Pimsleur vs Duolingo (Which Language App Is Better?)

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▬ ABOUT THIS VIDEO ▬
Pimsleur vs Duolingo (Which Language App Is Better?). In this video, John covers his updated reviews of the Duolingo vs Pimsleur language learning apps. Regardless of whether you want to learn Spanish, French, Italian, or German, Duolingo and Pimsleur are popular options among consumers. John talks about what the lessons are like from both companies, including the different types of reading, writing, speaking, and listening drills that you will be asked to complete. Other topics of discussion include speech recognition technology, pricing, and grammar instruction. Overall, John is a big fan of Pimsleur. He especially likes their interactive audio lessons, which do a good job of improving your listening comprehension and verbal skills. Thanks for watching this Pimsleur app review and Duolingo app review.
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▬ VIDEO CHAPTERS ▬
0:00 - Introduction
0:37 - How The Pimsleur & Duolingo Language Apps Work
2:52 - Cost Comparison
4:27 - Why Pimsleur Is Better Than Duolingo
7:35 - Why Duolingo Is Better Than Pimsleur
9:10 - Verdict: Is Duolingo Better Than Pimsleur?
#pimsleur #duolingo #languagelearning

[@TestPrepInsight]

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[@alainar6674]

Thanks for the great review!

[@nanonkay5669]

Here are my tools that I use to language learn: 1. Pimsleur 2. Busuu 3.Anki 4. HelloTalk 5. YT (CCube Academy channel) I use Pimsleur as my main language learning platform. Then instead of Duolingo, I use Busuu, which is said to be a competitor, if not better than Duo for extra vocab and grammar lessons to complement Pimsleur. HelloTalk is just a way I can converse with natives while I also teach them English so win-win (Busuu also has community feedback) Anki as an SRS system app for learning what I hear from Pimsleur and other platforms YT for training my ears some more to learning the language and the CCube Academy channel has very easy and beginner friendly stories and conversations that I can keep up with as a beginner. So far, progress has been great

[@TestPrepInsight]

That's a very comprehensive and solid plan!

[@Goblinn99]

Thank you for the updated video! I'm in the market for a language learning app.

[@gandolfthorstefn1780]

I would do other language courses before Dualingo and leave it to last as it takes sometimes 4 years to complete even when doing 2 lessons a day. Plus Dualingo is a fun way to reinforce what you have learned which is counter intuitive to most linguists promoting it as a good starter.

[@juliamuallem1470]

Great review, thanks!

[@Super043]

I use both Pimsleur and Duolingo and they work well together because of the different approach, so they don't feel redundant. Also on Dulingo you can regain lost hearts by doing a review lesson, it must be a newer feature because people don't seem to know about it.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Thanks for sharing :)

[@ernestrodgers789]

I absolutely hate the new single path user interface in Duolingo. Therefore, I'm with Pimsleur and Drops. Drops is the quick hit that I used to go to Duolingo for.

[@overclocker28]

@@ernestrodgers789making one path kinda ruins the point of a language app as if you complete one path and go to the other one then the words from the other path wont appear and it aill make you forget, dont be fooled by that

[@mshmslv]

I tried Duolingo when I moved to Pittsburgh, PA - lived just 1 km from their office. I really wanted to like it but unfortunately it didn't get me anywhere in 1.5+ years. In the end I stopped using the app. I think I've learned a lot more watching movies/TV series with subtitles. The experience with the Duolingo app was like a blindfolded person guessing what's inside a thick cotton sack. Looks like Pimsleur is the way to go for me.

[@TestPrepInsight]

haha that's a funny way of putting it, but i agree. pimsleur will be much more effective for you. thanks for watching :)

[@janinacornelius9718]

Video was very helpful as I was looking at both duolingo and Pimsleur.

[@kingsofsummer858]

I’ve been doing Pimsleur for a while now and really like it

[@patrickmiller4342]

Looking forward to trying out the trial for Pimsleur.

[@siobhanmerle9203]

I'm learning new languages, I think, because I lost my mother tongue(Igbo) and unfortunately it's not a language you can easily find courses for. Learning other languages helps me work through some heartbreak from not knowing the language of my people.

[@gandolfthorstefn1780]

My original Pimsleur CD's recommend doing only the Pimsleur course and not consulting grammar or other courses. They even tell you not to have a dictionary.pen or paper with you when doing their Hebrew course. That's how confident they are with their learning program.

[@TestPrepInsight]

The CD's, wow! That's OG. Thanks for watching!

[@gandolfthorstefn1780]

​@@TestPrepInsightCD's are still useful. Pay up front and I'm set. Thanks for your content doing comparisons. Very informative.👍

[@jonangle461]

great comparison, it's pretty obvious what to go with after seeing them side by side

[@Gabe-no5zy]

It was so helpful to have this updated review! I was all set to plunk down $$$ for Pimsleur, but all the detail you provided helped me to understand that it's not the right tool for me right now. That may change. I agree with what you and others have said about Duolingo, but it's still fun and I supplement it with reading and KZbin lessons.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Glad we could help!

[@summerholloway5833]

Both Pimsleur and Duolingo sound fabulous! Thank you for the review!

[@yvonnecraven8557]

Thank you for comparing the two apps. I use Duolingo and I went all in last year because I really wanted to start learning a new language. I liked how their lessons are short especially with my busy life. I’ve been using it now for over a year and I can tell you those short lessons haven’t helped me. I liked the idea at first but I haven’t learned nearly as much as I should’ve by now using it for as long as I have. I liked the game aspect of it as well but being the competitive self that I am I didn’t like that there was no end to their stages. What I mean by that is if you don’t earn enough points you get demoted to the previous stage you were at and if you go all the way to the end like I did, then you to keep battling to stay there or you demote. So there’s no “hey you made it to the top and got 1st place” and that’s it. Nope you just keep battling others or you work your way back down. I feel Duolingo should be used for more of a refresher since they have short lessons and fun but not if you’re truly trying to invest in learning a new language. So again thank you for the review because now I found the app that fits my language learning goals better 💜

[@TestPrepInsight]

No problem!! Glad we could help. And well said above, agree with you.

[@cindyatwood7144]

Additionally, Duolingo's voice technology is awful. I must've repeated the word: homen at least10 times, and I KNOW I was saying it correctly, but kept getting kicked off. Very frustrating.

[@richardross612]

Great review

[@sycamore0412]

Great video comparison, I've only used Duolingo (to learn Italian) but have recently felt that it wasn't meeting my needs for many of the same reasons you listed. I think I will be switching to Babbel. My high school-aged son is also learning Spanish and I feel Babbel would be a great supplement to his curriculum. Subscribing now to be included in your monthly giveaway!

[@TestPrepInsight]

Thanks for sharing!

[@TheNikababe]

Thank you for the quick review. I only use Duolingo to learn Chinese and was interested in whether Pimsleur would help strengthen my verbal skills. This really helped. Now I have to justify the cost of Pimsleur so I'll go to your more in-depth review and the Pimsleur free trial. 😊 Cheers Merran

[@TestPrepInsight]

Thanks for sharing, and good luck!

[@harshalagrawal2056]

Please tell me the best way of learning French up to a fluent conversational level in 7 months as I will be going to start with my bachelors in Brussels this coming September and I need to be fluent in French before that in order to do part time jobs there which will be essential to my survival there and therefore I request you to kindly guide me to the best web possible to become fluent in French within 7 months within a modest budget.

[@jackiechiles7552]

tough call since these apps are so different. maybe both?

[@howardsternel1911]

Yeah I used the trial for Pimsleur and I really enjoyed the voice coach. It really is spot on. That service really helped me with listening and speaking in the foreign language. It is time consuming for me. But it was nice. I wasn’t exposed to as much vocabulary compared to when I used a trial with Lingvist (which is phenomenal for learning lots of vocabulary) but it’s a great service. I’m still looking at other services but rocket language and Pimsleur really are my favorite.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Both are great calls. Thanks for watching!

[@johngorentz6409]

I had never heard of Lingvist. I'm going to check it out.

[@howardsternel1911]

@@johngorentz6409 yeah it’s nice. There are some weird things with it but it’s not so bad with all that it has to offer in relation to vocab. They have a reading section too which I enjoyed and an okay vocab listening section. I found it enjoyable

[@ernestrodgers789]

I was waiting for this review! The Pimsleur Voice Coach challenge in the app is awesome! Your responses are recorded and graded. It's more time-consuming than Duolingo but far superior, especially since Duolingo ruined their app last fall by dumbing down the user interface. Thank you for the updated comparison.

[@TestPrepInsight]

No problem!! Thanks for watching

[@Goblinn99]

I'm learning a new language for two reasons. First, I enjoy learning new things and learning a language is also a useful undertaking. Second, I'd like to travel to Spain and knowing the language will make that trip much more enjoyable.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Great reasons. Thanks for sharing!

[@kennybania5177]

Great comparison. I’d go with Pimsleur all day.

[@user-jr1vl3do5b]

Duolingo gives such ridiculous sentences not because of the algorithms but the people who make the course. Every course is made by someone, nothing is random. Furthermore, it is Duolingo's "feature" that they give you some funny sentences so that you remember them better

[@courtneydyer8555]

Duolingo is my favorite because of the navigation of the app and its simplicity. I think the material offered through visuals and audio offerings is great!!

[@bloodandglory3180]

I want to learn a new language because I want to go to other countries and be able to converse with the locals. I also want to be able to read materials in other languages to grasp culture.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Very cool reasoning. Thanks for watching!

[@WeAreBullets]

where did duolingo's voice recognition exercises go? thats what i liked most about the app, and then it just stopped offering me those exercises, even when i checked all the settings in the app and on my phone, the voice activity option just doesnt exist anymore on my app! ?! 😭

[@TestPrepInsight]

I don't know, I think Duo is going the wrong direction

[@WeAreBullets]

@@TestPrepInsight it made it fun for me, but its definitely not as practical, it was more of an extra fun practice time.

[@poggers3492]

I also noticed that Pimsleur teaches the Egyptian dialect which really interests me as an Arabic beginner

[@TestPrepInsight]

That's cool. Thanks for watching!!

[@andrewlopez8778]

Interesting

[@thibDave]

I'm going with Pimsleur. I should note that I've used Rosetta Stone for years (to try and learn Spanish), but feel like the end result is much like that of my high school and college lessons...not productive at the end of it all.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Hopefully you have more luck with Pimsleur. Thanks for watching!

[@diybuckeye6764]

I’m a truck driver and it’s very hard to use Duolingo while your driving! I began my language learning in order to keep awake during the long hours of driving. I think I’m going t switch to Pimsleur.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Great call. Check out Pimsleur's special driving mode. Rocket Languages could be a good fit as well.

[@diybuckeye6764]

@@TestPrepInsight thank you for the recommendation! I will try that as well.

[@sanaa3151]

Learning a new language so I can go to France and speak with natives!! Great video John!

[@TestPrepInsight]

Thank you!!

[@hduendvshis]

Great

[@Mike-rp1hw]

Heyo! I would go with Pimsleur. The speech recognition they added late last year seems to be very good and the ability to speak and get relative accurate feedback is important in the language learning process.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Very. Thanks Mike!

[@Riverpeth]

Any updates on most recent 2023 versions of Pimsleur vs Rocket Languages?

[@TestPrepInsight]

Planning on doing just that comparison in the next month or so for an update

[@Riverpeth]

@@TestPrepInsight Sounds good, was thinking of purchasing Rocket so I'm hoping it's still a good choice

[@Jim10082]

Excellent Pimsleur vs Duolingo 2023 (Which Language App Is Better?) review help. Thanks. Great website by the way. Easy to use.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Cool, thanks!

[@strawbs2336]

I’m enjoying dualingo, the game like features and short lessons really keep me interested. I also use memrise and try expose myself to Spanish tv.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Nice! Glad that's working for you :)

[@lordcharfield4529]

I have SuperDuolingo, but am considering Duolingo Max. However, Duolingo Max is more expensive than Pimsleur!

[@TestPrepInsight]

It's pretty crazy how much Duo costs now!

[@NewportSolar]

I want to learn Spanish to communicate with my Spanish speaking friends and coworkers.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Yep, great reason!

[@samislam2746]

84$!!? in Turkeye we only pay 364₺ which is ≈ 19$

[@TestPrepInsight]

I think they price differently based on country

[@andrewbabbo123]

The new Duolingo update is not my favorite. I loved the tips that you could open that would explain the lesson and the grammar, but they got rid of it with the new update.

[@TestPrepInsight]

I know, most people are upset with the changes

[@animespeculator4599]

Not even a competition

[@TestPrepInsight]

Generally agree :)

[@vipnetworker]

I want to learn new languages for business and just for fun.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Awesome!

[@jeffrose5636]

Duolingo NEVER. I tried it for a long time and it is worthless.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Agree, Pimsleur is clearly superior to us

[@marcellbyers3195]

Hi! I would love to win the free lessons my goal is to understand Spanish by the end of the year, I would be so grateful if you could help me succeed with my resolution!

[@siobhanmerle9203]

Today, someone told me about Frantastique. There is a 7 day free trial I plan to start later, but I would love to hear your review

[@TestPrepInsight]

We will have to check it out!

[@Crystal_Starheart]

Hey, I just received an email about Duolingo with bad news.... John - you need to check out a News article on Malwarebytes Lab titled ""2.6 million DuoLingo account entries" up for sale" written by Christopher Boyd. I had been using Duolingo for weeks.

[@TestPrepInsight]

Huh, I'll have to check it out

[@NewportSolar]

Busuu is now 100% FREE… I just hit day 300 on Duolingo and I was top 1% worldwide in XP last year. That said, I’m not a big fan. I just signed up for Busuu and while it isn’t perfect, I think it is MUCH better for language learning and… BUSUU is now 100% FREE !!! I think they want to compete with Duolingo, so they are copying that model. I haven’t seen how the free version works because I got a great deal for premium during their New Year’s sale, but it is nice to know there is another option for people that want to learn a language and either don’t want to or can’t afford to pay for it. Busuu’s announcement said their entire app is now available for free, not just a preview or watered down version (like Mondly). It would be great to see a review on the new free version of Busuu 👍 PS: I’d also love to see a review of Beelinguapp. PPS: I will still continue with Duolingo, even though I think it is a waste of time. I want to hit a 1,000 day streak. I don’t know why. I will likely be even more frustrated at that point that I wasted that much time 😂😂😂 I want to finish the Spanish program entirely. At my current pace, I think that will take 1-2 more years. I have completed all the beginner level programs. I am not in their intermediate level and it definitely has become more challenging, so I’m curious to see where we go from here. I wish I would have started at intermediate. I didn’t need the beginner level lessons as I had already taken a few semesters of Spanish in school. Now I feel I am at or past where I was from Spanish in school. Moving from present tense only to past tense and future tense is what separates the hombres from the niños. Or the mujeres from the niñas.

[@TestPrepInsight]

I know, we need to address the new Busuu news! and agreed with all your Duolingo points. Fun, but not the most effective :(

[@NewportSolar]

@@TestPrepInsight I’m curious to see your review of the new free version of Busuu. I just paid for a year of premium, so I can’t see what the free version looks like. I got a deal on premium, so I don’t mind paying, but I wonder if what I paid was worth it, or if the free version would have been good enough.

[@TestPrepInsight]

We paid for a year of Busuu Premium as well, so we will have to create another free account to try it out, as we currently can't see the free version either lol. But very curious myself...

[@NewportSolar]

@@TestPrepInsight Is Beelinguapp on your radar yet?