What Do Reddit Users Think About Babbel?

The internet has constantly provided users with an incredible opportunity to take advantage of numerous applications and downloadable resources. You can learn almost everything you need from the internet.

Whatever new knowledge you need, the internet has made learning evolve from what we are used to. More importantly, if you want to learn to speak a new language, many sites and apps currently offer language lessons.

However, not all of these offer high-quality content and are guaranteed to elevate your learning experience.

If you are serious about learning a new language, there is a high chance you’ve heard of the language app Babbel. Babbel stands as one of the most popular language-learning programs. It has proven to be very useful in learning new languages, even for beginners.

Reddit is a popular social media platform that allows users to say how they feel about anything. Many Redditors have used Babbel to learn new languages and gave unbiased reviews about the app. This article reviews Babbel and details what these Reddit users have to say about it in general.

Overview of Babbel

This business was founded in August 2007 by Thomas Holl, Lorenz Heine, Toine Diepstraten, and Markus Witte. Babbel later went online with community features in January 2008.

Free classes were first offered, and then premium content required payment. However, it has expanded to 14 languages and over 10 million users in the last 15 years.

All users are charged since there is no free alternative. In 2021, it launched Babbel Live as a spinoff to cater to face-to-face learners. It is a live instructor-led online tutoring program that uses video chat.

Babbel focuses on assisting users in establishing a strong foundation in the new language they desire to master. It ensures you learn enough material to speak confidently in as little as three weeks. Hence, the language courses from the inside are carefully reviewed, created, and curated.

In an effort to make the language-learning software as successful as possible, Babbel uses time-tested EFL approaches supported by renowned university academics. These methods created the app as an empowering resource that enables anybody to acquire a language that can be utilized in everyday discussions. Hence, many Redditors find conversing in the new language easier with Babbel. 

Most of Babbel’s audience comprises novice language learners. Hence, the app provides a software-based learning technique but is also reasonably priced. People who want to expand their vocabulary and strengthen sentence structures find it especially helpful.

The app has helped several Redditors learn languages through in-person interactions and efficient review techniques that help people commit new vocabulary or grammar to long-term memory.

Through a range of tasks, Babbel assists in developing all fundamental language abilities for Redditors, including speaking, reading, and writing. The fact that you will learn real-world expressions that locals use is fantastic. 

What Languages can you learn on Babbel?

Redditors have used Babbel to learn languages such as Spanish, Swedish, French, etc. You could study other languages with Babbel, including English, Danish, Dutch, German, Indonesian, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, and Turkish. Also, Babbal offers two distinct types of Spanish. It teaches Latin America and Spain Spanish differently. All languages are European, except for Bahasa Indonesia. The three main Scandinavian languages—Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian—are all available on Babbel, making it one of the few platforms to do so.

Features of Babbel

Some of the features Babbel include:

1. Local version of the language

The emphasis on a phrase’s colloquial form is one of Babbel’s standout traits that several Redditors point out. Naturally, it takes care to provide you with the precise and uncommon choice, but the emphasis is on the words as you would hear them in everyday speech.

This has been useful to any Redditors since the audio is spoken by real people. Hence, Redditors can understand what the people are saying and speak more naturally rather than merely using formal or academic terms. This is an excellent feature when compared to other language-learning apps.

With the Babbel app, Redditors have learned at least ten new daily words or phrases. You can also choose your favorite review strategy to ensure your review is as effective as possible.

2. Podcasts

To help improve language skills, Redditors have used Babbel podcasts to learn several languages. These podcasts have been helpful for several Redditors at varying levels of learners, including beginners and experts. 

As a study aid, just like Redditors, you can also read the transcript. Nevertheless, not all languages offered have this feature. A few options exist for the more popular languages, like German, French, Spanish, and Italian. Sadly, however, none exist for lesser-known tongues like Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Polish, or Dutch.

3. 2-Minute Short Stories

Two-Minute Stories is another feature available in several languages. These are a few little stories that will teach you some useful words. Each short narrative requires a few minutes, making it ideal for passive instruction.

However, most of the stories are written in English and merely emphasize the most crucial words and phrases in the other language. Moreover, you can practice utilizing a lot of your newly acquired vocabulary in everyday circumstances by reading Babbel’s short tales.

4. Cultural Bites

To further your understanding of the cultural nuances of your target language, Babbel also offers Culture Bites.

They are brief explanations of characteristic aspects of the language you are learning, such as how people introduce themselves. Then, it concentrates on many holidays, famous artists, and historical figures. You can spice up any discussion by learning fast, interesting facts about the history and use of your target language. This is one excellent feature that language apps should have.

5. Price

Babbel offers several plans, including monthly subscriptions. Like other subscription websites, the monthly price decreases as more months are purchased in advance.

The three months plan goes for $8.95/month. The six-month plan goes for $7.45/month. Users pay $12.95 per month. The yearly plan goes for about $6.95 per month.

You get to enjoy a 20-day money-back guarantee on all courses. This means you can contact Babbel and request a refund of your purchase within the first 20 days after making it.

Pros of Babbel

1. It teaches practical and useful language

You can learn the language using Babbel’s exercises without being overwhelmed by drills or peculiarities. Redditors believe that it combines vocabulary and grammar so that you can apply what you learn to real-life situations relatively soon.

The conversational excerpts that are given in each course best illustrate this. They provide two speakers who use what you have just learned in a typical, informal setting.

2. Interactive Learning Experience

Babbel’s lessons are thorough, interesting, and comprehensive enough to instill confidence in you while learning a new skill or subject. The app combines flashcards, fill-in-the-gap exercises, and multiple-choice questions to teach you a language.

It also has a listen and repeat feature that has helped Reddit users improve their listening and speaking abilities. It thus gets more fun and exciting. You can choose a learning level depending on your interests, goal, and speed. Additionally, the app’s capability to give you reminders to check your progress regularly instills a sense of discipline in your language learning.

3. Lessons come with tips

Tips that clarify particular topics connected to what you are studying in a lesson are one of Babbel’s finest features. These tips have provided an extra context in terms of syntax, formality, sentence structure, and other issues for Reddit users.

Although short and straightforward, these recommendations are excellent additions that can increase your language proficiency.

4. Well-structured Lessons 

According to a Redditor, learning and the curriculum at Babbel are laid out in a logical sequence. Before going on to more complex conversational and sentence structures, you begin with extremely simple words and phrases. Babbel ensures you ascend a structurally solid language proficiency ladder, from learning how to introduce yourself to explaining your activities.

Additionally, you will not forget the information you learned in prior sessions. When you balance the fresh material in your current session, it will undoubtedly come up again.

Cons of Babbel

1. Limited language choice

Babbel only currently delivers 14 languages, most of which are European. As a result, the pool of potential users who can use the app will be lower than other apps offering more languages.

Although 14 languages is a very common quantity, after all these years of operation, one would anticipate Babbel to have a more diverse and broad list of languages available.

2. Exercises can get boring and dry

Some Redditors see Babbel’s teachings and activities as comprehensive. However, they might eventually become somewhat monotonous.

This is mostly due to the lack of variety in the workout structure as a whole. The same inputs are often the replies. Additionally, the questions do not vary significantly. While this approach helps hasten vocabulary acquisition, you can quickly become weary of the course’s repetitive nature.

The problem is made worse by the absence of “game-like” elements, which might further demotivate learners who rely on entertainment and incentives. Perhaps adding additional multimedia elements is one way to do this. Videos might be a good addition to increase the interactivity of the exercises and courses.

3. Lessons with varying quality

According to a review from Reddit, some courses are more well-developed than others. Babbel Swedish, for instance, can have fewer modules and lower quality than Babbel Spanish. Beginner, intermediate, and advanced classes are available for several well-known languages, including Spanish and French. The range is much narrower for the studied but less widely spoken languages, including Danish and Polish. They are thus mostly limited to the beginner levels.

Additionally, some languages may not have features that other languages have. A Redditor noted that Polish Babbel does not have the Babbel Live Feature that other popular languages Babbel offers have.

Even if this does not make the lesson content compromised in any way, it would be nice if the app had some consistency about which key terms or expressions need to be addressed in each course.

Frequently Asked Questions 

How do I get started with Babbel?

You must create an online account in order to begin using Babbel. Once completed, you will pick one of the lessons Babbel recommends for you and define your learning objectives.

Is Babbel Ideal for Beginners?

Babbel prides itself as an extremely user-friendly tool for learning languages. It mostly serves beginning and intermediate learners. To several Redditors, Babbel’s approach to teaching languages is straightforward and fundamental, which is ideal for introducing you to the process of learning a new language. Many Reddit users agree that it is ideal for beginners. 

While it may not be particularly complex, it does the job and teaches you what it is like to learn a language. Babbel is a serious learning app, unlike other language learning applications. There won’t be any language games or other distractions; learning is entirely concentrated.

This is excellent for beginners since it lets you stay focused and minimizes distractions. Babbel also enables you to track how far you’ve come and how much more you still need to study.

Is Babbel Worth Paying for?

With the review from Redditors, one can say Babbel is worth a try owing to its course quality, variety of assessments, and adaptability.  Also, the app’s learning approaches are supported by research and continuously refined by a team of experts. 

Can you become Fluent with Babbel?

Babbel is a great language app that can give you a solid foundation in your target language, but you will need to utilize additional resources to reach proficiency. It probably would not make you entirely proficient in a language, but it can help you learn the essentials and enhance your conversational abilities. Lessons include reading, writing, speaking, and listening, making it an excellent approach to begin learning a language. 

Some Redditors believe that you can become fluent in a language with constant practice. Thus with Babbel, you can hone certain skills and prepare for forthcoming travels or situations when you’ll need to speak your new language. 

Fortunately, Redditors believe that if you are consistent in your learning, you will have a good idea of the language in no time.

What makes Babbel better than Duolingo?

When using Babbel as opposed to Duolingo, you get more grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary. The review below shows that the Redditor has used both apps but prefers Babbel because it is more modular and easier to use. More modularity in this context suggests that Babbel has a more defined structure.

Is Babbel Offering Discounts, Coupons, And Deals?

Babbel’s pricing is competitive. Thus, many users are prepared to pay for it. Finding a cheaper way to pay less for this service can be great. Currently, the business provides student and military discounts. In addition, they often provide promotional coupons and organize discount events through your registered email address.

 A Reddit user also noted that you can confirm from the company through mail to know what discount you are eligible for.

Conclusion

When you are going through a list of language learning apps, it is almost impossible for Babbel not to be on the list. Language courses are developed differently. You can undoubtedly lay a foundation in your target language with the aid of its courses and classes. Babbel does not work for everyone. From the reviews from some Reddit users, we can see that some people like it while others do not find it useful. Using a language-learning app like Babbel is perfect if you want to develop real connections with native speakers and communicate with them effectively. Babbel has sufficient language courses and in-depth lessons to assist you in learning a new language.