Duolingo vs Praktika (2026): Which Gets You Speaking?

Pick Duolingo if you want a free, fun habit that keeps you coming back every day. Pick Praktika if you already know some basics and want to practise speaking with an AI tutor that talks back.

Most people who search this are stuck in the same place. They have a long Duolingo streak and still freeze when someone speaks to them. Or they tried an AI tutor, enjoyed a few calls, and then had no idea what they were actually learning.

We used both apps side by side, on their paid plans, and looked at the things that decide whether you will speak in six months: how much you talk, how lessons are built, and whether the words stay with you.

The short answer

How they score

We scored each app out of 10 on the things that matter most once the novelty wears off. Duolingo wins on habit and language choice. Praktika wins on speaking time and comfort. Neither is strong on keeping the words you learn.

How we tested

We used Duolingo Super and Praktika's paid plan on iPhone and Android over several weeks in 2026, and did the same things in both: the first lesson, a week of daily sessions, and a few conversations on topics we picked ourselves.

We also read recent App Store and Google Play reviews and checked each app's plans and prices in September 2026 [1][2][3]. Prices change by country, so treat the numbers below as a guide.

What Duolingo is like

Duolingo is the app most people start with, and for good reason. Lessons take three to five minutes. You match words, fill gaps and repeat short sentences. Streaks, leagues and a cheeky owl make it easy to come back tomorrow.

The AI side is Video Call, where you talk to the character Lily, plus features like Explain My Mistake. In 2026 Duolingo started moving Video Call into the cheaper Super plan and stopped selling Max to new subscribers [4]. That makes it easier to try, but the calls are short and stay close to the course.

The honest problem is the gap between tapping and talking. You can finish a whole unit by picking the right tiles, and still not be able to say the sentence out loud without help.

What Praktika is like

Praktika puts a face on the other side of the screen. You choose an avatar tutor with a name, a backstory and an accent, and you talk. It answers in voice, corrects you, and you can make the feedback softer or stricter.

For English learners this works well. It is built around English first, and it now covers 12 languages [2]. If you are shy about speaking, having a friendly avatar who never gets bored is a real help.

Where it falls short is what happens around the calls. The daily path is fairly fixed, there is no proper review of the words you met, and you can finish a great conversation with nothing to show for it the next morning. Many store reviews also complain about trials and cancelling [5].

Speaking: Praktika clearly wins here

If the only question is how much you get to talk, Praktika beats Duolingo easily. A Praktika session is mostly you speaking. A Duolingo session is mostly you tapping, with speaking as an extra.

Duolingo's Video Call is fun and a good first step, but it is short and stays close to what the course already taught. Praktika lets you go off script, ask for a role play, and keep going for as long as you want.

What neither does well is connect the talking to what you are studying. Praktika's calls float free of any course, and Duolingo's calls stay small.

Lessons and grammar

Duolingo has the stronger course. Units build on each other, grammar comes back in small steps, and you always know what is next. The catch is that the course is the same for everyone, and it teaches by guessing more than by explaining.

Praktika's lessons are there to feed the conversations. They are fine for a quick topic, but you will not get a clear sense of which grammar you have covered and what comes next.

Words and review

This is where most learners quietly lose progress. You meet a great word, you use it once, and it is gone by Friday.

Duolingo brings old words back through practice sessions, which helps, but you cannot see or shape your own word list in any useful way. Praktika has almost nothing here: the words from your conversations are not collected for review.

If keeping words matters to you, add a flashcard app next to either one, or save the new words from each session yourself.

Feature by feature

✓Yes◐Partly✕No

Duolingo is the wider app, with more languages, a free tier and a web version. Praktika does fewer things, but the one it does, talking, it does better.

Price and plans

Prices are App Store prices checked in September 2026 [1][2]. They vary by country and by offer, so check the price in your own store before you pay.

Who should pick which

Pick Duolingo if you are starting from zero, you want something free, and your main problem is showing up every day. It is still the best habit builder there is.

Pick Praktika if you already have the basics in English and your main problem is freezing when you speak. The avatar calls are a comfortable place to get words out of your mouth.

Conclusion

Duolingo and Praktika are both good at one thing. Duolingo gets you to open the app every day, and Praktika gets you to open your mouth. If you are new and need a routine, start with Duolingo. If you have the basics and freeze when you speak, Praktika is the better use of your time. Many learners end up using one for structure and the other for talking.

If neither app fits, see our Duolingo alternatives and Praktika alternatives, compare Airlearn vs Duolingo or Duolingo vs Speak, or browse the best AI language learning apps.

Frequently asked questions

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