Lexie
Alternatives
Babbel alternatives
Babbel is a course you subscribe to, with lessons to work through. People look elsewhere when they want quick drills without a lesson plan, or a one-time purchase.
Our pickLexie is the one we make, built for people who already have a course or a class and want numbers and verbs to come out without thinking.
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Lexie on iPhone
Facts checked on 11 November 2026.
Start with Lexie
Lexie is a drill game for numbers and verbs with a pet that reacts, sold without a subscription. Babbel is a full course of lessons and guided conversations on a subscription.
- You want a minute of drilling between other things, with no lesson to finish.
- You want numbers and verb forms said out loud until they stop costing effort.
- You want French included and other languages as one-time purchases.
4 alternatives to Babbel
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Lexie our pick
Lexie is a language Tamagotchi for iPhone and iPad. A pet blob reacts while you drill numbers and verb conjugation in short quiz, voice and listening rounds, in French, Spanish, German, Italian, Portuguese, English, Danish and Scottish Gaelic.
Built for: people who already have a course or a class and want numbers and verbs to come out without thinking. How you pay: French is included; each other language is a one-time purchase, and there is no subscription.
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Duolingo
Duolingo is a language app for iPhone and iPad that teaches through quick, bite-sized lessons in speaking, reading, listening and writing. It also has courses in chess, maths and music, with leaderboards and achievements.
How you pay: every course is free with ads; Super Duolingo is a subscription that removes ads and adds unlimited energy and a monthly streak repair, and gems are sold in packs.
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Drops
Drops is a vocabulary app for iPhone and iPad. It teaches words and phrases in many languages through game-like lessons with an illustration for each word, and covers scripts such as Korean, Japanese and Arabic.
How you pay: free lessons, with Drops Premium as a subscription after a 7 day trial.
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Memrise
Memrise is a language app for iPhone and iPad built around videos of native speakers. Its courses teach vocabulary, listening and speaking through real-life scenarios, with AI chat partners for conversation practice.
How you pay: a free plan with limited lessons, videos and conversations, and ads; the rest is a monthly, three-month or annual subscription, or a lifetime plan.
At a glance
| App | Built for | Where it runs | How you pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lexie | people who already have a course or a class and want numbers and verbs to come out without thinking | on iPhone and iPad, with quiz and listening rounds that work offline, and no account | French is included; each other language is a one-time purchase, and there is no subscription |
| Babbel | people who want structured lessons that lead to real conversations | on iPhone and iPad, with lessons you can download for offline use | one free lesson; full courses need a subscription for three, six or twelve months, or a lifetime purchase |
| Duolingo | people who want a full course in a new language, a few minutes at a time | on iPhone and iPad | every course is free with ads; Super Duolingo is a subscription that removes ads and adds unlimited energy and a monthly streak repair, and gems are sold in packs |
| Drops | people who want to build vocabulary in many languages through illustrated games | on iPhone and iPad | free lessons, with Drops Premium as a subscription after a 7 day trial |
| Memrise | people who want to hear a language the way locals speak it | on iPhone and iPad | a free plan with limited lessons, videos and conversations, and ads; the rest is a monthly, three-month or annual subscription, or a lifetime plan |
What Babbel is
Babbel is a subscription language course for iPhone and iPad. Its lessons are written for speakers of your own language and built around real-life conversations, with speech recognition, an AI conversation partner and a review system.
How to choose
Start with what is missing. If you need a whole language from zero, you need a course. If you have one and the numbers and verb forms still come slowly, add a drill. Lexie is the drill: short rounds, out loud if you like, with a pet that reacts.
Questions
What is the best alternative to Babbel?
Lexie, if you want short drills for numbers and verbs, with a pet in place of a lesson plan. Lexie is a drill game for numbers and verbs with a pet that reacts, sold without a subscription. Babbel is a full course of lessons and guided conversations on a subscription.
What is better than Babbel?
If you want short drills for numbers and verbs, with a pet in place of a lesson plan, Lexie is the better fit. It is built for people who already have a course or a class and want numbers and verbs to come out without thinking.
Why do people look for Babbel alternatives?
Babbel is a course you subscribe to, with lessons to work through. People look elsewhere when they want quick drills without a lesson plan, or a one-time purchase.
More comparisons
We make Lexie. What we say about the other apps comes from their own pages, read on 11 November 2026: Babbel on the App Store, Duolingo on the App Store, Drops on the App Store, Memrise on the App Store. Spotted a mistake? Write to support@lexielearns.com. Each name belongs to its owner, and Lexie is not affiliated with any of them.
A Tamagotchi for language drills
Lexie is on the App Store, for iPhone and iPad.
Product of the Day
Product Hunt, 2025
App of the Day
from the creators of murmur and Layered