Mondly Review

Mondly supports 42 languages:

English (UK), English, (US), Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Turkish, Arabic, Persian, Hebrew, Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazil), Hebrew, Catalan, Latin, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Greek, Romanian, Afrikaans, Croatian, Czech, Bulgarian, Polish, Slovak, Hungarian, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, Hindi, Bengali, Indonesian, Tagalog, Thai

Mondly is a language e-learning service founded in 2014 designed to meet one aim: to get adults and children speaking a new language - fast..

It’s consistently ranked as one of the highest-rated education apps in the app store and has 80+ million learners.

Mondly is a gamified language learning application that provides you with a guided yet interactive learning experience via memory exercises and a very intuitive interface. It offers learning in 42 languages via desktop and app, using virtual and augmented reality products.

It was acquired in 2022 by Pearson, the world’s leading education company, to boost its existing portfolio of state of the art learning tools and provide a way for students to study languages independently online. For Pearson to select Mondly, out of all the language platforms available is testimony to its effectiveness.

To get started on Mondly you simply select the language you want to learn and click ‘Start Learning’. Mondly works the same way regardless of the language you choose.

You’ll see the Mondly dashboard containing lots of topic icons such as weather, travel, food, etc. You can choose a topic or select ‘daily lesson’ and Mondly will guide you through in a recommended order.

For each topic (or within the daily lesson) you’ll take bite-sized lessons which cover the following:

• Vocabulary (Interactive flashcards)
• Listening (Audio to written and spoken exercises)
• Speaking (Hands-free conversational lessons and thematic lessons)
• Reading and writing (image association and phrase creation)

• Conversation (chatbot conversations)

  Lessons are self-paced and you complete them in your own time. You can view them on the go, on your computer, mobile, or tablet. Plus, you can track your progress with statistics and leaderboards and compare your score with other learners. Weekly quizzes, and monthly challenges are created according to your progress.

On top of this there are additional resources to optimize your learning, such as the Mondly Augmented Reality (AR) app. The AR app uses a virtual teacher to help you learn new words by showing you interactive worlds and activities.

As an experience, Mondly very much has the feel of a board game, where your objectives, achievements, and progress are visible as you go along a ‘learning path’.

Mondly’s lessons are grouped around topics such as weather, food, travel, etc.

The structure is very straightforward. This means that you know exactly how many words and phrases you will learn, the estimated time it will take you to complete the lesson and your overall rating.

For each topic there are:

• 6 vocabulary activities (all are interactive and use different methods to target memory retention)
• 1 conversation exercise (where you practice what you’ve learned with the chatbot function and voice recognition software)

• 1 vocabulary review in which you swipe the correct translation

  You can match your lessons with an intelligent calendar that helps you organize your learning objectives and provides you with a visual record of how your learning progresses over time.

Overall, you can view your progress by navigating through Mondly’s map and using the calendar function and the statistics view.

If you want to extend your learning, it is possible to click on parts of phrases and sentences to get additional information or grammatical explanations. Such as this screen below which conjugated the verb ‘to be’ after I had clicked on ‘is’.

Mondly offers 3 different pricing options:

• Access to 1 language for a month - $9.99/month
• Access to 1 language for a year - $47.99/year (which works out as $4.99/ month)

• Lifetime access to all languages.  This is the most complete version of the app, and can cost $479.99. However, there are often generous discounts for this option so it is always worth checking to see if this is the case

  Mondly’s prices  are very competitive in comparison to  other popular language apps. Plus, they offer special deals for inviting friends and family to join you.

Discounts are sometimes offered but even at full price Mondly is far cheaper than in person learning.

Mondly offers a free version but it is extremely limited.

You can only complete the daily lesson available for each day so have no control over what content you are learning or the level of difficulty you are learning at.

That said, these free lessons will give you a fairly good idea of what Mondly is like before committing to membership.

With premium membership you can:

• Unlock all the content
• Choose the topics and level of difficulty
• Experience learning with Augmented Reality
• Access Mondly for kids

To review Mondly, I used both the free and Premium version. I also used review sites like Reddit and TrustPilot to gauge what other users felt were the strengths and weaknesses of the platform

I used the free version to study Mondly French over several days. Using my subscription, I tested Mondly’s Portuguese course and decided to try out the basic level for a week. I spent 1 hour per day and managed to do a total of 7 hours.

What I liked about Mondly

Effective and comprehensive 

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

Mondly provides an extremely creative and intuitive system for you to learn all these critical language elements. Not only this, but they also cover different learning styles by using visual, aural and kinesthetic techniques.

And the practical lessons are linked with themes and topics which you can choose from to help prersonalize your language learning.

The fact that the world’s leading education company, Pearson, chose to acquire Mondly to boost its existing portfolio of state of the art learning tools and provide a way for students to study languages independently online is testimony to its effectiveness.

Adaptable 

Mondly’s learning map helps you tailor your learning. It gives you an idea of your learning process but also allows you to choose which lesson you want to do according to your goals and interests.

This map has many themes to choose from: basic vocabulary to grammar exercises. What’s really interesting about it, is that fresh content is released very regularly, giving you new learning objectives as you progress.

If your goal is to start from scratch, you can follow Mondly’s automated lessons. However, if you want to skip ahead and learn words about a specific theme, you can also start there. Overall, Mondly allows you to personalize your learning without jeopardizing the quality of your progress.

Fun, easy to navigate, interactive and engaging

Mondly has a very straightforward, user-friendly, and polished interface.

Learning apps do not only depend on the variety of content but also on how easy they are to navigate. The app is easy to understand and the polished images and audio encourage/ensure the user’s engagement.

Overall,  Mondly does a phenomenal job at providing slick interactions and connections between the learner and the content.

Gamification is used to create friendly competition, and keep learners motivated and engaged.

Immersive

The AR feature (a separate app included in the premium membership) uses new technology to give you an immersive and dynamic learning experience.

The AR app uses the camera on your mobile or tablet to set up the virtual world). Depending on your level, you will have a range of vocabulary themes to choose from (space, sea, animal world, music, etc.). The AR app uses a virtual teacher to help you learn new words by showing you interactive worlds, and by using the same audio/visual approach to help you memorize the vocabulary.

The chatbot option allows you to feel like you can finally practice your conversational and pronunciation skills while listening to native speakers.

Augmented reality experience and Interactive chatbot conversations provide an immersive way to practice your skills with instant feedback provided on your pronounciation

Free version gives you a flavor of the platform but is limited

The Mondly free version will certainly give you a flavor of what learning with the platform is like. However, you are limited to taking only 6 lessons, 1 mock conversation and 1 vocabulary builder a day. And you can’t choose the topic you wish to learn about but have to go with the daily free unit.

If you want more control over your learning, the ability to unlock all the content and access to the augmented reality feature you’ll need a premium membership.

That said, the cost of Mondly is pretty competitive compared to some providers on the market so it’s definitely something to consider! And it also has a 7 day free trial to give you an opportunity to discover whether the membership is right for you.

Less useful for more advanced learners or those wanting a strong conversational focus

Mondly has less to offer upper intermediate or advanced learners. The consistency in structure means there does not seem to be a huge difference between beginner and advanced levels.

On top of this, if your main goal is to develop conversational skills, this isn’t Mondly’s strongest feature. The mock conversations and ChatBot lessons are good, but pretty basic. The AR lessons are better but to truly develop good conversational skills you might be better off with a platform offering live tuition from native speakers, such as italki or Preply.

You always have to start at the basic level

Unfortunately, Mondly doesn’t provide a language placement test or an understanding of what is taught at each level. Moreover, it seems like you always have to start at the basic level to progress to the next one.

Admittedly, I can appreciate the rationale behind this. Levels of language proficiency aren’t often clear-cut, so by having you start from the beginning, Mondly is able to ensure that you’ve covered all the material necessary for you to fully benefit from each stage. Also, there’s no harm in revision: more advanced learners can treat the earlier exercises as a warm-up or even just a reassuring confidence boost!

Bite-sized lessons may be too short for those who enjoy a more in-depth approach

The average exercise lasts around 2+ min. You are expected to learn approximately 10 words by trying around 5 different exercise styles. This may be too brief for those who enjoy a more in-depth explanation of the language and its cultural background.

However, this is not necessarily a con even for those who are used to a more traditional language learning process, it’s simply a new and more interactive way of learning!

The Mondly learning style would suit anyone who:

• Wants to learn a new language from scratch or has a limited grasp and wants to improve
• Has a busy schedule and needs to fit lessons around their life
• Loves fun, interactive apps
• Likes the flexibility of learning on mobile and desktop

• Is intrigued by AR and likes to engage with technological experiences

  Overall, Mondly is for those of you  who consider themselves to be self-guided learners and would therefore benefit from  daily, weekly, and monthly lessons and goals.

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

• Gamification
• Fun, interactive lessons that touch all learning styles
• Flexible learning
• Chatbot function
• Augmented reality

Gamification

Mondly allows you to earn points, keep track of your streaks and compare your performance against friends, family or the Mondly community via leaderboards.

This encourages healthy competition, makes learning fun and keeps learners motivated.

Fun, interactive lessons that touch all learning styles

Mondly covers all aspects of language learning using fun, interactive exercises that touch on visual, aural and kinaesthetic learning styles. They include video flashcards, listening to native speakers and matching correct answers to pictures, etc.

Flexible learning

Mondly is accessible from anywhere with an internet connection. Students can learn at their own pace, on their own schedule and on the go via the mobile version.

Chatbot function

The chatbot is one of the most unique features that Mondly provides to its users. It allows you to practice the words and phrases you have learned on the spot.

How it works:

• Once you start your conversation lesson, you will be reminded of how to use this function and the importance of pronunciation
• The chatbot will give you a first insight into the entire conversation by providing audio from native speakers

• You are then invited to engage in the conversation by taking on a role and repeating and recording specific sentences which the chatbot recognizes and provides feedback on

  The AR feature

The AR feature is both entertaining and educational. It allows you to learn through play and interaction. For example, you can pet animals, play the guitar and explore a virtual world.

How it works:

• You need to download the Mondly AR app (which is included in premium membership) and calibrate your mobile/tablet so that the AR can function properly 
• Then, you will be able to choose your current level, and a virtual teacher will appear

• Finally, you will have thematic language lessons (for example, you may learn words related to astrology)

  By constructing virtual worlds in which you can acquire and exercise new language skills, Mondly takes a truly original approach to learning.

Mondly key facts:

• Our score: 9.34/10
• Number of users: 500,000 active subscribers
• Avg lesson length: 3-5 minutes
• Number of lessons: N/A
• Downloadable lessons: Yes
• Starting proficiency test: No
• Provides certificate: No
• Adaptive to user: Yes
• Number of languages taught: 42
• Pricing: From $4.99 per month
• Desktop: Yes
• Mobile: Yes
• IOS: Yes
• Android: Yes

• Our score: 9.3 /10
• Trustpilot 3.9 /5 based on 310 reviews
• Apple App Store 4.7 /5 based on 4.9k ratings

• Google Play Store 4.5 / 5 based on 783k+ reviews

  “Easy and quick way to grab some vocabulary and basic phrases during your commute or lunchbreak, but rather basic and overly repetitive” (TrustPilot Review)

Mondly’s highly structured approach across all levels and topics may make it seem repetitive. That said, depending on your learning style, you might find this method suits you.

“A great app that can be very helpful for learning words and phrases, with a great system to make sure they stay in your head, and it even offers speaking practice with a high level of accuracy. However it does not teach any grammar, even in the grammar section.” (App Store Review)

It is possible to click on parts of sentences to get further grammar explanations. But in common with other apps, Mondly lessons are based on inductive reasoning - if you keep seeing the correct grammar used in context, you'll learn the rules without even realizing it.

Generally, reviews of Mondly are favorable with users valuing its ease of use, the way it helps you commit learning to memory and gamifies the experience to keep you motivated.

“It’s very simple and easy to use, and I like the star system, and the way you can revisit which words you have learnt so far. I’ve managed to memorise quite a lot of Croatian thus far and am also progressing with Korean as a third language, I can now read and write confidently, and make my own simpler sentences. This continues to encourage me to persevere.” (App Store Review)

I found Mondly easy to use, and thought the lessons were well structured, engaging, effective and ‘sticky’.

Together with gamification through points, streaks and leaderboards it makes for a fun learning experience that motivates you to come back for more.

Mondly’s stand out feature is its use of technology such as chatbots and AR that provide a novel and more immersive way to practice your new skills. It’s also comprehensive, helping you to improve all aspects of communication: speaking, reading, writing, and listening.

That said, there’s always room for improvement. Whilst it is comprehensive it has a fairly narrow focus on grammar. Its approach to this is more intuitive - with constant practice of phrases and sentences you’ll learn the rules without realizing.

Also, if you really want a laser-like focus on conversational skills, you may find the chatbot a bit limited and prefer a platform that offers live lessons with native speaking teachers.

However, if you value a fun yet structured approach that really helps new learning stick then Mondly is definitely worth considering.

You can use the free version to get a flavor of the platform or subscribe and make use of the 7 day free trial to make up your mind. Just remember to cancel before the 7 days is up to avoid payment. The pricing point is very competitive and there are frequent discounts available making it even better value.