Memrise vs Babbel: Are They Useful or Just Basic?
Maria Claudia Alvarado
Published on September 8, 2023
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Using high-quality apps to start your language learning journey can make a difference on your path to fluency. If you want to learn the basics, you might have heard about Babbel and Memrise. They both have interactive features to make your study routine fun and engaging, but only Babbel has everything you need to become conversational.
Editor’s Choice
Memrise and Babbel are often compared because both have game-like features that help you learn a language from zero. They have flashcards, vocabulary reviews, and interactive features. However, there is a huge difference in what these apps can do for you. In this article, we’ll help you discover the pros and cons of each app to see which one can best help you learn a new language.
Memrise vs Babbel: A Quick Breakdown
Babbel and Memrise have multiple tools to teach you the basics of a language from the start. Babbel offers complete and structured language courses with interactive exercises, games, quizzes, and review practices you can use to develop your language skills. Its courses also include cultural notes to introduce you to the culture and history of the language you are studying. Memrise helps you learn a lot of vocabulary quickly. You can follow Memrise’s recommended path or explore its vocabulary lists to learn words related to your interests.
| Babbel | Memrise |
|---|---|
| 14 languages | 30 languages |
| $17.95/Month | $59.99/Month |
| Free Trial for First Lesson | Limited Daily Use of Premium Features |
 | |
Memrise vs Babbel: Cost Comparison
Memrise has a free version that gives you limited access to its vocabulary lists (called “scenarios”) and features. But, if you want to unlock all the content available on Memrise, you need to buy a subscription. A Memrise subscription starts at $59.99 per month, but you can save some money if you choose a yearly subscription for $117.99 ($9.83 per month). You can also buy lifetime access to the app for a one-time payment of $324.99.
With Babbel, you have to subscribe to each language individually. A Babbel monthly subscription costs $17.95 per month, but there are also longer options available. You can get 3 months for $45.75, 6 months for $80.70, and 12 months for $107.40. If you want to study multiple languages at the same time, Babbel also has a lifetime subscription you can buy for $299 to access all language courses. You can try the first lesson of each Babbel language course for free to see if you like the app.
For the price of their subscriptions, I’d pick Babbel. While Memrise has interesting features like multiple videos created by native speakers, it works more like a complementary app. Memrise can help develop your vocabulary, but it won’t take you to the next level. Babbel has high-quality content and gamified elements to make learning fun and effective. All Babbel language courses include natural language and build on what you previously learned. For its features and approach, Babbel is the best option.
If you’d like to try more apps before deciding, we have more recommendations for you. Here are some similar alternatives:
Babbel vs Memrise: How They Work
Babbel and Memrise are great apps to start your language learning journey, even if you are a complete beginner. Babbel has quick lessons with interactive exercises and advanced speech recognition technology to help you speak. Memrise uses flashcards that introduce you to new vocabulary and phrases. Both apps use spaced repetition, but Memrise has an AI chatbot to practice writing and speaking that provides feedback for your skills. Babbel doesn’t have a similar feature, but it has games, flashcards, quizzes, and listening and speaking practice to help you improve all your language skills.
Check the table below to see how the apps rate across the Internet in 2023.
| Reviews | Babbel | Memrise |
|---|---|---|
| Langoly | 4.5 | 3.8 |
| Apple Store | 4.7 | 4.8 |
| Google Play | 4.5 | 4.6 |
| Trustpilot | 3.9 | 3.0 |
| Total Average Score | 4.4 | 4.1 |
How Babbel Works
Babbel is a language learning app with comprehensive courses. Its lessons follow a logical order and can take you from a complete beginner to an advanced level. You can complete each unit in order or jump around and study the content that interests you the most.
The app has interactive exercises that use spaced repetition to help you remember the words in the long run. It has an advanced speech recognition tool to improve your pronunciation. All the content included in Babbel’s courses is developed by linguists so you learn to speak the language in the most accurate way possible. Babbel also uses grammar tips during lessons to show you how to apply grammatical rules in different sentences.
Babbel has many review tools, like games, flashcards, listening and speaking practice, and quizzes. There are also cultural notes, 2-minute stories, and podcasts to teach you more about the culture of the language while you practice your skills. If you want more guidance, Babbel has live group lessons available with a tutor through Zoom.
If you want to know more about the app, read this complete Babbel review.
How Memrise Works
Memrise is a flashcard app to help you increase your vocabulary while you listen to natural pronunciation. It uses spaced repetition to help you remember words and phrases. Its language courses are broken down by “Scenarios” that teach you the vocabulary you’ll need for conversations at that level. Each lesson includes videos and audio that allow you to listen to different native speakers saying each word.
The scenarios cover all sorts of topics like greetings, introductions, the days of the week, numbers, and more. You can learn new words with the flashcards, and use the review mode to test your knowledge. There are hundreds of videos you can watch to develop and test your listening skills. Or, if you want to practice having a conversation with a native speaker, you can try speaking or writing to the chatbot.
There are 30 official language courses available at Memrise. There’s a lot of free content, but some features like the videos and chatbot have a daily limit. You can learn more about the app in this complete Memrise review.
Babbel: Pros and Cons
With Babbel, you can learn to express yourself like a native speaker. Each Babbel language course is individually developed by professional linguists. You won’t find any words or phrases copied and pasted from other courses because they only include natural language. I’ve used many language-learning apps before, and many focus on the formal form or have unnatural-sounding sentences. Babbel, on the other hand, teaches you useful phrases for basic communication you can start using right away.
In my opinion, Babbel’s approach to grammar is the best way of making sure you understand how to use the language. Instead of relying on long explanations, Babbel uses pop-up grammar tips that explain how to apply different rules to sentences of different contexts. This way, you can learn without having to interrupt your practice. I think this is way better than memorizing grammar rules and very useful if you want to become conversational fast.
Even though Babbel has comprehensive lessons that tackle all areas of language, it doesn’t offer as many options as other apps. Many other apps have over 20 languages, including some less common ones. Right now, Babbel is somewhat limited and only offers 14 language courses, and its list only includes some of the most popular European languages. They don’t offer Asian or ancient languages like Latin. While all Babbel courses are high quality, it would be nice to see the app include options like Korean, Japanese, or Chinese in the future.
Unless the language you want to learn is common, like Spanish or French, you might find some features missing or fewer units in your course. Since Babbel charges the same subscription price for all languages, this doesn’t seem very fair. Of course, Babbel can add much value to your study routine. But, buying a subscription only to discover that many features are missing from your language course can be disappointing.
Memrise: Pros and Cons
Memrise is mainly a flashcard app, but it has useful features to develop and test your knowledge. There are hundreds of videos available on the app, and you can use the tabs to find the ones that are suited to your current level. Or, if you want to practice using the words and phrases you learned in a conversation, you can try speaking or writing to the chatbot.
Overall, I think the videos and the chatbot are Memrise’s most helpful features. The videos feature native speakers from different countries, ages, and genders and include transcripts to make understanding the language easy. But my favorite feature definitely is the chatbot. You can select the scenario you want to practice and the chatbot will help you simulate an interaction related to that topic. In my opinion, this is the best way to develop your conversational skills if you’re still too nervous to speak to a native speaker.
I noticed that, while Memrise has a wide selection of videos available, most of them are quite short. These are usually video clips from YouTube, ads, or reels created for social media. And, while they’re useful for the purpose of listening to real native speakers, they don’t add too much challenge to your practice. Chances are that if you have at least an intermediate level of language, the video section won’t be too useful for you.
The grammar element is also missing from most of the Memrise language courses. I feel that if you’re studying a language that’s very different from your own (like Chinese or Japanese), understanding grammar is vital to be able to communicate in real life. But, sadly, you won’t find any sort of text explanations or examples of how to structure sentences in Memrise lessons. Instead, you can only learn through trial and error, which might be frustrating for some learners.
Babbel or Memrise: Which is Better?
Memrise and Babbel may seem like they have similar features, like tools to help you listen and speak and gamified exercises. In reality, these apps offer entirely different learning experiences. From the features they offer to the abilities they help develop, Memrise and Babbel are in contrast with one another.
Memrise is a flashcard app that introduces you to new vocabulary. Its lessons are quick, like Babbel’s, but it doesn’t provide thorough grammatical explanations. You can use Memrise to learn the essential language you need to communicate, but that’s about it. To advance to the next level, you need other resources. For the price of its subscription, I think I would only recommend it if you are very interested in trying its chatbot or hearing different accents.
On the other hand, Babbel has everything you need to develop all your language skills from the start. If you only want to use one app, Babbel is an excellent pick because it has content for learners of all levels. Even though Babbel doesn’t have the video element or a chatbot, all its courses are developed by professional linguists, so it’s the best app for those who want to become fluent. In general, Babbel can take you further in your language-learning journey for a fair price.
Memrise or Babbel: FAQ
Depending on your learning level and language goals, Memrise could be better for you than Babbel. Memrise works best for complete beginners who want to explore a new language or want to learn vocabulary and phrases for essential communication. It has a lot of free content, so it’s worth trying.
Memrise can help you learn a lot of new vocabulary and phrases quickly, but you probably won’t become fluent using only one app. To become fluent, you need to develop all language areas, including speaking, listening, reading, and writing. You can combine multiple resources to fill in the gaps, like textbooks, videos, online courses, or even hire a tutor to practice conversation.
Babbel has complete language courses, but there might be better apps for you depending on the language you’re learning. If you want to improve your pronunciation on the go, apps like Pimsleur might be better. You can also use apps like Preply and italki to find a language tutor.
Babbel has thorough lessons for foreign language learners of all levels, but you might need more resources if you’re looking to become fluent. You can combine Babbel with apps like Clozemaster or Busuu to help you learn how to use the language in context. If you want to practice reading and understanding, you can go beyond apps and find news articles and other authentic reading materials online for free.
