Education apps, reviewed
Learning apps are used heavily by children and students, which raises the bar for how they should treat personal data. In this section we check each app's data practices against its classroom or family use case, and we note which features genuinely work without a subscription.
Babbel - Learn Languages
Linguist-built language courses behind a paywall — quieter and more structured than the gamified free apps.
Coursera: Learn career skills
University courses on your phone — free to audit if you can find the button, paid if you want the paper.
Duolingo: Language Lessons
The gamified language course that actually gets used daily — with clear limits on how far it takes you.
Google Translate
Still the default pocket translator — camera, conversation, and offline modes that mostly earn their reputation.
Khan Academy
A nonprofit classroom in your pocket, strongest in math, honest about being free forever.
Memrise: speak a new language
Native-speaker video clips that train your ear — in an app that has narrowed its focus over the years.
Quizlet: AI-powered Flashcards
The biggest flashcard library on the internet — increasingly wrapped in an AI-flavoured paywall.
Udemy - Online Courses
A giant course marketplace where the list price is fiction, the quality is variable, and the bargains are real.