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Updated 28 October 2026
Want something besides Busuu's lessons? Here's what to try next, and what each one is good for.
Quick answer
If Busuu's lessons feel slow, or you want more real German than a course gives you, try something with a different job. Ziplex, LingQ and Easy German give you lots of real German to read and hear. Babbel is another course, built around dialogues and grammar. Duolingo turns lessons into a game. italki gets you a tutor. DW's free courses and Anki cost nothing.
Busuu is good at level-by-level lessons and feedback from native speakers. But lessons alone give you only a little German each day. To understand real German, you need lots of it at your level: posts, voices and people talking at normal speed. That's where other tools help.
Write a comment in German under a post and Ziplex polishes it, showing you each fix. Around that: short posts at your level (A1 to C2) to read and hear, and word games with the words you've seen.
Best for: Busuu learners who want daily German and a relaxed place to write. (We make Ziplex.)
Like Busuu, a course with grammar, built around everyday dialogues, with speech recognition for your pronunciation. There's no community: the app checks your answers. Paid subscription.
Best for: Clear lessons without waiting for feedback.
Game-like lessons where the app marks you right or wrong. The paid Max plan adds AI that explains your answers and lets you role-play conversations.
Best for: Daily practice with instant answers.
Lots of reading and listening at your level, with a tap on words you don't know. Little feedback on your own German, but a lot of German going in.
Best for: Understanding more before you speak more.
Free videos of real people talking. The Conversation membership, from 34.99 euros a month, adds daily moderated Zoom calls where you speak German with others.
Best for: Speaking in a group without a tutor.
Free courses where the exercises check your answers for you. No people correcting you, but a full path through the levels.
Best for: A free course to use next to Busuu.
The biggest step up from community corrections: a tutor who knows you, listens to you speak and corrects your homework. You pay per lesson.
Best for: Real speaking practice with a teacher.
Nobody corrects you here: you grade your own flashcards. Good for keeping the words from Busuu's lessons.
Best for: Remembering Busuu's vocabulary.
We make Ziplex, so we're not neutral, but we've tried to be fair. Details were checked on each product's website on 28 October 2026. Names are trademarks of their owners; we're not affiliated with them.
Busuu's big idea is feedback from people. Here's who checks your German in each one.
| App | Who corrects you | What gets corrected |
|---|---|---|
| Ziplex | AI, right away | Your German comments under posts: Ziplex polishes them and shows you each fix |
| Busuu | Native speakers in the community | Your writing and speaking exercises |
| Babbel | The app | Your answers in exercises, and your pronunciation |
| Duolingo | The app, plus AI on the Max plan | Your answers in exercises |
| LingQ | Nobody, by default | You mostly read and listen |
| Easy German | Hosts and other learners | Your speaking, in the Conversation membership's calls |
| DW Learn German | The app | Your answers in exercises |
| italki | Your tutor | Anything: speaking, writing, homework |
| Anki | You | You grade your own cards |
Swipe to see the whole table.
| Topic | Ziplex | Babbel | Duolingo | LingQ | Easy German | DW | italki | Anki |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
All six levels, A1 to C2 | ||||||||
The same post at your level | ||||||||
A German feed you want to scroll | ||||||||
Lots of German to read and hear | ||||||||
Tap any word for its full entry | ||||||||
Fun word games for German | ||||||||
Points and badges to collect |
Swipe to see all apps.
Ziplex gives you a full free week: German posts at your level, a dictionary and word games, so you can try a new way to learn without paying. For free resources with no time limit, DW Learn German has full courses, Easy German has free videos, and Duolingo has a free version.
Lots of real German at your level. Ziplex gives you short posts to read and hear in the minutes you'd scroll anyway, with word games on the words you've seen. A tutor on italki helps if you want to speak.
They do different jobs. Busuu teaches you level by level, with feedback from people on your writing; Ziplex gives you lots of German at your level to read and hear, in short posts, and polishes the comments you write. Many people will use both.