Nowadays, there's an app for everything, from work to sleep to romance. Somewhere between food and love, there is also a smorgasbord of apps for language learning.
If anything, there are too many apps to consider! So we've done the work to find you the best apps for learning French in 2025 (for beginners).
On y va !
French Learning Apps # 1: Brainscape's Certified French Flashcards
Naturally, we're a little biased but we really do believe we have the best supplementary study tool for mastering the French language!
Brainscape’s collection of adaptive French flashcards is the most effective way to drill yourself on the essential building blocks of the language, from vocabulary and verb conjugations to numbers, commonly used phrases, and more. Each flashcard even contains an audio file of the correct pronunciation, so you can get it right from the beginning.
Brainscape's certified French flashcard collection also includes a Sentence Builder component that allows you to build up your mastery of grammar through the constant translation of increasingly advanced sentences (with each card supplemented by a grammatical explanation). And we've added flashcard decks for listening comprehension, French history, and pop culture.
With its sophisticated spaced repetition algorithm, expert-curated content, and the ability to study anywhere, anytime, and with any device (even offline), Brainscape really is the best way to learn French more efficiently.
Best Apps for Learning French # 2: Duolingo
If a gamified learning experience is more your speed, Duolingo is a standout as a fun app to learn French. With this free, fun, and easy-to-use language app, you can learn vocabulary, conjugation, reading, writing, pronunciation, and listening skills in a way that is competitive and engaging.
Just be aware that while Duolingo may be fun, the app isn’t particularly effective for really learning grammar or for retaining what you learn. It shows you information once and moves on, which doesn't help to really cement it in your memory. Plus, it's notorious for asking you to translate bizarre sentences. ("When I was young, I was not allowed to wear pants" might not be useful for everyone.)
It's great for casual learners just starting out, but if you really want to drill yourself hard on French and learn as efficiently as possible, you'll need to supplement Duolingo with other French language practice.
French Learning Apps # 3: Busuu
Busuu is one of the best apps for learning French, with more functionality than Duolingo. While it has similar practical activities to Duolingo, it also has a great community, allowing you to connect with native French speakers and vice versa. It also allows you to specify the purpose of learning your chosen language (business or tourism).
While Busuu's program is more comprehensive than Duolingo's, it's also more expensive. You can start using the app for free, but for the real features, including speaking with native speakers and more advanced activities, you need to purchase a membership.
Another downside is that it focuses mainly on grammar exercises and traditional ways of teaching French, whereas Brainscape applies cognitive science principles to helping students to learn languages twice as fast.
Having said this, Busuu can be useful, particularly for beginners and for those who want the option to interact with native speakers.
Best Apps for Learning French # 4: Classics2Go Collection
Reading in a language you are trying to learn is a must. That’s why the free French Classics2Go Collection app is so great: it has a large selection of fairy tales and other simple, classic children’s stories that you can read at an early stage in your French learning.
Not only are these stories familiar, which makes it easy to absorb new vocabulary and grammar concepts, but Classics2Go even cross-links with its English app so you can read the versions side-by-side for a refresher. Plus, once you become more fluent, you can easily explore the library for some more complex books like Les Trois Mousquetaires or Madame Bovary.
This French learning app is perfect for those who are looking for manageable reading material to practice their skills on. It's not a substitute for apps that actually teach the language, but it's a good addition to your French learning app set.
French Learning Apps # 5: Reverso Context
Any language-learner needs a solid dictionary companion to aid their learning and study tools. Google Translate takes a best guess at what you mean, but it doesn't know whether "lift" means the verb or an elevator.
Our favorite translation tool is Reverso Context. Unlike traditional dictionaries, which pair words with their matches or their definitions, Context Reverso starts with real-world texts that have already been translated. It searches through these organic texts to identify a match for your search with context-rich examples. You can enter one word, a whole sentence, or even idioms!
Best Apps for Learning French # 6: Le Conjugueur
To say that French verb conjugations are tricky is a massive understatement. If you ever learned it in school, you might remember being terrified by the endless pdfs of verb tables. That’s what makes Le Conjugueur one of the best apps for learning French: it's comprehensive without being overwhelming.
Le Conjugueur is one of the best apps to learn French grammar and conjugations.
This French learning app is really useful for grammar and conjugations; it allows you to practice translating verbs and identifying the appropriate tenses to use in different scenarios. Again, it's not going to teach you French, but it's a really effective reference tool that you can use to supplement your verb practice.
French Learning Apps # 7: Rosetta Stone
It’s almost impossible to talk about language learning without mentioning Rosetta Stone. Rosetta Stone’s app is made by one of the most experienced teams in online language learning, offering a balanced approach with plenty of speaking, writing, and reading practice for each skill level.
Rosetta Stone offers a completely immersive language learning experience, which means that you won't find any English in this app. This has its advantages (such as learning like you would as a child), but it can be frustrating or even ineffective for some new learners, so think about whether or not this would work for you before committing. It's not 100% effective to avoid using your mother tongue to learn a new language.
There is a free 3-day trial, so try it and see if it's a helpful app for you to learn French.
Best Apps for Learning French # 8: Spotify
You might think of Spotify as an app for streaming music, but it's also one of the best French learning apps. Why? Because it gives you access to unlimited French listening texts! We're talking, of course, about French music and podcasts, which is a great way to tune your ear into spoken, conversational French.
There are musical classics, like Edith Piaf, but there are also amazing modern artists like Louane, Indila, and Coeur de Pirate. You can find all the lyrics on Spotify or on sites like Genius and Lyrics Playground.
Spotify can also connect you with thousands of podcasts in French at all levels. Podcasts are a great way to learn a language, and you can find them on just about any conceivable subject under the sun.
One of our favorites for beginners is Learn French by Podcast. They mix in both French and English to help you learn. If you're at a more intermediate level, try Inner French. The host, Hugo, speaks about all kinds of different subjects that you'll be interested in if you want to learn about French culture. He speaks only in French, but he speaks clearly and a bit more slowly than usual.
Just remember: Spotify by itself won't teach you French, but it will provide you with all the listening practice you could ever want.
French Learning Apps # 9: Tandem
One of the most difficult things about learning French is finding someone to speak it with. (Not all of us are living our best life picking grapes at a vineyard in Reims or working at a small start-up in Marseille.)
Tandem is the solution. It's a language learning community, which you can join, select a preferred language, and then find a conversation partner. For example, you might look for a native French speaker who is learning English. Then you chat with them, helping them with their English while they help you with your French.
We love how easy Tandem makes it to find a language partner. And it's free!
Good Apps to Learn French: In Summary
None of the apps we've talked about in this guide are, on their own, the best apps for learning French—they're all good in their own way. The only app that is proven to help you learn twice as fast is Brainscape. But using your favorite combination of these French learning apps—and making that practice a regular study habit—is going to support your learning the most.
For example, you could use Brainscape to drill yourself on French vocab, verb conjugations, commonly-used phrases, and pronunciation; Reverso Context to practice your reading skills; and Tandem to practice your conversational French on a language partner.
Together, these French learning apps can get you well on your way to speaking en toute facilité!