The most accessible way to start learning Chinese — free, gamified, and available on every device. Experts and the community consistently rank it #1 for daily practice and building vocabulary habits.
If you're starting from zero, Duolingo is the obvious first move. It won't make you fluent, but nothing else keeps you coming back daily as effectively — and it's free.
“started with the owl, upgraded to pleco and anki. reading with du chinese, then added weekly speaking sessions with boraspeak, italki, and a ton of netflix and youtube with subtitles.”
r/ChineseLanguage user · read thread →
“while duolingo is repetitive and gets you nowhere, hello chinese keeps teaching you new content while reminding you of what you previously studied”
r/ChineseLanguage user · read thread →
“Thanks to its clear structure, engaging exercises, and unique features, Duolingo is simply the best free app for learning a new language or sharpening your skills.”
PCMag · read full review →
“As a regular Duolingo user, I enjoy the app's colorful interface and short, game-like exercises. The app doesn't restrict how many languages you can try to learn at the same time.”
CNET · read full review →
“Duolingo is simply the best free language learning app. In the more than 14 years since its debut, Duolingo has matured steadily, adding more languages, expanding its courses, enhancing its accuracy, and refining its interface.”
PCMag (Free Apps) · read full review →