Duolingo vs Speak
A side-by-side comparison of Duolingo and Speak, two Education tools, drawn from Ignaite's continuously-verified listings.
Compared from listings verified as of
Duolingo
EducationGamified language-learning app, now AI-first with Video Call practice and AI-built courses.
View DuolingoAt a glance
| Attribute | Duolingo | Speak |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Education | Education |
| Pricing | FREEMIUM | FREEMIUM |
| License | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud |
| Platforms (differs) | Web, iOS, Android | iOS, Android, Web |
| Model support (differs) | Multi-model | Single model (proprietary) |
| Vendor (differs) | Duolingo, Inc. | Speakeasy Labs |
| Capabilities (differs) |
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The honest brief
Duolingo
No other AI tutor matches its scale — 100M+ monthly learners and a decade of A/B-tested pedagogy behind every AI exercise.
- Free core experience
- Video Call speaking practice
- Birdbrain adaptive difficulty
- 40+ languages on offer
- AI course quality criticized
- Max tier costs ~$30/month
- Gamification over depth
Speak
Drills speaking fluency from the first lesson with open-ended AI conversation and instant speech feedback rather than tap-the-word exercises.
- Speech-first method with instant feedback
- Tutor adapts the curriculum to your goals
- 15M+ downloads, 4.8 App Store rating
- Web, iOS and Android apps
- Only 7 target languages so far
- Full features need a subscription
- Light on reading and writing practice
When to pick which
Both cover AI tutoring and Language practice.
Pick Duolingo if you need Roleplay characters.
- Roleplay characters (secondary capability)
Pick Speak if you need Transcription (STT).
- Transcription (STT) (primary capability)
Speak leans on AI tutoring as a headline capability; Duolingo treats it as secondary.
- AI tutoring (primary capability)
They also differ on:
- Model support
- Multi-model · Single model (proprietary)