercises as well. For reference, Glossika doesn’t really include any graphics or images at all, which isn’t ideal for visual learners.

Speech Software Benefits

The next advantage in favor of Babbel is their speech recognition technology. As you complete verbal practice exercises, Babbel’s software will immediately assess your pronunciation and cue you to repeat words, phrases, and sentences if you mispronounce them.

To be fair, Glossika does have a recording feature as well in which you can playback your pronunciation of a phrase or sentence, but that’s where it ends.

There is no direct feedback. It’s pretty much up to you to compare your pronunciation against the example from the fluent speaker.

Babbel learn French
Babbel’s speech software is solid

So overall, it’s definitely worth calling out that with Babbel, you receive immediate, accurate feedback on your verbal practice exercises and pronunciation. That’s the big takeaway.

Smart Grammar Instruction

Another area where Babbel wins is grammar. Essentially, Babbel makes grammar content and instruction a priority, whereas Glossika does not (the Rocket Languages grammar lessons are awesome as well).

Glossika seems to be more interested in having you identify and recognize patterns in order to learn grammar. Thus, it’s really just two different schools of thought here.

Some linguists, like the founder of Glossika, believe that you don’t need to study and learn grammar in order to speak a foreign language, while other linguists disagree with that belief. It just depends on which school of thought you ascribe to.

Nonetheless, what I can tell you is that Babbel integrates grammar into their coursework in a very efficient and effective way.

They don’t hit you over the head with long, dense grammar explanations like some other companies. They keep it short, light, and fun.

An example grammar exercise might include a brief one or two sentence explanation in your target language regarding feminine nouns, and then you participate by filling in blanks in example sentences to confirm you understand the concept. It’s pretty quick and painless.

Cool Bonus Resources

Finally, I really like all the bonus features and resources that Babbel provides. With Glossika, it’s pretty much just the main course and that’s it. There are no cool extras.

With Babbel, however, students have access to a bunch of awesome tools like dedicated audio lessons, podcasts, games, and a digital magazine, so you can get in some extra reading.

babbel spanish classes
Babbel has live classes

Perhaps more importantly though, Babbel offers live classes too! Now to be clear, you do have to pay extra, but these live classes are great. There are hundreds of small group live classes per week across all different learning levels to choose from, and they cover all sorts of different subjects.

These classes are a fantastic way to dive deeper into topics that you’re actually interested in, converse with your peers, and learn from experienced teachers.

Thus, between the live class options and all the extra learning tools, the Babbel program just feels more well-rounded and comprehensive overall in comparison to Glossika.

Glossika

Glossika

  • Cancel Anytime
  • 60+ Languages
  • Cancel Anytime
  • 60+ Languages
Our Score

8.6

  • star
  • star
  • star
  • star
  • star
Pros
  • Effective learning framework based on heavy repetition
  • Personalized review sessions using AI
  • Straightforward, no fluff approach (good for getting studying done)
  • Cover more languages than Babbel
Cons
  • Lessons can become tedious at times (lots of repetition)
  • Limited grammar instruction
  • No speech recognition technolgy
Glossika
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Why Glossika Is Better Than Babbel

Now that we’ve discussed Babbel’s benefits, let’s get to Glossika, which has many strengths of its own.

No Nonsense Approach

I believe that if you’re a serious, no nonsense type of person, you may actually prefer Glossika’s language programs and find them to be more effective than Babbel’s.

I say this because Glossika removes all of the fluff from their program and really zeroes in on what natural language learning is all about—listening, repeating, and the heavy repetition of patterns (somewhat similar to LingQ).

glossika lesson example
Glossika is repetitive but effective

In other words, Glossika wants to teach you to recognize and understand patterns rather than studying grammar rules, just like young kids do when they first start learning a language.

Therefore, while it might appear that Glossika’s lessons are somewhat elementary, they can be very effective for learning a new language—that is, if you can tolerate the more monotonous nature of their lessons.

Effective Review Sessions

Another pro for Glossika is their review sessions, which in my opinion are better than Babbel’s. Basically, as you advance through the course, Glossika prompts you regularly review what you’ve already learned.

Yet, what’s unique here is that Glossika uses AI to personalize the review process. The company’s tech will predict when you’re about to forget a phrase or pattern, and before you reach that point, they’ll include it in your next review session.

Glossika review session
Glossika AI-powered review session

The review sessions from Babbel, on the other hand, are simply based on your individual history of what you have gotten right and wrong during the lessons.

So overall, I have to hand it to Glossika as they’ve done an excellent job with their review sessions to maximize language retention.

More Language Options

My final note here may be insignificant for some people as Babbel does offer courses for the most popular languages like Spanish, French, Italian, and German, but it’s worth mentioning that Glossika offers courses for over 60 different languages.

As a result, there are going to be some languages like Korean, Japanese, and Thai, for example, in which you’ll have no choice but to go with Glossika.

Babbel
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Verdict: Babbel or Glossika For Language Learning?

Let’s get to the final verdict—should you choose Glossika or Babbel to learn a new language? Honestly, after using and testing each program, I have to give Babbel the win.

While there certainly is merit to Glossika’s high repetition learning framework and power in their AI-powered review sessions, I ultimately just think Babbel delivers the more comprehensive and engaging language program.

Babbel’s lessons do a great job of holding your attention, their speech recognition technology is top-notch, and I like how they carefully integrate grammar into their curriculum. Plus, all the extra bonus features that are available to learners offer tons of value.

Overall, I think Babbel is the way to go. Not only are their language courses effective for learning, but they’re also fun, which is often half the battle when learning something new and difficult.

FAQ

Is Babbel better than Glossika?

After using and reviewing the apps from both Glossika and Babbel, I definitely prefer the Babbel program. The lessons are more engaging and the grammar instruction was much more useful.

Which app costs more, Glossika or Babbel?

The Glossika app is more expensive than Babbel’s program. On average, Glossika costs $10 to $16 more per month.

What's the main difference between Glossika and Babbel?

While the two programs share many similarities, in the end, Babbel offers a greater diversity of drills and exercises, while Glossika’s strength lies in its review sessions.