Tagalog (Filipino) is the national language of the Philippines and is spoken by over 22 million people. For those wanting to learn this beautiful language spoken in Southeast Asia, there are many apps that teach Tagalog.
As someone who frequently visits The Philippines for business, I understand that it can be quite overwhelming to face a new language all of a sudden. This is why I have curated this list to help fellow travelers who want to interact with locals.
I hope this list helps you have a great trip to the region. Shall we begin?
Top 10 Apps for Learning Tagalog Language
In this article, I have included the ones that help learn the language effectively, whether you are a complete beginner or looking to improve your skills.
With user-friendly interfaces, personalized study plans, and interactive activities, these apps will get you conversing in Tagalog more quickly than traditional classroom methods.
1. Best of All: Rosetta Stone
How can I discuss learning a new language without mentioning Rosetta Stone upfront? This is perhaps my favorite app when it comes to learning any language, and it also works well with Tagalog.
The app provides you with detailed daily lessons, as well as personalizes them for you over time. Rosetta Stone also uses flashcards, phrases, and audio notes to help you learn Tagalog better.
The app also helps you pronounce better with the help of audio and video clips
Key Features
- 10-minute lessons on different aspects
- Good app for all levels: beginners, intermediates, experts
- Helps you track your Tagalog learning progress
- Syncs your progress across multiple devices
- Learn 24 different languages including French, German, Italian, Korean, Arabic, Greek, and Vietnamese.
2. Best Runner Up: Pimsleur
My favorite thing about Pimsleur is the minimalist UI which is extremely easy to navigate. Learning a new language is tough enough, and you don’t want to face the headache of navigating through a bad UI too.
Pimsleur teaches you for 30 minutes every day. Furthermore, the app also keeps testing you from time to time, to ensure that you retain what you learn.
Key Features
- Different kinds of challenges: flash Cards, Reading, Speaking, etc.
- Supports Amazon Echo and connected devices
- Simple and easy-to-use app
- 30-minute lessons every day
- Can teach you over 50 different languages including Thai.
3. Best with Native Audio: Tagalog by Nemo
While some apps teach you multiple languages, Tagalog by Nemo is an app that is dedicated to helping you learn just Tagalog. This is a hyper-specialized offering that will ensure you master the language.
My only hiccup here was the UI which looks somewhat old, but other than that, the app is pretty good. You get lots of words and phrases, along with a native speaker’s audio, helping you pronounce better.
The app also helps you develop a proper accent, and even replays your voice next to the training voice, helping you understand what you said vs what you should’ve said. This is the perfect app for beginners.
Key Features
- You don’t need to have any prior knowledge
- Review mode to practice what you studied earlier
- Fully customizable app for your personalized requirements
- Can be used offline as well
- No “lessons” – you can learn throughout the day
4. Best with Quizzes: Learn Tagalog Fast
Learn Tagalog Fast is an app that does exactly what it says – it helps you learn the language, and fast! This app isn’t a detailed deep-dive into the language like many other apps but is more of a crash course into Tagalog.
It will help you gain a decent enough understanding of the language to maybe pass a few weeks in the region. The app includes basic words, phrases, and sentences and also comes with audio notes to help you learn better.
You can also answer quizzes to track your progress.
Key Features
- Quick lessons on short phrases and words
- Audio notes that help you pronounce words better
- Quizzes after every lesson to test your learning
- Updates keep adding new lessons to the app
- The first 10 lessons are free, others require an in-app payment
5. Best with AI Tutor: Memrise
Learning Tagalog can be tough, but Memrise certainly makes it easy! The app offers a clean and visually appealing UI, where navigating from screen to screen and lesson to lesson is very easy.
My favorite feature here is the videos and audio notes that help you pronounce words in the Tagalog language just as native speakers would.
The app also allows you to practice conversations with a bot before you have them in the real world. The AI language tutor in Memrise is the cherry on top!
Key Features
- Allows you to import your progress from other apps
- Helps you with day-to-day phrases and words
- Helps you pronounce the words better with guided pronunciation
- Comes with an AI language tutor
- Supports over 20 different languages
6. Learn Tagalog by Dalubhasa
Easy Tagalog by Dalubhasa is perhaps one of the top-rated Tagalog learning apps to learn the language like they would teach someone in native schools. However, you have one major obstacle here – an average UI.
The app carries a lot of important lessons, broken down into smaller chapters where you can learn everything from the basics like numbers, colors, time, etc. to advanced sentences that will help you hold a conversation.
Key Features
- Audio recordings from native speakers
- Music player that carries Tagalog songs and lyrics with English translations
- Carries an offline dictionary
- Lots of quizzes and tests
- Covers everything from basics to advanced conversations
7. Best for Students: Ling
Ling is one of the best apps for language learning. The app was rated as one of the best apps in 2023 for education on the App Store. It focuses on several languages that most mainstream apps don’t, including Tagalog.
The Ling app also comes with games that help you learn languages in a fun manner. You can also hear native speakers pronounce words, and even speak and repeat them till you get the pronunciation correct.
There’s also an option that can help you write the script on the screen using your fingers.
Key Features
- Uses games and quizzes to ensure better memorization
- 10-minute lessons that help you learn languages
- Great app for learning hard languages
- Helps you practice writing the language as well
- Supports 50 different languages
8. Best for Practice: Tandem
Tandem works on the principle of language exchange. It allows you to team up with native speakers of different languages and help you learn their language better. It is a great option for those looking to learn Tagalog.
The app offers 1-on-1 chats as well as multi-user parties. You can also audio/video call people and make new friends using this app.
You can also chat with people, and make use of Tandem’s grammar correction and comment features to improve any mistakes you might be making.
Key Features
- Speak directly with native speakers of a language
- Helps you pronounce better with voice notes and calls
- You can make audio/video calls with the person you’re talking to
- Clubhouse-like audio rooms help learn different accents better
- The Tandem app supports over 300 languages!
9. Best with Games: Drops
Drops is a simple mobile application that gives you free lessons in Tagalog. The app helps you learn languages with the help of games and puzzles.
The app also offers a lot of positive motivation and incentivizes learning with the help of streaks, badges, and achievements. This app focuses a lot on the basics and foundation of the language, including the grammar and basic vocabulary, which ensures you can hold basic conversations pretty well.
Key Features
- Multiple lessons of 5 minutes each
- Add friends and compete over learning languages with them
- Streaks and badges keep you motivated to learn more
- A very smooth and efficient user interface
- Supports over 50 languages
10. Best for Basics: Mango Languages Learning
When I started learning this language, Mango was one of the first apps that I tried out. It supports learning over 70 languages, and Tagalog is one of their better courses.
My favorite feature in the Mango app was the part where they made me speak out certain phrases, and then match them against a native’s recording. This helped me understand the kind of mistakes I made.
There are hundreds of lessons in the app, on a diverse range of topics which help you learn new languages better. The app also helps you pronounce every word in a sentence individually and also includes listening exercises.
Key Features
- Match your speaking skills with a native’s recording
- Provides cultural insights into the language as well
- All language courses on Mango are linguist-approved
- Download the lessons to play them offline
- Learn over 70 languages using the Mango app
Frequently Asked Questions
Unfortunately, Duolingo doesn’t have Tagalog as of now. Rosetta Stone is the closest alternative that you should check out. The app provides pretty much the same features and allows you to learn the language with ease.
Yes, unfortunately, Tagalog can be a difficult language for English speakers to learn. It may take up to two years to become proficient in this language. However, if you are preparing for a short trip and only need to know basic conversations, apps will do the job.
Using a mobile app such as Rosetta Stone is one of the fastest ways to learn Tagalog. These not only teach you the language but also quiz you and help you learn better with the help of games and flashcards.
Wrap Up!
Knowledge of Tagalog aka Filipino is extremely important for anyone traveling through The Philippines. This is even more important if you were to conduct business or trade in the country.
Learning it can also help you gain an insight into other similar languages such as those spoken in the Bikol and Bisayan regions, as well as some languages spoken in Taiwan and Indonesia.
I hope that this list of apps helped you gain a grasp of Tagalog. See you in the next one!
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