Lingoda teaches four languages plus English for business:

German, Spanish, French, English and English for business

Lingoda was founded in 2013 by Felix and Fabian Wunderlich. Initially it offered 1-1 German tuition over Skype. It now teaches 4 languages, has 120k+ learners, 1.9k certified native speaking teachers and teaches over 562k classes every year.

All Lingoda courses are based on levels set by the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). This provides an approved standard for identifying language proficiency. Each level contains several lessons which target writing, reading, listening and speaking. The levels cover A1.1 (beginner) to C1 (advanced). Lingoda has a team of in-house experts on linguistics who have put together all of the course material with the aim to get you speaking fluently faster.

Also, the 24/7 availability of a real life tutor is a game changer when it comes to language learning. 97% of users say they found Lingoda better than other language learning providers.

To get started with Lingoda, you just click ‘Start Free Trial’ and answer a few questions about why you want to learn your target language, what you hope to achieve and how much time you can commit to.

You then choose the plan that most suits you, go ahead and book some lessons and start learning! You take each class with up to four other learners over Zoom. Your tutor will not only be a native speaker of your chosen language, but also a qualified teacher. The idea is that live classes taught by native speakers are more immersive and will make you more fluent and accurate.

Tutors often introduce a topic, or ask you direct questions, in the target language. While this may seem hard to begin with, it gets you thinking in that language and you’ll be surprised how quickly this becomes easy!

This will improve your fluency and accuracy because your brain is actively engaging with the language rather than passively taking it in.

Level A1.1 lessons (aimed at beginners) all begin with a link to Zoom where everyone introduces themselves.

You don’t need to show your face if you’re not comfortable doing that. You just need your microphone on to speak.Class sizes are small (3-5) so your turn to actively take part will come round quickly.

The tutor will take you through that lesson’s worksheet (which you can download prior to the lesson). But lessons are mostly interactive with opportunities to:

• Speak and read phrases aloud with feedback to help pronunciation
• Translate phrases
• Engage in conversation with the help of help of flashcards, scripted dialogue, etc
• Learn from questions asked by the group
• Pick up new vocabulary with picture clues and real life examples
• Complete puzzles and play games to reinforce understanding

• And always get instant feedback

  Lessons last for one hour. This might seem like a long time, but in my experience they fly by and the interactive nature of the course keeps you engaged.

Lingoda's pricing varies depends on:

• Whether you choose 1-1 or group lessons
• How many lessons you commit to
• Which language you decide to learn (German is slightly more expensive)

In short, the greater number of classes you can book, the more the cost of each class is reduced.

You can buy one-to-one classes in addition to group classes in your subscription if you feel like you’re getting behind and/or want extra help in a particular subject.

Lingoda Sprint and Super Sprint

Lingoda Sprint and Super Sprint are intense language classes that aim to get you fluent in two months. They may seem expensive at first glance. But you don’t have to pay up front and you can get  some, or even all, of your money back:

Sprints take place between fixed dates. To earn cash back you have to follow rules that are clearly set out by Lingoda. These include attending all relevant classes and never missing more than ten minutes (in total) of class time.

To review the app, I spent 4 hours on Lingoda French A1.1. I took the novice level as although I had had some French lessons at school, I had not spoken the language since and wanted to see what I could remember.

Also, I wanted to see if Lingoda provided a good introduction to French. As luck would have it some people in my classes were starting to learn without any prior knowledge and were also picking things up very quickly.

I learned and increased my French vocabulary and conversation skills by:

• Using flashcards
• Repeating words and phrases aloud
• Matching words to images
• Completing the blanks in sentences

• Finding the “intruder” (one of many fun games)

  During my time completing the course, I noticed a considerable improvement in both my own speaking and understanding of the language. In fact, I even received some compliments from the tutors on how quickly I was picking things up!

I gained basic conversational skills such as how to greet someone and introduce myself. I’ve also acquired grammatical skills such as understanding how masculine and feminine can alter how words are written and pronounced.

With Lingoda’s teaching I was able to better understand these topics than when I learned French at school. Not only that but the presentation style of the material made everything much easier to remember.

What I liked about Lingoda

Live teaching from qualified native speaking teachers

When it comes to learning languages native speakers will always make the best teachers. This is because they can provide you with all the small details and nuances that will change your speaking of a language from passable to perfect.

On top of this, the teaching is live. This allows questions to be resolved, learning to be adapted to needs and the opportunity for immediate feedback.

Effective and comprehensive 

A combination of reading, writing, listening and speaking is necessary to create the learning experience needed to retain a new language.

Though there is a strong emphasis on speaking and listening, there are opportunities for reading and writing to help develop fluency.

Puzzles and games cement learning

Lingoda deploys a variety of fun puzzles and games to break up a lesson, repeat learned knowledge in different contexts and appeal to different kinds of learning styles.

Not only do studies prove that this is effective, but these elements tend to be what solidifies your understanding of the language and retain that information for use later on.

Lessons available 24/7

Something that immediately stands out about Lingoda is its accessibility for people who are pushed for time. Lessons can be booked whenever you want.

Using either the website or the app you can look for your next lesson and choose a time to suit you. Generally classes get booked up with around 48 hours to spare so do keep this in mind.

More immersive than conventional apps 

You’ll be reading, translating, matching phrases to images and much more in a small (3-5 students) group. However, if you’re not feeling too outgoing or are having a bad hair day there’s no need to have your camera on; just have your mic on when it’s your turn to speak,

Teachers frequently ask questions or introduce new topics in the target language. While this may seem a little daunting or even distracting at first; this exposes you to the language in a way where it becomes more familiar quicker. to help you get fluent fast.

Adaptable and easy to personalize

different levels are available and the small group size means individual questions and concerns can be readily addressed.

But beyond this, you can upgrade to one-to-one style learning if you would prefer. These do cost more than the standard subscription but may be worth it if you find you are struggling on a certain lesson.

You can also subscribe to  a one-on-one plan where all your lessons will be 100% adapted to your needs. Again these are more expensive than the standard subscriptions so it’s worth considering what your needs are before purchasing.

Lessons cover relevant and current topics 

Lingoda lessons are based on useful topics and also offer cultural tips that help you learn when and how to say something appropriately, such as formal and informal situations.

It also ensures its content is hyper relevant, up to date and engaging. And tutors will regularly review and improve their own teaching techniques.

Certification 

Certificates are a great way to build your qualifications, demonstrate your commitment to learning and Increase your career prospects and open new doors.

Lingoda gives you the opportunity to receive a certificate for each Common European Framework (CEFR) level you complete.

Potential lack of consistency dependant on instructor availability

One drawback of Lingoda is that, while you can fit lessons around your own life; you’ll generally find yourself taking classes with different tutors each time. While a bit of variation can be a good thing, too much of it can lead to a lack of consistency in the teaching.

Although all of the tutors I had were very engaging and enthusiastic, some were better communicators than others. And some had a better grip on Zoom technology than others.

It also became apparent during the introductions of each class that the tutor was usually meeting students for the first time, which slightly detracts from the communal feel.

However, this is all probably a price worth paying for the flexibility of in person learning Lingoda offers. Plus, all of Lingoda’s teachers are fully certified so you know you’re receiving good quality tuition.

Someone struggling can put the whole class behind

Along with the upsides of class learning also comes its downsides. In one of the lessons I attended, there was a student who was struggling with a particular phrase. This ended up putting the whole class behind schedule and that lesson's content was not completed.

Unfortunately, more often than not, the tutor has another class to teach in the next hour slot so can’t extend the class to compensate for this. Fortunately, most of what remained was puzzles and games based on what we had learned so nothing too essential was missed.

Only four languages available

Although the number of languages offered by Lingoda is increasing, it is still significantly less than all of its competitors.

The Lingoda learning style would suit anyone who’s:

• Looking to learn a new language from scratch
• Has some grasp of a language and wants to improve
• Learns best either 1 to 1 or in a class setting

• Wants to improve their conversational skills

  While Lingoda would be ideal for anyone who’s always wanted to start learning a new language it will also suit those who are proficient but want to improve.

Right away Lingoda will have you speaking, reading aloud and improving your conversational capabilities in your chosen language.

Lingoda offers a number of features that make it an ideal choice for students who want to learn a language. These include:

• Personalized live learning
• Direct contact with native speakers
• Immersion
• Fun, interactive lessons that touch all learning styles
• Flexible learning
• 1-1 tuition 
• Super intense programs to get fluent fast

Personalized live learning

Live lessons allow you to interact with the tutor and have your individual queries addressed immediately. As certified teachers, Lingoda tutors will be able to adapt their teaching to the different needs of learners as they arise. And the small group size ensures individual attention and engagement.

Direct access to native speakers

All your tutors will be native speakers in your target language. This will not only mean you hear correct pronunciation but will naturally pick up colloquialisms, idioms, nuances, cultural insights and grammar.

Immersion

The best way to learn a language is by immersing yourself in it. Lingoda provides the opportunity for you to do this through live teaching and small group sizes. Plus  the teacher will be maximizing opportunities for you to hear, speak (and therefore think) in your target language.

Fun interactive lessons that touch on all learning styles

Lingoda lessons cover all aspects of language learning. There is obviously a big emphasis on speaking and listening. However, there are also fun, interactive exercises that encourage reading and writing and which touch on visual, aural and kinaesthetic learning styles.

Flexible Learning

24/7 lessons over Zoom (on your laptop or mobile) mean you get the best of both worlds. A real life tutor and a style of learning that you can fit around your busy life.

One to one tuition available if required

You can purchase this for individual classes - if you are struggling with a particular aspect of a language - or as part of your subscription if you want your learning experience to revolve 100% around your needs.

Super intense programs to get fluent fast

If you want to get fluent in two months, and potentially get cashback on your investment, Lingoda offer Sprint and Super Sprint. These are intense programs that start at a fixed time and end two months later.

Lingoda key facts:

• Our score: 8.66/10
• Number of users: 120,000
• Avg lesson length: 1 hour
• Number of lessons: N/A
• Downloadable lessons: Flexible
• Starting proficiency test: Yes
• Provides certificate: Yes
• Adaptive to user: Yes
• Number of languages taught: 4
• Pricing: From $10 per lesson
• Desktop: Yes
• Mobile: Yes
• IOS: Yes
• Android: Yes

• Our score: 8.9 / 10
• Trustpilot 4.4 /5 based on 4,144k reviews

• PC Magazine 4.5/5

  “When it comes [to] tutors, most of them are hits and some are misses. What I do is only attend the classes with the tutors I know are good.” – Comment from Reddit

As I’ve mentioned, your experience is likely to vary between tutors. What’s good for some, is not necessarily good for everyone. However, like this user, you can attend only the classes offered by a tutor who suits your needs.

“I’ve been doing Lingoda for about 2 months now […] and it’s been great. […] After doing all the work beforehand, classes are much smoother, and it gives me an opportunity to ask better and specific questions.” – Comment from Reddit

“So far it has been awesome! You get a great variety of teachers from all over various German-speaking regions in the world, so you get a taste of everywhere when it comes to dialects, accents, colloquialisms etc.” – Comment from Reddit

In a word: Yes.

If you’ve been wanting to learn (or improve your knowledge of) one of the four languages available on Lingoda, then it is absolutely worth considering.

Live teaching from certified tutors who are native speakers can really help you get results. Lingoda’s emphasis on in person learning -- something that sets them apart from other providers -- will have your conversational, listening and grammar skills up to a better standard in no time!

And if you have a busy lifestyle or no consistency in your schedule, the fact you can book lessons to suit your needs is so handy.

On top of this, you can book one to one classes or go for the Lingoda Sprint or Super Sprint program if you want to try and get fluent in 2 months. If you follow the Sprint guidelines carefully, Lingoda provides the opportunity to get some or even all of your money back.

I personally benefited hugely from Lingoda. It really helped me to bring my French back up to a passable standard. I haven’t felt this confident in speaking/reading French since school!

In terms of its price, I think Lingoda is worth it. If your goal is to reach a conversational level, you’ll only need a few months with Lingoda to achieve that.

Lingoda offers a free 7 day trial and I would strongly suggest you see what it’s like for yourself as you have nothing to lose!