5 Best Apps To Learn Underrated Languages In 2026

If you’re searching for the best apps to learn underrated languages, you’ll need to look beyond the usual options. Platforms like Ling, Clozemaster, italki, Drops, and Mondly offer support for many less commonly taught and underrepresented languages.

To make your search easier, we’ve compiled five of the best options, discussing their key features, language offerings, and learning styles to help you find the right fit.

After all, it’s quite easy if you want to learn popular languages like Spanish, French, or German because there are countless language-learning apps, courses, and online resources available. But what happens when the language you want to learn is not as common, like Macedonian, Bosnian, Swahili, Icelandic, or Tagalog? You’ll find fewer resources because many popular platforms do not prioritize them.

What Are The Best Apps To Learn Underrated Languages?

Some of the best apps to learn underrated languages you can find are Ling, Clozemaster, italki, Drops, and Mondly. Ling is especially dedicated to teaching less commonly taught and underrepresented languages and uses a comprehensive and step-by-step approach. Each of them actually takes a slightly different approach in the way they help you learn, so your choice or preference might be based on which approach suits you best. 

The table below shows an overview of these apps, including their key features, pricing, and the kind of approach they take:

Quick takeaway: Each app uses a different approach to teaching the languages it covers. Ling, for example, offers the most comprehensive and structured step-by-step learning path for both beginners and intermediate learners. It also uses features like native speaker audio, mini-games, and its Dialog feature to make the learning process more engaging and efficient.

1. The Ling App: Best For Comprehensive And Structured Learning

Although it also covers some popular languages, the Ling app is actually designed with a focus on teaching the less commonly taught, niche, and underrepresented languages. It covers some of the least common and most underrepresented languages, such as Sorbian, Pashto, Georgian, Macedonian, Lithuanian, and Lao, among others.

And the best thing about Ling is that it actually covers these languages comprehensively and teaches them through a structured, step-by-step learning path.

What Is The Ling App Best For?

The Ling app is best for comprehensive and structured learning. It’s one of the most ideal for language learning because it gives you a clear learning path instead of leaving you to figure things out on your own.

The language courses are split into bite-sized lessons that are beginner-friendly and then arranged in a way that helps you move from basic words and phrases to more practical conversations. It also uses native-speaker audio, interactive exercises, mini-games, quizzes, and its Dialog feature to make the learning process easier, more engaging, and more effective.

Ling App Features

• Structured bite-sized lessons.
• Native speaker audio.
• Interactive learning.
• Dialog feature.
• Speaking and pronunciation exercises.
• Mini games and quizzes.
• Spaced repetition review.
• Progress tracking.

Downloads and user ratings: Ling has 10M+ downloads and is rated 4.7/5 by language learners across the Play Store and App Store for its gamified approach and intuitive interface.

Ling App Lesson Examples

The Ling app offers a comprehensive language course with around 200 bite-sized lessons for each language it covers. For example, if you’re learning Macedonian, the introductory lessons will start with basic words and phrases for introductions, greetings, and everyday conversations. You’ll come across simple phrases such as:

• Hello, Tom – Zdravo, Tom (Здраво, Том)
• My name is Mary – Moeto ime e Meri (Моето име е Мери)
• Hello, what is your name? – Zdravo, kako se vikaš? (Здраво, како се викаш?)
• Goodbye, see you soon – Doviduvanje, se gledame naskoro (Довидување, се гледаме наскоро)

Who Is The Ling App Best For?

Ling is best for learners who want a clear and structured way to learn an uncommon language from the beginning. It is especially useful for beginners and intermediate learners who prefer self-paced learning but still want guidance, practice, and a proper lesson flow.

It is a good choice for learners who want more than just vocabulary memorization. If you want to build listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills together, Ling offers a more complete learning experience.

Ling App Pricing

Ling offers both free and paid access. The free version gives you access to the first two beginner units for all languages, while the paid plan unlocks the full course and all learning features.

• Free: First 2 beginner units.
• Monthly: $16.99
• For 6 Months: $64.99
• For 12 Months: $89.99 (with 7-day free trial available)

To learn more about this language app, you can read the detailed Ling app review! 

2. Clozemaster: Best For Learning Vocabulary In Context

Clozemaster is also one of the best apps to learn underrated languages, especially if you want to understand how words are used in real sentences. Instead of only teaching vocabulary as standalone words, the app places them inside sentences and asks you to complete the missing word.

This makes it a good option for building vocabulary, improving sentence recognition, and getting more familiar with how a language works naturally.

Clozemaster also covers over 70 languages, including niche languages like Guarani, Breton, Azerbaijani, Belarusian, and Kazakh. However, unlike Ling, Clozemaster does not really teach the languages comprehensively. Instead, it hosts tens of thousands of contextual exercises for these languages and uses them to teach learners with fill-in-the-gap exercises.

What Is Clozemaster Best For?

Clozemaster is best for sentence-based learning and vocabulary practice in context. Its biggest strength is its fill-in-the-blank learning system, where you see real sentences with one missing word and choose or type the correct answer.

This approach helps you move beyond memorizing words alone. You begin to understand how words fit into sentences, how grammar works in practice, and how common phrases are used.

Clozemaster Features

• Fill-in-the-blank sentence exercises (Clozes). 
• Sentence-based vocabulary practice.
• Multiple-choice and text-input options.
• Spaced repetition.
• Points, streaks, and progress tracking.
• Large sentence collections across many languages.

Clozemaster Lesson Examples

Clozemaster teaches learners through a cloze system, which means it presents fill-in-the-gap sentences that learners must complete with the appropriate words. If you’re learning a language like Serbian, for example, the app will show you sentences like the below:

• Ja pijem _______,  – I am drinking coffee.
• Ja jedem _______. – I am eating bread.
• Mi idemo u _______. – We are going to school.
• Ja imam _______. – I have a dog.

In each case, you will be expected to fill in the blank with the right Serbian words for coffee, bread, school, and dog respectively. Sometimes it will be in a multiple-choice format, so you’ll have options to choose from.

Who Is Clozemaster Best For?

Clozemaster is best for learners who already know a few basic words and want to build vocabulary through real sentence practice. It is especially useful for learners who do not just want to memorize words but also understand how those words are used in context.

It may not be the most beginner-friendly option if you are starting completely from zero, but it works well once you have learned some basics and want to expand your vocabulary faster.

Clozemaster Pricing

Clozemaster also offers both free and paid access.

• Free: Up to 30 sentences/day
• Monthly: $8.00.
• Yearly: $60.00.

3. Italki: Best For One-On-One Tutoring

Italki is different from most language-learning apps because it does not primarily teach through pre-made lessons or exercises. Instead, it connects you with real language tutors who can teach you through live one-on-one lessons.

This is why it could cover as many as 150 languages. Native speakers from around the world simply register on the platform to teach their languages. And so, as a learner, you just have to find a tutor who speaks and teaches the language you want to learn on the platform.

What Is Italki Best For?

Italki is best for personalized one-on-one language lessons. Its biggest strength is that you can learn directly from professional teachers or community tutors, depending on your goals, budget, and learning style.

You can also choose what you want to focus on, whether that is pronunciation, grammar, conversation, writing, exam preparation, or everyday speaking practice. You just need to communicate with your tutor.

Italki Features

• One-on-one live lessons.
• Professional teachers and community tutors.
• Flexible lesson scheduling.
• Custom lesson plans.
• Conversation practice.
• Tutor reviews and ratings.
• Pay-per-lesson pricing.

Italki Lesson Examples

On the italki app, the lessons are usually shaped around what you agree on with your tutor. For example, if you are a beginner learning Bosnian, you may start with simple everyday phrases for greetings, asking for help, ordering food, etc. For example, you might learn phrases like:

• Dobar dan – Good day
• Kako ste? – How are you?
• Dobar dan, mogu li dobiti jelovnik? – Good day, can I get the menu?
• Izvinite, možete li mi pomoći? – Excuse me, can you help me?

Who Is Italki Best For?

Italki is best for learners who prefer human guidance instead of learning alone with an app. It is also a good option for learners who want speaking practice, direct feedback, and lessons tailored to their exact level.

It is especially useful if you are learning an underrated language and struggling to find enough structured materials online. A tutor can fill in those gaps and help you learn in a more personal way.

Italki Pricing

Italki is a paid platform, but prices vary depending on the tutor you choose. Each tutor sets their own lesson rate, so the cost can vary based on the language, tutor experience, lesson type, and session length.

Some tutors may also offer trial lessons at a lower price, which allows you to test their teaching style before booking regular classes.

4. Drops: Best For Building Vocabulary Quickly

Drops is a simple and visually focused app that helps you learn new words through images, quick games, and short practice sessions. It is not the most complete app for learning grammar or full conversations, but it is very useful for building vocabulary.

Drops covers about 57 languages, including languages like Hawaiian, Swiss German, Māori, etc. And with its teaching approach, it is quite effective for these languages because vocabulary is often the first thing learners need before they can start forming sentences or understanding basic content.

What Is Drops Best For?

Drops is best for fast visual vocabulary building. The app uses short, game-like exercises where you match words with visuals, spell words, and review vocabulary through repetition. This keeps the learning process simple, quick, and easy to follow. And the way it connects words with images makes it easier to remember new vocabulary without relying too much on translation.

Drops Features

• Visual vocabulary lessons.
• Word and image matching.
• Short daily practice sessions.
• Swipe-and-tap games.
• Vocabulary categories for everyday topics.

Drops Lesson Examples

Drops teaches mainly through vocabulary memorization, using a visual system that pairs words in your target language with images or icons. The app shows you a word alongside a picture, and you tap to decide whether the match is correct or not.

For example, if you’re learning Māori, you may come across simple words for everyday objects, food, animals, colors, or common actions including:

• whare – house
• wai – water
• kai – food
• kuri – dog
• ngeru – cat
• āporo – apple
• pukapuka – book

Who Is Drops Best For?

Drops is best for learners who want to quickly build vocabulary in an uncommon language. It is especially useful for visual learners who remember words better when they see images attached to them.

It is also a good choice for busy learners who prefer short daily lessons instead of long study sessions. However, it works best when used alongside another app that teaches grammar, speaking, and sentence structure.

Drops Pricing

Drops also offers both free and paid access. 

• Free: Free for 5 mins every 10 hours.
• Monthly: $12.99.
• Yearly: $69.99.
• One-time purchase: $179.99.

5. Mondly: Best For Learning Common Phrases

Mondly is another strong option among the best apps to learn underrated languages. It focuses on helping learners build essential vocabulary and master common phrases for everyday conversations. While it offers fewer languages than some of the other apps on this list, it still supports 41 languages as of December 2024, including less commonly learned options such as Latvian, Lithuanian, Bulgarian, and Bengali.

What Is Mondly Best For?

Mondly is best for learning common phrases and basic conversations. It teaches useful everyday expressions in a simple and approachable way. The lessons are designed around practical topics, so you can learn phrases for greetings, travel, shopping, food, family, work, and other everyday situations.

Mondly Features

• Daily lessons.
• Vocabulary practice.
• Common phrase lessons.
• Conversation-based exercises.
• Listening practice.
• Speech recognition.
• Progress tracking.

Mondly Lesson Examples

Mondly lessons are built around real-life topics and common phrases. A beginner lesson may start with visual matching, where you connect words to the correct pictures. You can also tap words in the sentence to check their meaning or grammar details. For example, if you’re learning Albanian, you can start with words and phrases like:

• nënë – mother
• baba – father 
• vajzë – girl, 
• djalë – boy 
• Unë e dua nënën time – I love my mother. 
• Ky është babai im – This is my father

Who Is Mondly Best For?

Mondly is best for learners who want to learn how to say basic phrases and everyday conversation skills in a simple way. It is useful for beginners who want a light, easy-to-follow app that helps them start speaking and recognizing common expressions.

Mondly is also a good option for casual learners or travelers who want to quickly learn some practical phrases without going too deep into advanced grammar or long, structured courses.

Mondly Pricing

Mondly also offers both free and paid access. 

• Free: Includes one daily thematic lesson, one weekly vocabulary quiz, and basic speech recognition testing.
• Monthly: $9.99 – $11.99
• Yearly: $47.99 – $59.99
• Lifetime Access: $89.99 – $129.99

What Makes A Language App Actually “Good” For Underrated Languages?

A good language app to learn underrated or uncommon languages should do more than just list random words or provide translations like the Google Translate platform. Since these languages usually have fewer learning resources online, the app needs to give learners enough structure, guidance, and practice to actually make progress.

For popular languages, you can easily find extra YouTube videos, grammar blogs, podcasts, and tutors. But for less commonly taught languages, you may not have as many backup resources in your daily study routines. So, the apps are supposed to be strong enough to support your learning from the basics.

Here are some of the main things to look out for:

• A structured step-by-step lesson path.
• Native-speaker audio.
• Real-life dialogues and conversations.
• Vocabulary practice.
• Grammar support.
• Speaking and pronunciation practice.
• Listening exercises.
• Review tools like spaced repetition.
• Beginner-friendly.
• Practical phrases for everyday situations.
• Enough lessons to help you move beyond the basics.

An app like Ling fulfills these requirements because it brings structure, native-speaker audio, vocabulary practice, grammar support, speaking exercises, real-life dialogues, and review tools together in one place. That makes it especially useful, and one of the best apps to learn underrated languages.

FAQs: Best Apps To Learn Underrated Languages

Final Takeaway: Best Language-Learning Apps For Underrated Languages

Learning a new language, especially an underrated or uncommon one, can be a little more challenging because you may not find as many resources as you would for popular languages. But with the right app, it becomes much easier.

There are, in fact, several apps that actually teach underrated and uncommon languages, each with a different teaching approach. Your choice will therefore depend on your preferred learning approach or learning goal. 

• Best overall structured course: Ling
• Best for learning vocabulary in context: Clozemaster
• Best for one-on-one tutor practice: italki
• Best for quick vocabulary building: Drops
• Best for common phrases and basic conversations: Mondly

Overall, Ling is arguably the best app to learn underrated languages, especially for beginners. Ling offers a comprehensive, structured learning process with a clear, step-by-step path. It also uses features such as native-speaker audio, mini-games, and real-life dialogues, which make it especially useful for less popular languages that lack as many learning materials online.

Start Learning Underrated Languages With Ling!

If you want to learn an underrated or uncommon language, Ling is one of the strongest all-in-one options available. It offers a structured, step-by-step learning path and makes the process engaging with features like native-speaker audio, mini-games, and its Dialog feature.

To get started, download the Ling app. You can try the first two beginner units for free and explore the annual subscription with a 7-day free trial. You’re just a click away from reaching your language-learning goals.