The best Korean vocabulary app depends on where you want your words to come from. LingQ saves the words from Korean texts you read, Drops gives you picture word sets, and Anki holds cards you write yourself. This page compares how each app gets words to you, how it brings them back, and what stays free. For courses, tutors and speaking, see our Korean app comparison.
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Korean. You learn from Korean you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
Tell Poppy, your AI tutor, your level and what you like, and she writes your Korean 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.
- 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.
- Learn every letter in the free Korean Hangul course, with a picture to help you remember each one.
- You can't turn your favorite webtoon into a lesson. But Poppy will explain a page you screenshot or paste.
- 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 Hangul
Mobile
LingQ
LingQ suits learners who already have Korean texts or audio to import. As you read, you tap the words you don't know and they go into your review.
- Tap an unfamiliar word in a lesson and save it as a LingQ.
- Saved words are reviewed with spaced repetition, next to the text and audio they came from.
- Flashcards
- Teaches Hangul (partly)
MobileWeb
Drops
Drops teaches Korean words one topic at a time, with a picture, the audio and a short game for each word. It suits visual learners who want a ready-made list.
- Each Korean word comes with a picture and its audio.
- Favorites and Quiz bring back words you have already met.
- Teaches Hangul
Mobile
Memrise
Memrise sends the words from a list into learning and review activities. Tap a word to see its meaning and example.
- Pick a wordlist and review its words on a schedule.
- Word Information shows meanings, examples and native-speaker clips where available.
- Teaches Hangul (partly)
MobileWeb
Anki
Anki suits learners who want to decide what goes on each card, such as a Korean word on the front and the sentence you met it in on the back. Desktop Anki and AnkiWeb sync are free. AnkiMobile on iPhone is a one-time purchase, and Android uses the separate AnkiDroid app. For help setting up decks, read Is Anki good for language learning?.
- Put any Korean word or sentence on a card, with sound or a picture.
- Cards come back on a schedule set by SM-2 or FSRS.
- Flashcards
- Doesn't teach Hangul
MobileWeb
Other Apps We Looked At (3)
- ClozemasterFill in the missing word in a sentence, then see the sentences again later. Its sentences come from Tatoeba.
- Naver DictionaryA free Korean–English dictionary to look up words you meet in what you read.
- uTalkTopic-based Korean words with recall games, and you can record yourself and compare with native audio.
| App | Word source | Review | Sentence and audio | Hangul | English help | Free boundary | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | Lessons Poppy writes | Saved words return in new lessons | Words appear in new sentences | Hangul course | Partly | Lessons by other learners are free to read; unlimited custom lessons need Pro | iPhone, iPad |
| LingQ | Text and audio you import | Spaced repetition | Matching text and audio | Korean course available | Yes | 20 saved words, 5 imported lessons | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Drops | Topics made by Drops | Favorites, Quiz, Word Collection | Pictures and audio | Korean script named in listing | Yes | 5 minutes every 10 hours | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Memrise | Wordlists | Scheduled review | Examples and speaker clips where available | Script shown where available | Yes | Limited free plan, Pro is paid | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Anki | Cards you make | SM-2 or FSRS | Only if the card has them | Whatever you type | Your own cards | Desktop and AnkiWeb free; AnkiMobile paid once | iPhone, iPad, Android, computer |
| Clozemaster | Sentences with a gap | Review of sentences you saw | Translation and audio modes | Unconfirmed | Yes | Free to start; Pro adds more | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| Naver Dictionary | Words you look up | Unconfirmed | Unconfirmed | Korean–English dictionary | Yes | Free | iPhone, iPad |
| uTalk | Topics made by uTalk | Recall games | Native audio and your own recordings | Unconfirmed | Yes | Free starter words and one more topic when you score 100% in the games; the rest is paid | iPhone, iPad |
If you read Korean before you save words, our Korean comprehensible input app comparison covers reading and listening apps. If you cannot read Hangul yet, start with the Hangul course.
Which Korean vocabulary app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Korean, start with Bubblegum. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level about things you like. Or choose Drops for a ready-made picture list. Choose Anki if you want to make your own cards from the Korean you meet.
Can I keep the sentence a Korean word came from?
LingQ shows a saved word in context when you review it. With Anki, a card holds the sentence only if you put it there. In Drops, each word comes with a picture and audio.
Do I need to read Hangul before I save words?
It helps, because you can then match a saved word to the Korean on the page. The Hangul course teaches the letters from the start. Memrise shows Korean script where it is available, and Drops names Korean script in its listing.
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
- AnkiMobile: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Anki: what's free
- Anki manual: scheduling and cards
- Drops: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Drops: what's free
- Memrise: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Memrise: help and FAQ
- Memrise: Korean course
- LingQ: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- LingQ: what's free
- LingQ: learn Korean
- Naver Dictionary: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Naver: Wordbook help
- Clozemaster: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Clozemaster: FAQ
- uTalk: Korean course
- uTalk: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Bubblegum
- LingQ
- Drops
