Speakly Review: Does It Actually Help You Become Fluent?

Languages Available on Speakly:

English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish

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Speakly Overview

I love finding and testing language apps to discover new learning methods and technologies. As language learning becomes more popular, more and more companies are creating tools to help people become fluent as quickly as possible.

I recently found Speakly and was curious to give it a try. The Speakly website says that the app teaches you the most relevant words and helps you manage real-life situations in only a few months. So I had to see if it actually works!

Speakly is an Estonian company founded by Ingel Keskpaik and Ott Ojamets. They started developing the app in 2016 after years of research. The main goal of Speakly’s founders is to crack the code of language learning and find the fastest way to become conversational. After using the app, I think they’re on the right track.

Speakly is an excellent choice if you’re a beginner or intermediate speaker, but it won’t help more advanced learners. This is mainly because Speakly focuses on vocabulary. For that reason, I think using Speakly along with a course like Babbel or Pimsleur could be really effective. By using multiple apps at once, you’ll learn vocabulary quickly and also develop your other skills like speaking.

Speakly Price

The table below shows the price of Speakly in both dollars and euros:

All subscriptions include vocabulary lessons, writing and speaking exercises, and basic grammar notes. You also get access to the “live” challenges, the listening practice, and music recommendations from the founders. In terms of price, Speakly is comparable to other language apps and offers good value for the price.

However, it’s important to note that you only have access to one language if you buy a 1-month or 3-month subscription. You can only access all languages if you subscribe for 6 months or more.

If you enjoy using Speakly, you can buy a Speakly lifetime subscription for $89.99. This is only available in the app. Currently, it’s not available on the Speakly website.

Speakly Free Trial

If you want to try before you buy, you can take advantage of a free 7-day trial to Speakly. The free trial lets you access all of Speakly’s features to see if you like them. After your free trial ends, your account will change to the free version of Speakly. The free version gives you limited access to the app.

Speakly Discount

Speakly periodically offers coupons ranging from 20% to 40% off the full price. These are only available on the Speakly app. You can usually find Speakly coupons around the major holidays or at different times throughout the school year.

Speakly Review: Features

One reason I like Speakly is that it’s simple. Everything is easy to find and you can bounce back and forth between activities without confusing yourself. The Speakly app doesn’t have as many features as other apps like Busuu or Rosetta Stone. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though.

Here’s what you get when you sign up for Speakly:

Learn Vocabulary

The vocabulary exercises are the most important part of the app. You follow a sequence of seeing new words, translating them, and then practicing them. It’s not the most fun or engaging way to learn, but it works.

Speakly also uses spaced repetition, which helps you remember words long-term. This is a proven method, so I’m happy to see Speakly uses it. The more times you remember new vocabulary, the less you need to review it. It makes learning more efficient and you don’t waste time reviewing words you already know.

Reading & Writing Practice

Once you learn enough words, Speakly starts to give you reading and writing exercises. Instead of identifying the words, you’ll start writing them yourself. This will help you start to actively use your new vocabulary.

One aspect of Speakly I don’t really like is that you learn new vocabulary by translating it into your native language. It’s an easy way to learn, but it also teaches you to translate everything all the time. This can slow down your speaking and make listening to native speakers more difficult.

To avoid falling into the habit of translating in your head every time you speak, I’d recommend using an immersion app like FluentU or Lingopie along with Speakly.

Live Challenges

The coolest feature of Speakly is its “live” challenges. These help you practice using your new vocabulary in real-life situations. Your speaking partner usually asks questions (like “Where can I find a taxi?”) and you need to respond.

You aren’t actually speaking with a real person in the live challenges. It’s a recording and it makes practicing out loud a lot less terrifying since speaking with someone in another language can be intimidating. These challenges help you overcome that feeling. When the time comes to talk to a native speaker, you’ll feel more confident and prepared.

Additional Features

Speakly also has a few additional features that help you practice your target language. There are a lot of different listening exercises and even music recommendations from the founders.

You can unlock more songs by learning more vocabulary. This is a pretty creative incentive to keep learning with Speakly! These features are similar to MosaLingua (although MosaLingua offers more additional content).

Speakly Review: Overall Learning Experience

I  enjoyed studying with Speakly. There aren’t a lot of bells and whistles, but I prefer that. Sometimes language apps include so many different activities and games that it’s confusing or overwhelming. Speakly has a clear focus, and I think the app is generally helpful.

Memrise is a similar app that focuses on vocabulary, but I like Speakly’s interface more. It’s easier to navigate and is simpler. Mondly is also a popular app for beginners. It offers more flexibility than Speakly, but not as much vocabulary.

The main reason Speakly stands out from other apps is because it teaches you words in context. This is a really important aspect of language learning and a lot of apps (like Duolingo) ignore it. Clozemaster is another app that teaches words in context, and learning this way helps you speak more naturally.

Overall, Speakly offers a good value for its price.

Speakly Review: Areas of Improvement

Even though it can help you learn a language, Speakly isn’t perfect. No language learning app is. Here are a few things I think could be improved in the app.

There is some speaking practice where you record your voice and listen to it. This method doesn’t really help pronunciation though. It’d be nice if Speakly included speech-recognition technology to help users improve their speaking skills. But speech recognition has its limitations, no matter which app you use.

The most effective way to improve your speaking skills is by practicing with native speakers. The best places to do this are platforms like Baselang, Lingoda, or italki.

If your goal is to become conversational quickly, it’s best to learn by doing and not focus on grammar. However, sometimes knowing the grammar rules can make learning a lot easier. Speakly doesn’t include a lot of grammar, and I think adding some more could add a lot of value to it. Apps like LinguaLift and LingoDeer include in-depth grammar explanations that break down difficult concepts, but sometimes they focus too much on grammar. There should be a happy medium.

While there are some things I don’t like about Speakly, it’s still worth a try. It can help you start to build a foundation in another language and get you started off on the right foot.

Speakly Languages

Speakly offers the following languages: English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish. You can study all of these using any of these original languages: English, Estonian, Finnish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Russian, or Slovenian. So for example, a Slovenian speaker could learn Russian or a Latvian Speaker could learn Italian.

To see other apps that can help you learn these languages, check out these resources below:

Speakly Alternatives & Competitors

There are a lot of language learning apps available, so there are naturally a lot of alternatives to Speakly. The most notable alternatives are Babbel, Pimsleur, Rocket Languages, and MosaLingua. Duolingo is a decent free alternative to Speakly, too. Each app has its strong points and weak points, so it’s best to try a few of them to determine which works best for you.

Speakly vs Babbel

Babbel is one of the most popular language apps available and for a good reason. Professional linguists design each Babbel language course individually. This helps you learn not only useful vocabulary but also the grammar and culture of each language. Speakly differs from Babbel because it doesn’t have full courses. It only focuses on vocabulary. However, Speakly does offer some languages that Babbel doesn’t, like Finnish. 

Both apps offer a free trial, so try them both. Overall, I think Babbel is the better value for money. You can read this Babbel review to learn more about the app.

Speakly vs Pimsleur

Speakly and Pimsleur both help you learn new words and phrases quickly. Speakly focuses on the quantity of words while Pimsleur focuses on improving your speaking skills. I like Pimsleur because you build on what you learned in previous lessons. Speakly’s vocabulary lessons are a bit more random. 

Pimsleur is a little more expensive than Speakly, but it will help you become conversational in a lot less time. If you’re interested, you can read this Pimsleur review to learn more about it.

Speakly vs Rocket Languages

Rocket Languages offers a lot more languages than Speakly, as well as more features. If your main goal is to build your vocabulary, Speakly is the better option. If you want to gain a deeper understanding of your target language, I’d choose Rocket Languages. The courses are in-depth and help you understand the cultural aspects of the language. You also buy Rocket Languages courses upfront, so you don’t need to worry about a monthly subscription. You can read this Rocket Languages review to learn more.

Speakly vs MosaLingua

Speakly and MosaLingua are very similar. They both focus on vocabulary and give you access to other resources to enhance your learning. The Speakly interface is smoother and easier to use than MosaLingua, but I think MosaLingua provides more value. It’s also about half of the price for a monthly subscription. With MosaLingua, you can watch videos and read ebooks. Speakly doesn’t currently have any of these. You can also check out this MosaLingua review to learn more about it.

Speakly vs Duolingo

Duolingo is infamous for its green owl and low price (free). I don’t like using it though, especially since it has added a lot of advertising. Duolingo lessons are basic and don’t really teach you anything useful. Speakly is a lot more practical and will help you interact with native speakers. Both apps focus on translating between your native language and target language. Overall, you’d be better off using the free version of Speakly instead of Duolingo. You can also read this Duolingo review to learn more about the app.

Speakly vs Lingvist

Lingvist is a popular vocabulary app that’s similar to Speakly. The two teach you similar words and phrases, and both use spaced recognition technology. Their prices are basically the same. When it comes down to it, it’s best to use both apps (they both offer free trials) to see which you prefer. Lingvist is a little more developed than Speakly, but I think they’re both strong competitors to each other. You can read this Lingvist review to learn more.

Speakly Review FAQ

About this Speakly review

To write this Speakly review, I signed up and tested the app for several hours. I tried each of the features and also explored the different activities available. I read through other reviews and comments from Speakly users to see their thoughts as well, but all of the opinions in this Speakly review are my own. I am not an employee of Speakly and Speakly did not sponsor or pay for this review in any way.