Some German courses are free to use all the way through, and others are free only up to a limit. Deutsche Welle and the German Adult Education Association (vhs) give courses that are free to use. This page shows what each app or site gives you at no cost and where its free part stops. For paid courses and tutors, see our German app comparison.
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn German. You learn from German you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
Tell Poppy, your AI tutor, your level and what you like, and she writes your German 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.
- Every lesson is written at your level, about things you like.
- Read and listen to news and stories in German about things you care about.
- Ask Poppy about a sentence while you read.
- Saved words come back in new lessons through Regenerative Review™, and you can send them to Anki too.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- You can't turn a German book or article you have into a lesson. However, you can paste a page or send a photo, and Poppy will explain it.
- 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™
Mobile
DW Learn German
Deutsche Welle's Learn German is a full course, not a short preview. The course site has English navigation.
- Courses, videos, news and music material, plus a placement test.
- The app is completely free of charge.
MobileWeb
Duolingo
Duolingo suits learners who like short exercises and small goals.
- Reading, listening, speaking and vocabulary exercises in a German course.
- The German course for English speakers is free to use.
MobileWeb
Busuu
Busuu suits learners who want a course with feedback from other people. Premium Plus adds selected AI and pronunciation features.
- The free plan gives complete course access, community feedback and basic progress tracking.
- Other learners can correct your writing.
MobileWeb
Anki
Anki suits learners who want a free way to review words they choose. It does not come with a German course. For help setting up decks, read Is Anki good for language learning?.
- Desktop Anki and AnkiWeb sync are free.
- Add the German words and sentences you choose, with sound or pictures.
- Flashcards
MobileWeb
Memrise
Memrise works from word lists, so you can try a topic on the free plan before deciding on Pro.
- Pick a wordlist and review its words on a schedule.
- Word Information shows meanings and examples, and native-speaker clips where available.
MobileWeb
Clozemaster
Clozemaster suits learners who know some German and want to meet words in sentences. Its sentences come from Tatoeba.
- Fill in the missing word in a German sentence.
- Review sentences you have seen at spaced intervals.
MobileWeb
Other Apps We Looked At (2)
- A1-Deutsch (vhs-Lernportal)The German Adult Education Association's A1 course is free and works offline, with vocabulary training and reading, writing, listening and speaking exercises.
- Goethe-Institut Deutsch für dichA website with free grammar, vocabulary, reading and listening exercises from A1 to C2.
| App or site | Ongoing free access | Exact cap | Paid feature or trial | Course scope | Offline | English help | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | Lessons by other learners are free to read | Unlimited custom lessons need Pro | Pro | Lessons at your level | Unconfirmed | Partly | iPhone, iPad |
| DW Learn German | Yes, completely free | None listed | None listed | Courses, videos and a placement test | Unconfirmed | English navigation | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| A1-Deutsch (vhs) | Yes, free | None listed | None listed | A1 only; A2 to B2 are other apps | Yes | Unconfirmed | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Goethe Deutsch für dich | Yes, free exercises | None listed | Not a tutor-led course | Exercises for A1 to C2 | Unconfirmed | English navigation link | Web |
| Duolingo | Yes, German course | Daily limits unconfirmed | Super and Max | Course | Unconfirmed | Yes | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Busuu | Yes, complete course | Review and offline need Premium | Premium, Premium Plus | Course | Premium | Yes | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Anki | Desktop and AnkiWeb free | None | AnkiMobile paid once | Your own cards | AnkiMobile studies offline | Your own cards | iPhone, iPad, Android, computer |
| Memrise | Limited free plan | Unconfirmed | Pro | Word lists | Unconfirmed | Yes | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Clozemaster | Free to start | Unconfirmed | Pro | Sentences | Pro | Yes | iPhone, iPad, Android |
If you want to read and listen to German, our German comprehensible input app comparison covers the apps for that.
Which free German app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning German, start with Bubblegum. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level about things you like. Or start with Deutsche Welle's Learn German, which is a full course that is free to use. The vhs A1-Deutsch course covers level A1 only.
Can I learn German with only free apps?
You can combine a free course such as Deutsche Welle, Goethe's free exercises for each level and Anki for words you choose. Each is free for the part described in the table above.
Does the Goethe-Institut site have a community?
The community feature has closed and login is no longer possible, but the exercises stay 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
- DW Learn German: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- DW Learn German: course overview
- A1-Deutsch (vhs-Lernportal): iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Goethe-Institut: Deutsch für dich
- Duolingo: is Duolingo free
- Duolingo: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Busuu: what Premium adds
- Busuu: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Memrise: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Memrise: help and FAQ
- Clozemaster: FAQ
- Clozemaster: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Anki: what's free
- AnkiMobile: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Bubblegum
- Duolingo
- Busuu
- Anki
- Memrise
- Clozemaster
