Learn Korean In Your Own Time with Korean Learning Apps

The past few weeks some friends of mine have been trying to get me to sign up for Korean classes with them. However, between my long work hours, and trying to spend some time at the gym, I don’t see how I could fit Korean classes into my schedule. I don’t want to be miss out on the fun, so I decided to search for the best way to learn Korean online. Since I am always on the go, I did some digging to find the best Korean learning apps I could use on my phone. I found a site called AppGrooves and this part immediately caught my eyes:

Learn Korean on the go with English to Korean translator apps to teach vocabulary, sentence structure, and the Korean alphabet in short, easy to absorb lessons.

                                            Source: Best 10 Apps for Learning Korean by AppGrooves

So, after some time with the apps on their list, I selected my 3 favorites and reviewed them.

Learn Korean. Speak Korean – Rating: 4.7, Downloads: 1M+

My first pick, Learn Korean. Speak Korean is perfect if you are just beginning your Korean learning journey (like me). However, the learning approach is not your average learning course. From the very first lesson, you are faced with a conversation in Korean. I was impressed with the effective teaching style. By the end of the first lesson, I was able to reproduce the conversation on my own! You also get to practice your pronunciation using voice recognition software, that only rewards you when you pronounce correctly.

Don’t be fooled by the simplicity of the first lessons. The learning system is designed to adapt to your strengths and weaknesses. So, once you have the basics down, you will quickly move on to more advanced lessons. I did miss a few words in my first lesson, and I immediately noticed the system would bring them back to ensure I learned them!

Pros: Ideal for beginners, adaptive learning, speech recognition, focus on conversation

Cons: Slow start, doesn’t cover grammar rules

Overall: Perfect for beginners that want to jumpstart their Korean conversational skills, although it can be a slow start for more advanced students

Learn Korean Phrases | Korean Translator – Rating: 4.5, Downloads: 1M+

The second app I chose is Learn Korean Phrases. Instead of working your way through lessons to learn new words, you can quickly look up specific words and phrases and learn how to pronounce them. I particularly like the intuitive category system for quickly finding words on different topics. Another nice feature is that you can adjust the speed of the audio recordings if you want to hear the words more slowly.

I didn’t find lessons to walk me through the basics of the Korean language. For this option, I recommend my other two picks. Learn Korean Phrases is your go-to source for learning specific words and phrases, or for when you need some quick help asking for directions in Korea!

Pros: Intuitive interface, handy phrasebook, adjust playback speed

Cons: No lessons, occasional ads

Overall: Although you won’t find ‘lessons’, it is a handy phrasebook that will help you master your Korean pronunciation

Learn Korean – Rating: 4.7, Downloads: 1M+ (Grammar)

To round of my top 3 favorites, I chose Learn Korean. Not only will you learn basic Korean vocabulary, but you will also learn grammar rules too! In fact, supposedly there are over 200 grammar lessons, which is more than I can imagine doing! Another plus I found is that you can access the library of over 5,000 words and phrases offline too, which is great for taking your lessons with you anywhere you go.

Unlike Learn Korean. Speak Korean, I didn’t find the option for voice recognition, which was great for fine-tuning my Korean pronunciation. However, the focus on grammar alone is more than enough reason alone to include Learn Korean on my top 3 favorites. I would recommend coupling Learn Korean with one of my other two picks for a powerful Korean learning combo!

Pros: Grammar lessons, quiz games, over 5,000 words and phrases

Cons: Possibly too easy for more advanced learners, no voice recognition

Overall: Great for learning Korean grammar, but you will have to look elsewhere to master your pronunciation

These are my top 3 picks for learning Korean on-the-go. Depending on your needs you might prefer one over the other. Learn Korean. Speak Korean is perfect if you are a beginner with lessons that cover all the basics. On the other hand, Learn Korean Phrases is great for building up your vocabulary. Finally, Learn Korean is a great choice if you want to work on your grammar skills. Good luck with your Korean learning journey!