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Rosetta Stone vs. Busuu – Classic Giant vs. Modern App: Who Comes Out on Top?

Rosetta Stone vs. Busuu

Image credits: © Katrin Adam

Rosetta Stone or Busuu – Which language program is better? We tested both learning solutions and compare them here. Who will end up scoring more points in the end?


Quick Verdict: We’d lean toward Rosetta Stone. Not only does it offer more languages, but the content and courses are also more intuitive. Still, there are some good reasons to consider Busuu, too!


Table of Contents

Rosetta Stone vs. Busuu – The Contenders at a Glance

Rosetta Stone Logo

Rosetta Stone focuses on intuitive learning without rote memorization, plus attractive extras in its learning suite.

Read Our Review

versus

Busuu Logo

Busuu stands out with free lessons and an active community of learners and native speakers.

Read Our Review

Similarities: Where Rosetta Stone and Busuu Overlap

If you go by ads alone, Rosetta Stone and Busuu might appear quite alike. While there are definite differences—and of course a winner in this matchup—they do share a few things. Both Rosetta Stone and Busuu have an app and web interface, allowing you to use all features on all your devices.

Each one promotes its content as a primary language course, meant to be the cornerstone of a learning strategy. Both prioritize mobile learning and bite-sized lessons that fit into almost any schedule.

Differences: How Rosetta Stone and Busuu Truly Diverge

Now we come to where they split. Despite being marketed in a somewhat similar way, neither is a classic language course. Rosetta Stone goes all-in on intuitive, context-based learning, without using your native language. Busuu takes a more traditional approach: much like in school, you cycle through a mix of exercises and grammar explanations.


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Additionally, Rosetta Stone offers online lessons in its virtual classroom. Meanwhile, Busuu stands out for a strong community feature that allows you to interact with fellow learners.

Rosetta Stone or Busuu – Scope and Features

Busuu currently offers 13 foreign languages for German speakers—alongside the four main European ones, it also includes languages like Arabic and Korean. Rosetta Stone, however, has 24 languages, including some less common choices like Farsi. With its well-designed learning suite, Rosetta Stone provides extras like story-based lessons and pronunciation training, not to mention the online classroom. Hence:

A Point for Rosetta Stone

Though it’s not necessarily a course’s main focus, a user-friendly and attractive interface is a real plus. After all, who wants to click through multiple tabs to find what they need? So how do our contenders measure up here?

Rosetta Stone vs. Busuu – User-Friendliness

Both providers offer a visually appealing, well-organized interface. Each app guides you smoothly through the course. Busuu’s design may look a bit friendlier, but Rosetta Stone’s suite is equally well-labeled, and you can follow a linear path. There’s no difference in features between their web and mobile versions, and even less tech-savvy users should have no major problems with either one. We’re giving points to both—choosing one over the other is just too difficult here.

A Point for Both

That’s all well and good, but let’s get to the most important part of any course: the learning method and how it’s implemented. Which is better here—Rosetta Stone or Busuu?

Rosetta Stone or Busuu – Learning Concept

Busuu (right) uses a more classic approach, reminiscent of school lessons. You alternate between learning phases and quiz phases through varied exercises, and the community feature lets you review other learners’ work and receive feedback on yours.

Rosetta Stone Example
Busuu Example

Rosetta Stone (left) focuses primarily on a sequence of different exercises that regularly introduce new vocabulary. You learn intuitively, entirely without using German—this unique concept is highly effective and feels more modern than the classic approach. Hence:

A Point for Rosetta Stone

A language course can be excellent, but if you don’t use it, it won’t help you progress. Besides a solid curriculum and effective teaching, motivational elements also matter. How do Rosetta Stone and Busuu fare here?

Rosetta Stone or Busuu – Motivation

Neither provider offers especially deep gamification or motivation features. You can set up a study plan and receive notifications, but neither can compare to something like Duolingo in that regard. Therefore, we recommend external strategies for staying motivated—for instance, self-nudging or our 1-Meter-HACK.


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If we had to choose, Busuu nudges ahead thanks to its community feature, which lets you engage with other users. So we’ll give this point to Busuu.

A Point for Busuu

A great language course is nice, but the price must match the value. The more features, languages, and effective learning concepts are included, the more a higher price can be justified. So what’s the story with Rosetta Stone or Busuu on this front?

Rosetta Stone vs. Busuu: Value for Money

Busuu lets you study for free and access most course features. However, you pay for more personalized content – Premium plans start at $5.25 per month.

Rosetta Stone starts around $10 per month for a single language. There’s also a lifetime offer: $199 for unlimited access to all 24 languages. The differences in scope and price are substantial. While Rosetta Stone is pricier, we believe the learning impact is greater. It’s close, but:

A Point for Rosetta Stone

We’ve reviewed five categories in detail. Let’s check out the final tally:

The Score Overview

Rosetta Stone Logo

Scope

User-Friendliness

Learning Concept

Value for Money

versus

Busuu Logo

User-Friendliness

Motivation

Conclusion – Rosetta Stone or Busuu: Who Comes Out on Top?

In a direct comparison between Rosetta Stone and Busuu, Rosetta Stone wins with a score of 4:2. It excels thanks to its intuitive concept and a significantly bigger range of languages. The pricing was a tough call, but you can see how it fits in by looking at the major differences among popular language-learning platforms.

So should you buy Rosetta Stone without hesitation? We wholeheartedly recommend it, but of course, not every program is perfect for everyone. Check out how it measures up against Mondly in our Rosetta Stone comparison!

Whichever course you choose in the end, it’s important to stay consistent. If you have questions or want to know how to keep yourself motivated, sign up here for our email tips anytime.

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