Duolingo Admits Some Features Aren’t Worth It. Here’s What Works in 2025

Summary

In this video, the creator discusses the evolution of Duolingo in 2024 and 2025, highlighting new features such as Duolingo Scores, language-only leagues, and friend streaks. They share insights on Duolingo’s slow but steady learning approach, which helps users build sustainable habits over time. While praising Duolingo Stories for beginners, the creator critiques its repetitiveness as users progress. They also offer tips for speeding through lessons, but stress the importance of consistent learning. Ultimately, Duolingo remains a recommended tool for language learning, particularly for those focused on foundational skills and language immersion.

Takeaways

• 😀 Duolingo's learning pace is designed to be slow and steady for most people, building sustainable habits over time.
• 😀 Radical lifestyle changes, such as extreme dieting, are harder to maintain than making gradual improvements over time.
• 😀 Duolingo Scores, added in 2024, offer more detailed insights into progress and help learners track their journey more effectively.
• 😀 Reaching C1 or C2 fluency through Duolingo alone is unlikely without immersion, similar to how cooking skills require practical experience beyond just reading cookbooks.
• 😀 Duolingo Stories are helpful for beginners, but advanced users may find them repetitive and demotivating due to the lack of new content.
• 😀 Recent updates to Duolingo now allow users to skip repeated stories, making the learning process more efficient for advanced learners.
• 😀 Friend Streaks feature adds a fun competitive element to Duolingo but doesn't offer much beyond friendly rivalry.
• 😀 Language-only and location-based leagues create fairer competition by matching users who are learning the same language or are from the same location.
• 😀 Duolingo's current meta for maintaining a streak includes using the 'Practice' tab and completing lessons quickly with minimal effort to save time.
• 😀 To excel in Duolingo's Diamond League, users can intentionally perform poorly for a week and then take advantage of a lower-level competition the following week.
• 😀 Duolingo is still worth using in 2025 for most learners, especially those who use it consistently and focus on popular languages, as the app has shown to be effective in personal experiences.

Q & A

What is the main criticism of Duolingo’s approach to language learning?

The main criticism is that Duolingo’s slow, gradual learning pace may be ineffective for people who prefer faster results or have a brain wired to learn quickly. However, this approach works for the majority of users who need a more sustainable, long-term method.

How does Duolingo compare its learning approach to lifestyle changes?

The speaker compares Duolingo’s approach to slow, incremental lifestyle changes, like improving diet over time. This method is seen as more sustainable compared to radical changes, which might be harder to stick with in the long run.

What new feature was introduced in Duolingo in 2024, and why is it praised?

Duolingo Scores was introduced in 2024, which allows learners to track their progress with more granularity. It’s praised because it provides clearer insight into a learner's journey and helps them see exactly where they stand in their language proficiency.

What is the issue with Duolingo Stories at higher learning levels?

At higher levels, Duolingo Stories can become repetitive and demotivating because learners are required to repeat the same stories multiple times, leading to frustration. Although the stories are useful for beginners, they lack variety as learners advance.

How has Duolingo addressed the problem of repetitive stories?

Duolingo has recently introduced an automatic feature that skips repeated stories once a user has encountered them multiple times. This change improves the user experience by preventing unnecessary repetition.

What is the purpose of Duolingo’s Friend Streaks feature?

Duolingo’s Friend Streaks feature allows users to compete with friends by maintaining daily streaks. It functions similarly to Snapchat’s streak system, providing a way to motivate friends to consistently use the app.

What are Language-only and Location-only Leagues, and how are they different?

Language-only Leagues allow users to compete with others who are learning the same language, ensuring a fairer competition. Location-only Leagues, however, are seen as controversial because they match users based on their geographical location, which may not be relevant for learning a language.

What strategy does the speaker suggest for quickly maintaining a Duolingo streak?

The speaker suggests two quick strategies: (1) using the 'practice words' tab to match words and finish in under 30 seconds, and (2) using the 'speak' option to complete 10 sentences in about a minute. These methods help maintain a streak with minimal effort.

What is the recommended strategy for winning the Diamond League in Duolingo?

To win the Diamond League, the speaker recommends intentionally performing poorly for a week to drop to a lower league, where competition is less intense. Then, users can complete their lessons more easily in the following week, gaining more XP to win the Diamond League.

Is Duolingo still recommended for language learners in 2025?

Yes, Duolingo is still recommended in 2025 for users who use it consistently and effectively, especially for top languages supported by the app. Despite some flaws, it works well for many learners, and the speaker plans to continue using it in their own language learning journey.