Lingoda Review
Looking for ways to improve your knowledge of a foreign language? Let’s consider Lingoda as a platform for this. To make a decision on whether this tool is the right one for you, keep reading the review of Lingoda.
What is Lingoda?
It’s an online language school that started in 2012 as Easy Languages with a single service, individual German lessons. In 2013 the school was renamed and it has become Lingoda with English as one more language that can be learned here. In 2016, the school also added French and Spanish to its services.
Today, this online language school offers 4 languages to learn:
The main office is based in Berlin, however, the company offers services 24/7 worldwide.
How Lingoda works
Lingoda offers two basic types of classes: regular ones and Sprint. For regular lessons, you just choose how many classes per month you want to proceed with (4, 12, 20, or 40 classes per month). There are two formats to learn the chosen language: private lessons with a native-speaking tutor or in small groups. The second type is cheaper.
All classes on Lingoda are 60-minute long.
Lingoda Sprint is a more intense learning format where you can get a cashback if you reach the goal of the sprint.
Previously, there was also Lingoda Maraphone which was very similar to the Sprint. However, now it’s no longer offered by the company.
There are all language levels available, from A1 (beginner) to C1 (advanced). To start, you need to sign up, choose a time and then, join a class.
Lingoda Sprint
This feature is a key feature of Lingoda. It’s really intense but you can get a 50-100% cashback if you attend 100% of your classes.
There are two options here, depending on the intensity:
- Sprint (15 classes per month, $420, 50% cashback)
- Super Sprint (30 classes per month, $800, 100% cashback)
Both Lingoda Sprint and Super Sprint last for 2 months.
Lingoda sprint only allows you to learn a language in small groups with no private lessons. Also, the teachers change from class to class so that a student doesn’t get used to one.
Lingoda Pricing
Lingoda’s Sprint and regular classes are priced separately.
As for the regular learning classes, Lingoda’s cost depends on three major factors:
- The number of classes you would like to have
- The language
- Whether it’s group or 1-on-1 classes
Prices for learning French and Spanish are lower, while German is more expensive to learn. The most expensive subject is business English.
Number of classes per month | Group classes (German) | Group classes (Spanish, French) | Private classes (German) | Private classes (Spanish, French) |
4 | $79 ($20/class) | $59 ($15/class) | $159 ($40/class) | $139 ($35/class) |
12 | $189 ($16/class) | $149 ($12/class) | $399 ($33/class) | $349 ($29/class) |
20 | $269 ($13/class) | $219 ($11/class) | $579 ($29/class) | $489 ($24/class) |
40 | $489 ($12/class) | $409 ($10/class) | $$969 ($24/class) | $839 ($21/class) |
There is also a 7-day free trial option.
The subscription renews every 4 weeks.
Lingoda gives a CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) Certificate. This certificate is recognized as proof of knowing a language on a particular level by employers in Europe and almost all other countries around the world.
Lingoda Reviews
Summarizing all that customers write about Lingoda on the sources like Trustpilot or Reddit, it’s clear that this platform is indeed useful to improve language skills. This means the marathon and sprint formats work really well. So, be ready that those options are very intense and thus, it can be hard to stay on track and attend classes with such frequency. However, an opportunity to get 50% or even 100% cashback if you attend all classes in the sprint is a great motivation.
On the other hand, you need to know that often you won’t be able to book a class with the teacher you like so the experience with Longoda teachers may not be always positive (as some teachers may be too talkative or too slow or less professional, or they just won’t fit your needs). This results in the situation when often you don’t have consistent feedback on your progress as well as you don’t have a person who always checks your homework and corrects your mistakes.
Also, as for the drawbacks, some students complain about difficulties with getting a refund and hidden rules to get the full cashback. So, read carefully all the terms before you pay for the service.
From the reviews on Trustpilot:
“Nice selection of teachers. It was quite a process attending class EVERYDAY, but I’m pleased to say that I successfully completed the sprint and it has helped a lot with fluency. Of course I’m not fluent, but my German Coworkers stated that I have improved a great deal!”
“Teachers can vary with their methods on giving class so it’s a bit hard in the beginning to adjust into one specific way of having classes.”
“The drawbacks are that there is very little follow up, so you don’t have anyone checking home work, and if you don’t understand something, its a different teacher each time so they don’t know if you are making the same mistakes over again.”
Recap: Is Lingoda’s Sprint worth it?
After reviewing all the aspects of Lingoda with a focus on the Sprint, we can recommend this online school to improve your knowledge of English, German, French, or Spanish. You must be prepared to devote a lot of your time with the high frequency for about 2 months but it will be rewarded. All the students see the progress after such learning and some even get cashback (if they don’t miss the classes). Despite some drawbacks like switching teachers all the time, this provider is worth the money spent.
I’ve completed lingoda sprint (German) and it was really a hard time for me. But I got my money back and my German has become at quite a better level indeed.
its really a difficult challenge, you have to be sure you attend all 90 classes daily. I was informed that I was eligible for a full refund as I completed the challenge, its almost three months and I have still not received the refund.
Thank you for this feedback on Lingoda!