When we opened Duolingo's course list on October 15, 2026, its only Mandarin course was Chinese (Simplified), and no course was named for Kunming. Duolingo's blog says the Chinese it teaches is Mandarin, the official language of China.
Kunming is the capital of Yunnan, and people there speak a kind of Southwestern Mandarin. Someone in Kunming asks 哪样 where Standard Mandarin asks 什么 for "what", and 给灯关掉 means "switch the lights off", with 给 doing the job of 把. Our Kunming dialect app comparison has more apps and videos.
Custom Lessons Made for You
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Kunming dialect. You learn from Kunming dialect you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes every Kunming lesson at the level you set, on topics you care about. Ask for a morning of rice noodles near Green Lake, and the people at the noodle shop talk the way people in Kunming do. When a word looks new, ask Poppy what it means here.
Bubblegum won't pair you with a person, so look at the tutors and partners below for speaking practice.
- Kunming speech has a separate journey with six levels, written in Simplified characters.
- Grammar cards explain 格 questions, where 格 goes before the verb, and 晓不得 for “don't know”.
- Stories and news come in Kunming speech as well.
- Words you save show up in later Kunming lessons through Regenerative Review™.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- You can't upload your own articles or books.
- A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn.
- Regenerative Review™
- Teaches Kunming speech
- Teaches Pinyin
- Traditional characters
- Zhuyin
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Duolingo for Standard Mandarin
Duolingo
Kunming speech is written with Simplified characters, and Duolingo's course uses them too. That makes Duolingo a good place for your first characters before you add Kunming lessons.
- It teaches Mandarin in quick, bite-sized lessons.
- Each Duolingo course costs nothing.
- Standard Mandarin, not Kunming speech
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Talk With People From Kunming
italki
A tutor from Yunnan can tell you when a Kunming word works with friends and when Standard Mandarin fits better, such as at work.
- Book a one-on-one video lesson with a Chinese tutor.
- Try three classes for under $5 each before you pick a tutor.
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Tandem
Look on Tandem's page for learning Chinese in Kunming to find partners from the city.
- Swap voice notes or call your partner on video.
- Tandem's correction tool lets a partner fix the messages you write.
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How to Start With Each App
| App | How You Can Start |
|---|---|
| Duolingo | Every course is free. Super Duolingo is paid, with 14 days free to try. |
| italki | Your account is free, and each tutor sets the price of a lesson. |
| Tandem | You can use Tandem for free and pay for Tandem Pro later. |
Common Questions
Which Kunming dialect app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Kunming dialect, start with Bubblegum. Poppy writes lessons at your level about things you like. Or begin with Duolingo's Mandarin lessons, then add a Kunming tutor on italki once you can follow a slow conversation.
Is the Kunming dialect close to Sichuanese?
Both belong to Southwestern Mandarin, the group of Mandarin dialects spoken across Sichuan, Yunnan, Chongqing, and Guizhou. Each city still has its own words and forms, so Bubblegum keeps Kunming and Chongqing as two separate journeys.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Duolingo: course list (read October 15, 2026)
- Duolingo: Chinese (Simplified) course for English speakers
- Duolingo Blog: What Kind of Chinese Does Duolingo Teach?
- Duolingo: current iPhone listing
- Wikipedia: Kunming dialect (a dialect of Southwestern Mandarin)
- Wikipedia: Southwestern Mandarin (spoken in Sichuan, Yunnan, Chongqing, Guizhou and nearby areas)
- italki: Chinese teachers
- italki: current iPhone listing (three trial classes for less than $5 each)
- Tandem: Learn Chinese in Kunming
- Tandem: current iPhone listing
- Bubblegum
- Duolingo
- Tandem
Checked on October 15, 2026 against each app's own pages.
