Parlumi, the language learning app: what it is and how it works

Parlumi is a free app for learning languages through short lessons that feel like a game. It's on iPhone (App Store) and Android (Google Play). If you haven't come across it yet, here are the essentials: what you can learn, what a lesson looks like and what makes it different.

Nine languages, from A1 to C2

With Parlumi you can learn Spanish, French, Italian, Brazilian Portuguese, Catalan, German, Dutch, Swedish and English. Every course follows the Common European Framework from A1 to C2: six levels with 12 units each, 72 units in total.

You don't have to start from scratch, either. If you already know some of the language, a placement test puts you at the right point. At the end of each level there's an exam to check you've got it down before you move on.

Explained in your language (properly)

You can use Parlumi in 13 languages: the nine on offer as courses, plus Polish, Finnish, Ukrainian and Turkish. But the point isn't just translated buttons. Each course is explained for speakers of your language. The notes tell you what works differently between the two languages and warn you about false friends: words that look alike but don't mean the same thing.

What a lesson looks like

A lesson takes about five minutes, which is enough to make progress if you do it every day. Inside you'll find a mix of exercises:

• Flashcards for new words, with audio.
• Choosing, ordering and matching words and sentences.
• Typing the answer, which makes you actually recall it.
• Listening at normal or slow speed.
• Speaking: you say the sentence out loud and your phone checks your pronunciation straight away. The audio isn't stored.
• Spotting the mistake in a sentence.
• A story at the end of each unit, so you see everything you've learnt in context.

The words you struggle with come back on their own in reviews, just as you're starting to forget them.

Keeping it up, without the pressure

Parlumi helps you stick with it: you pick a daily goal, earn XP, keep your streak going and collect gems. If you like, you can add friends, challenge them to 60-second duels and compare the weekly ranking.

Then there's the Parlumi city: every week you join a neighbourhood of up to 20 people building something together. What counts isn't your level but your consistency: every lesson adds to it.

Offline and ad-free

You can do lessons offline: on the train, on a plane or anywhere without signal. When you're back online, your progress syncs. There are no ads, and you can try the first lessons without creating an account.

One account, any phone

If you create an account, your progress, streak and friends follow you across iPhone and Android, so you can switch phones without losing anything. And if you need it for your team, there's Parlumi Teams for businesses.

Quick questions

Is it free? Yes. You can use it for free; Premium is optional.

Which phones does it work on? iPhone, from the App Store, and Android, from Google Play. Here's more on Parlumi arriving on Android.

How much time do I need each day? Five minutes a day is enough to make progress. What matters is consistency, as we explain in how to learn a language in 5 minutes a day.