Busuu
Free / Premium from ~$5.83 per mo (annual)
Duolingo
Free / Super from ~$6.99 per mo (annual)
Busuu offers structured lessons with feedback from native speakers, leaning toward real proficiency. Duolingo is a gamified, free-to-start app that builds a daily habit across many languages. Busuu wins on structure and feedback; Duolingo wins on fun, habit, and language breadth.
Pick Busuu if you want structured lessons with grammar and feedback from native speakers to push toward real proficiency.
Pick Duolingo if you want a fun, free, gamified app that builds a daily habit across a huge range of languages.
Busuu and Duolingo both teach languages on your phone, but they approach learning differently. Busuu offers a more structured, course-like path with grammar explanations and a standout feature: feedback on your writing and speaking from a community of native speakers, which helps bridge toward real proficiency. Duolingo is famously gamified and addictive, with bite-sized lessons, streaks, and a huge range of languages, designed first and foremost to build a daily habit and keep you coming back.
On price, both have free tiers; Busuu Premium starts around $5.83 a month (annual) and Duolingo Super around $6.99. The choice is mostly structured lessons with native feedback (Busuu) versus fun, habit-building gamification across many languages (Duolingo).
We compare lesson structure, native feedback, gamification, language breadth, and price.
| Quick facts | Busuu | Duolingo |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes (limited) | Yes (full courses) |
| Premium price | From ~$5.83/mo (annual) | From ~$6.99/mo (annual) |
| Native-speaker feedback | Best-in-class | Limited |
| Gamification / habit | Good | Best-in-class |
| Best for | Structure + feedback | Fun habit + breadth |
Each row reflects the feature on each product's current public release.
| Feature | B Busuu | D Duolingo |
|---|---|---|
| Structured course path | Best-in-class | Good |
| Grammar explanations | Best-in-class | Limited |
| Native-speaker corrections | Best-in-class | No |
| Gamification & streaks | Good | Best-in-class |
| Number of languages | Good | Best-in-class |
| Speaking & writing practice | Best-in-class | Good |
| Strong free tier | Limited | Best-in-class |
| Daily habit building | Good | Best-in-class |
Pricing and features change often. Always verify the current details on each product's official site. Last reviewed 2026-06-26.
Things neither product's marketing page leads with.
Busuu is more structured and its native-speaker feedback is a real edge, but its free tier is more limited and it offers fewer languages.
Duolingo is more fun and has a stronger free tier and language range, but it is lighter on grammar depth and real feedback.
For structured progress Busuu wins; for habit and breadth Duolingo wins.
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