Busuu: Language Learning App

Someone who actually speaks the language marks your homework. In Busuu, your writing and recorded speech are sent to a community of native speakers who return corrections, and you return the favour for people learning your language. No other mainstream app does that. Busuu operates as a Chegg service.

Full courses run in 14 languages, from the European standards to Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Arabic, Turkish and Russian, with Brazilian Portuguese rather than European. Lessons are short, built by in-house experts, and use video flashcards of real people. A Study Plan schedules sessions and reminders, Smart Review collects everything you've met for revision, and official certificates document the level you've reached.

You tell the Study Plan when you're free and how long for, and it builds the schedule and pings you at those times. A session is a few short lessons with video flashcards, then a writing or speaking exercise sent off to the community. A day later a correction comes back from someone in Madrid or Seoul, often with a tip the course didn't cover.

Returning the favour takes a minute or two and is oddly satisfying. Smart Review runs in the background, resurfacing everything you've met, and a certificate test marks the end of a level.

The native-speaker corrections are what people search for, because an algorithm can mark a multiple-choice question but can't tell you that your sentence sounds odd. The certificates attract learners who need something to show an employer. A 4.7 rating from more than a hundred thousand reviewers places it among the most trusted apps in the category.

Expect a lesson path, video flashcards with real faces, a correction inbox and the Study Plan calendar across the five screenshots. Busuu's design in Education sits between the game-like apps and the textbook ones: colourful progress markers but a serious tone. The community correction screens, with another learner's edits marked up, are the part that looks unlike its rivals.

Version 30.31.0 reflects a long history with frequent releases, and the description says course content is updated regularly. Busuu Limited is the developer, operating as a Chegg service, which brings a large parent company's resources and, potentially, its priorities. Hundred-thousand-plus ratings confirm the scale. As linked here it's iOS only. No release dates are given.

Rated 12+ and free to download, though the description doesn't say how much of the course is free or what a subscription costs, so expect a paid tier for full access and certificates. An account is required for the community exchange. Sending and receiving corrections needs a connection, and offline lessons aren't mentioned. Ads aren't discussed. Storage size and regional restrictions aren't given, and the Portuguese course is Brazilian only.