Learning Languages with LingQ: Honest Review

LingQ is a language learning website and app that focuses on learning from authentic materials.  You can read, watch or listen to content that interests you, easily look up words that you don’t understand and save them into an integrated flashcard system. Each word or phrase that you save is called a LingQ, and there’s a limit to how many LingQs you can save before signing up for the Premium version.

What are the main features of LingQ?

LingQ offers a platform with lessons in a variety of formats. You can also import your own content, for example a movie from Netflix or a podcast, and be able to see and learn from the transcript by “collecting” LingQs.  

When you set up your profile, you can choose the areas you are interested in, such as self-help or technology. Content from those areas will then appear on your home page.

You can also set your level, from beginner to advanced, and access content in multiple languages. 

Finally, you can even find tutors for Skype lessons, which costs up to around $20 an hour. Alternatively, you can submit writing for correction, which is a few cents or pennies a word.

What languages can you learn on LingQ?

On LingQ there are some languages which are fully supported, which means there is a good amount of content available at a range of levels.  As of February 2022, the languages supported are:

English, German, French, Spanish, Korean, Portuguese, Chinese (Mandarin), Italian, Japanese, Swedish, Arabic, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, and Ukrainian

Other languages are available in Beta, which means the range of content available is more limited.  These are:

Belarusian, Bulgarian, Cantonese, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Gujarati, Hungarian, Indonesian, Malay, Persian, Serbian and Turkish.

How much does LingQ cost?

You can set up a free profile on LingQ, but the number of “LingQs” you can create (i.e. words or phrases you can look up and save in your flashcard pile) is very limited.  It’s basically enough for you to start getting an idea of whether you like the system.

Upgrading costs around £100 ($150) a year if you pay annually, however there are occasionally discount promotions.

Is LingQ Premium Worth it?

Upgrading to premium will mean you get unlimited LingQs, unlimited imports and 50% off tutoring.  So, if you are going to use the platform regularly and also plan to book lessons through it then it is definitely worth it.  

My main criticism of LingQ is that it’s hard to give it a good try before upgrading, as there’s a limit of 20 LingQs, which you can easily use up in one session.  That’s unless you can bag some extra LingQs from customer service – who are lovely –  to extend your trial 😉 

It can take a while to browse the mountains of content to find courses you are excited about returning to, so it can feel like you are being forced to upgrade before you are ready to. 

Who is LingQ for?

LingQ is suited to people who enjoy self-directed learning, immersing themselves in another culture and steadily building up their vocabulary.  Although you can practice your writing and speaking through the app, this carries additional costs and is a more minor part of the platform.  

It’s also great for people who speak multiple languages, as you switch between your content in different languages easily and, if you are going Premium, you pay one flat fee for “all you can speak”.  

It really feels like a platform that’s designed by polyglots for polyglots.  The Community forum is a treasure trove of tips and suggestions for language learning and you can easily lose hours going down deep rabbit holes of other resources to explore.

There are a few things about the interface that can be annoying. For example, it’s difficult to watch a video and also follow and look up words from the transcript at the same time. This is a shame as the ability to import your choice of videos is such a unique feature in this platform compared to other apps and websites out there.  If you plan to learn more from written content, or podcasts, this quirk won’t be such an issue. 

The site is quite busy too so if you are the kind of person who likes a lot of choice, and browsing, this will appeal.  If you just like to stay on your track and not be distracted by other options, this might be frustrating. 

And finally, if you enjoy passive learning (reading, listening) LingQ is perfect. If you become bored when you are not taking a more active or interactive approach, you may lose motivation quickly with LingQ.

The verdict 

LingQ is one of a kind in terms of empowering learners to build their vocabulary efficiently through using authentic materials that they are actually interested in. However you would need to supplement it with other resources if you are learning a language from scratch.  

Many of the other users are passionate language learners which can spur you on (if taking part in challenges) and can also give you lots of inspiration for new resources, either through content they’ve uploaded or suggestions in the forum.

I really value being part of the “LingQ ecosystem”. For example the original podcasts that they are creating now are of great quality, but you don’t need a premium membership to access them.  That said, with a premium membership you would be more likely to learn more from the podcasts, because you’d be able to save new words and phrases, and test that you had actually retained the knowledge.

LingQ makes it easy to learn using content you enjoy, so is a great way to “curate” content that you can consume passively.  Like with all language learning tools, you get out what you put in.  If you use it regularly, invest time in finding content that inspires you, revise your new vocabulary often and make use of the tutoring and writing checking features then it could be the cornerstone to an amazing language learning journey.