Some Egyptian Arabic tools stay free, and some stop after a start. Language Transfer gives you a free audio course, and the Yalla Habibi dictionary says it is free for good. Mango is free if your library or school gives you access. Bluebird gives you free daily lessons, and uTalk starts you with a few words. Bubblegum has free library lessons. This page shows where each one stops. For courses and tutors, see our Egyptian Arabic app comparison. For word lists, see Egyptian Arabic vocabulary apps.
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Egyptian Arabic. You learn from Egyptian Arabic you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
Tell Poppy, your AI tutor, your level and what you like, and she writes your Egyptian Arabic lessons. If a sentence is hard to follow, ask Poppy to explain it.
With Regenerative Review™, words you save show up again in new lessons, so that you can review words in new contexts without having to use flashcards.
- Library lessons in Egyptian Arabic are free to read.
- The Egyptian Arabic dictionary has more than 27,000 entries with English meanings.
- Poppy's grammar notes cover 362 topics in English.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- Learn every letter in the free Arabic Alphabet course, with a picture to help you remember each one.
- Unlimited custom Egyptian Arabic lessons need Pro. You also can't turn an Arabic book or video you own into a lesson, but Poppy will explain a page you paste in.
- Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read.
- Regenerative Review™
- Teaches Egyptian Arabic
- Teaches the Arabic Alphabet
Mobile
Mango Languages
Mango suits learners whose public library or school is on its list.
- Mango has an Egyptian Arabic course of its own.
- A participating library or school can give you the full course for free.
- Flashcards
- Teaches Egyptian Arabic
MobileWeb
Bluebird
Bluebird suits learners who want short audio lessons on a phone.
- Bluebird has an app for Egyptian Arabic alone.
- It gives you free daily lessons.
- Teaches Egyptian Arabic
MobileWeb
uTalk
uTalk suits learners who want practical words by topic.
- uTalk has a named Egyptian Arabic course of topic words and phrases.
- You can download a course and use it offline.
- Teaches Egyptian Arabic
MobileWeb
Other Apps We Looked At (4)
- Language TransferA free Arabic audio course, with downloadable files and Egyptian vocabulary cards. It is a short starter course, and it asks for donations instead of a subscription.
- Yalla HabibiA dictionary for Egyptian Arabic with Egyptian pronunciation, in Arabic letters, Arabizi and English. Its publisher says it is free for good. It also lists lessons inside the app, and its unlimited Egyptian voice is an in-app purchase.
- AnkiFree flashcards on a computer and on Android, where AnkiDroid is a separate free app. The iPhone app is a paid one-time purchase. You make your own Egyptian Arabic cards or import shared decks.
- QuizletFree basic flashcards on the web, iPhone and Android. You make the Egyptian Arabic sets yourself, and Quizlet Plus is the paid plan.
| App | What stays free | Where the limit is | Paid plan | English help | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | Library lessons | Unlimited custom lessons | Pro | Partly | iPhone, Android, web |
| Mango | The full course, through a participating library or school | You need that access | Personal plan after a trial | Yes | iPhone, Android, web |
| Bluebird | Daily lessons | Not the whole catalogue | Purchases | Yes | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| uTalk | Starter words, plus one topic you unlock in the games | Other topics | Subscription or single purchases | Yes | iPhone, Android, web |
| Language Transfer | The whole audio course | A short starter course | Donations | Yes | Web |
| Yalla Habibi | The dictionary | Unlimited Egyptian voice | In-app purchase | Yes | iPhone, Android |
| Anki | Computer and Android apps | The iPhone app | One-time purchase | Partly | Computer, web, iPhone, Android |
| Quizlet | Basic flashcards | Plus features | Plus | Partly | Web, iPhone, Android |
Which free Egyptian Arabic app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Egyptian Arabic, start with Bubblegum. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level about things you like. Or start with Language Transfer, a free audio course, and keep Yalla Habibi beside it to look up words.
Is a free download the same as a free Egyptian Arabic course?
No. Mango, Bluebird and uTalk are free to install. Mango's full course is free only through a participating library or school. Bluebird and uTalk give you part of the course free and charge for the rest.
Can I study Egyptian Arabic free on an iPhone?
Yes, in a few ways. Mango and Bubblegum run on iPhone, and library lessons stay free. AnkiMobile for iPhone is a one-time purchase, while Anki on a computer is free.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read. Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Language Transfer: Arabic course
- Yalla Habibi dictionary: Google Play listing
- Mango Languages: Egyptian Arabic
- Mango Languages: pricing
- uTalk: Egyptian Arabic
- Bluebird Egyptian Arabic: Google Play listing
- Bubblegum: Egyptian Arabic to English pair
- AnkiMobile Flashcards: App Store listing
- Quizlet: App Store listing
- Bubblegum
- Mango Languages
- Bluebird
