YourTeacherAI Review: AI-Powered Language Learning We Can NOT Recommend

Cover image: © Katrin Adam

Benny Lewis, Xiaoma & Co.: Some well-known polyglots seem to have chosen a favorite among the many new AI language tutors on the market. And this one is called YourTeacherAI! And one thing upfront, despite the famous names promoting YourTeacherAI, we don’t really recommend the app. Is it perhaps a marketing stunt and/or a scam?

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Table of Contents

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Overview: YourTeacherAI in Review

Quick Summary: A Nice Idea with Disastrous Implementation

YourTeacherAI gets one thing right: They are keeping up with the times and building their language tutors on modern artificial intelligence technology. The user interface is intuitively designed, the AI counterpart is configurable – but unfortunately, that’s where our positive points end.

Because YourTeacherAI has made decisions in many areas that are simply not didactically sensible. You cannot access conversation histories, the vocabulary statistics are useless, and the value for money is just not there. Moreover, there are no special features or motivational elements. Other AI language tutors, especially Langotalk, do this much better.

Below you will find the detailed review of the provider. We share our experiences with YourTeacherAI from four weeks of testing. You can find all information at a glance in our YourTeacherAI Guide.

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YourTeacherAI Experiences: What Was Tested

The name already reveals it: YourTeacherAI is an AI-based, virtual chat partner designed to support language learning. This places the provider among a multitude of new AI language tutors on the market. YourTeacherAI clearly states in its marketing that it is not suitable for beginners, and users should already have reached at least A1, preferably A2 level (or higher).

We tested the provider on a smartphone as well as a tablet to assess the full range of functions. We primarily learned English and Spanish, but also languages in which we have no prior knowledge – to see if the course is really not suitable for absolute beginners.

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Scope and Features: What Does YourTeacherAI Offer in Review?

AI tutors could trigger a long-heralded revolution for the future of language learning. And several providers are now attempting this. Which learning languages and special functions distinguish YourTeacherAI?

Scope, Languages & Features

Currently, YourTeacherAI offers 30 learning languages and just as many source languages. The offering is constantly expanding, with a focus on European and Asian languages. The current selection is as follows:

With any subscription option, you can use the full scope of YourTeacherAI and thus every learning and source language. Additionally, there are several conversation partners in each language. These are either based on real polyglots, for example, Benny Lewis, or are AI-generated, virtual “persons.” You can switch between all these options at will.

Beyond that, YourTeacherAI offers no special features. The program is simply a chatbot focused on language learning. While there is a counter that notes applied and understood words, this is merely a statistic and not a vocabulary trainer or any other usable feature.

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There are a few setting options for the AI counterpart. These include adjusting speaking speed, formality, and correction style – a nice addition. More on this in the user-friendliness section!

User-Friendliness: How Easy is YourTeacherAI to Use?

Easy navigation and an appealing design ensure a better learning experience. Can YourTeacherAI score points in terms of user-friendliness in our review?

Simple Course, Even Simpler User Interface

YourTeacherAI is very simply designed and thus easy to navigate. There is only one main screen where you operate while using the app. This contains the chat with the AI. Everything else consists merely of a menu for some settings and the option to change the virtual counterpart or the language.

However: The entire user interface and website are in English. This cannot be changed, so you should definitely know English well enough to navigate within the app accordingly.

The menu offers a few options to configure the AI teacher. These include:

• Choosing native/source language
• Setting whether the source language is used by the AI within lessons or not
• Correction style
• Frequency of corrections
• Formality
• Speaking speed

For each learning language, there are also several AI tutors from whom you can choose freely. Some are real people, especially well-known polyglots. So you’ll find figures like Benny Lewis, Xiaoma, Olly Richards, and several more. They have recorded their voices, which the program then works with, allowing the AI to say anything.

The alternative to this are some virtual persons, of whom 2-3 are available per language. They come with a small profile that includes an AI-generated “photo” and a short description of the person and their interests.

During the conversation, you can also freely switch between writing and speaking. AI responses always appear in written form and are also simultaneously voiced. The voices sound more or less realistic depending on the “person.”

What puzzles us greatly, however: Your own messages or spoken sentences are not documented and only appear on the screen if the AI corrects them in its response. The conversation history is also nowhere to be seen – as soon as either the user or the AI says something, the previous sentence disappears. This makes no sense; neither didactically, nor is there any reason in the aesthetics or design of the app, as most of the screen is just gaping emptiness. It’s unclear to us what they were thinking.

Otherwise, there are few other options. You can pause the AI while it’s speaking, have written messages or individual words translated by it, or copy a sentence. There is also an overview of used and understood words – however, this has no practical purpose and is simply a statistic.

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Interim Conclusion: Room for Improvement, YourTeacherAI!

In summary: Anyone with basic English skills can easily navigate the YourTeacherAI app. The user interface consists only of a main screen, plus a supplementary menu with some options and a statistic of used words – it’s very simple.

However, it’s a pity that the conversation history is not displayed – especially since almost the entire screen is empty. While this doesn’t change the AI’s function, it is cumbersome and not particularly clever didactically – you can’t even see your own sentences unless they are corrected. YourTeacherAI could do a lot better here!

Didactic Concept: How Successfully Do I Learn with YourTeacherAI?

The provider’s didactic concept is quite simple: You converse with an AI-based counterpart and thus prepare yourself for conversations with a human conversation partner. The goal is to prevent the stress of the first speaking attempts.

What Were They Thinking?

The core of YourTeacherAI is also the absolute only function the program currently offers. You can write or speak sentences, and the AI responds accordingly. This way, you have a conversation without a fixed topic or guidelines – the whole thing is a simple bot, similar to ChatGPT. There are no levels or guided conversations.

This didactics section has probably never been so short in any other review, because there really isn’t much to say. And unfortunately, mostly little positive, because despite the limited functions, YourTeacherAI has made some unfavorable decisions. There is so much unused potential, which is simply a shame.

The conversations themselves work well in principle. The speech recognition is very accurate, one has to give the provider credit for that. The AI’s responses also come quite quickly, and most AI voices are quite realistic and don’t sound too robotic. Some also have an “accent” in another language, which is a cool feature – making them actually sound like a native speaker.

However, as already explained in the user-friendliness section, only the AI’s current sentence is displayed. Your own statements are not transcribed, and even written text is not shown on the screen. What were they thinking?

Not only do you have no way to access past conversations, but even during a conversation, no history is visible. From a didactic perspective, this is a minor catastrophe – because corrections and learning successes can only be viewed in the moment. Nobody wants to have to take hundreds of screenshots just to document their learning process, right?

Another feature that simply wasn’t thought through is the word counter at the top of the screen. This is an overview of all words you understood (i.e., used by the AI) as well as another overview of the words you used yourself. You could actually do so much with this: a daily streak, weekly goals, or simply incorporate gamification elements. As it is, however, it’s just a list that doesn’t even come with a translation of the respective word. We are puzzled as to what this is supposed to contribute to the course.

Additionally, it would be great if there was an overview of misunderstood words, ideally with a built-in vocabulary trainer. While you can click on individual words and have them translated by the program, there is no way to permanently mark them or even practice them. So, you still need a vocabulary trainer on the side.

Interim Conclusion Didactics: A Nice Approach, but…

Yes, YourTeacherAI makes it clear that they are not a language course, but a supplementary program. Nevertheless, we find it difficult to recommend the provider – especially at the comparatively quite high price. Of course, the basic idea of an AI language tutor is great, but YourTeacherAI simply doesn’t follow it through. There is no feature that sets the provider apart from the competition. And even existing functions seem poorly thought out. In fact, we would only conditionally place them above ChatGPT, due to the good voice acting – a program that is completely free.

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We are also surprised that so many polyglots lend their names to the provider. One can only speculate at this point whether it’s the integration of their own person into the course or simply a hefty commission for advertising. Providers like Langotalk do much better here.

Target Audience: Who is the YourTeacherAI Language Course For?

The provider itself states very clearly: You cannot learn a language here. YourTeacherAI is only suitable for practicing conversations, both written and spoken. Accordingly, beginners are excluded from the target group; prior knowledge is necessary to be able to hold conversations. The rule here is: The better the basics are established, the easier it is to use, and the more fluently you can converse with the AI counterpart.

The A1 level should at least be reached in the target language; everything above that is open. From A2, you can already have good everyday conversations, and with a B-level, you can go into more depth.

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This places YourTeacherAI in the category of supplementary programs, as no new content is taught. Motivational elements or gamification are also not found here; instead, you have to apply your own strategies – for example, Self-Nudging.

Price-Value: Is YourTeacherAI Worth Buying?

Currently, YourTeacherAI offers three subscription options, each unlocking all currently available learning languages and teachers. Prices and packages are structured as follows:

• 1-Month Subscription: $25 monthly, plus 19% tax
• 6-Month Subscription: $17.83 monthly, plus 19% tax (approx. $128 for six months)
• Annual Subscription: $12.25 monthly, plus 19% tax (approx. $175 per year)

It’s immediately noticeable – we’ve mentioned that tax is added on top of the price. The “nasty” surprise only comes when you’re already in the process of entering your credit card details. This is unusual, and we consider it less than transparent. It’s somewhat unfair, especially since the courses are already quite expensive – even in direct comparison with similar providers.

But that wasn’t all that struck us negatively during the purchase process. Currently, you can only pay for YourTeacherAI access via the website with a credit card. There is no other option – neither debit cards, nor PayPal, Klarna, or any other service are offered. This is not only unusual but also quite cumbersome and certainly a deal-breaker for some potential customers. All details can also be found in the YourTeacherAI Costs article!

While you can purchase YourTeacherAI in the App or Play Store with your correspondingly stored payment method, the subscription prices there are slightly higher, and there is no free trial option. This, by the way, is only available under a single subscription option: Only those who book via the website and opt for an annual subscription can practice with YourTeacherAI for the first week free of charge. However, as already mentioned, you must provide your credit card details for this. Canceling in time is therefore of utmost importance if you don’t need it, otherwise, you could quickly be out over $150.

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The cancellation process for YourTeacherAI also proved to be adventurous: For the first few days after subscribing, it was not possible to cancel via one’s own profile, as advertised on the website. Neither in the browser nor in the app! About 48 hours before payment was due, it finally worked; otherwise, we would have had to contact the provider via the contact form.

Is the Price Worth It?

Basically, YourTeacherAI is not much more expensive than comparable AI language tutors. However, this does not automatically mean that the price-performance ratio is right here. Because you don’t get a language course here, nor a self-study platform – no new content is taught. In itself, that’s okay, because the provider makes this more than clear.

But YourTeacherAI also has no other function that would distinguish the program from a generic, free AI, for example, ChatGPT. It’s almost more impractical than these, as you can’t view past message histories.

So, to answer the question in the heading: No, in our opinion, a YourTeacherAI subscription is not worth it. The price for AI tutors like Aimigo or Langotalk is very similar – but here you get many clever functions, detailed error correction, and a complete language learning platform integrated. YourTeacherAI offers none of this at the current time, and so we simply consider the costs unjustified.

The trial option and cancellation conditions are also not particularly user-friendly – the direct competition simply does much better here. A pity!

Alternatives: YourTeacherAI Experiences Compared to Competitors

By now, it should be clear that YourTeacherAI currently does not convince us. Fortunately, there are some competitors that do many things better! Here are our favorites:

Langotalk – More Than an AI Language Tutor

If you want a little more than “just” a conversation partner, you should take a look at Langotalk. Not only are there exciting conversation topics here, but also a whole range of practice units and lessons in various formats. Thus, Langotalk also teaches new content – so a very high entry level is not necessary here.

Hardly any other provider uses artificial intelligence so freely: You can have lessons created on any topic in less than a minute. This is particularly great for anyone with specific or unusual hobbies, interests, or professions that are not covered in prefabricated language courses.

Langotalk starts from $6 per month if you choose an annual subscription. And it gets even better, because the AI tutor also has a lifetime offer. For a one-time payment of $120, you can unlock all current and future content and languages – what more could you want?

talkREAL Tip: In one of our article series, we compare two similar providers directly. Click here for all YourTeacherAI “versus” articles!

Univerbal – The Better Conversation Partner

Similar to YourTeacherAI, Univerbal also focuses primarily on conversations with AI. Content is not specifically taught. However, almost everything is better implemented here: The AI consists of various virtual persons, each taking on the role of a different counterpart. Different everyday situations are simulated, thus wonderfully preparing users for applying the learning language in real life.

You receive constructive feedback on every message, there is an integrated dictionary, and at the end of a lesson, you can download the transcript. You can also create your own conversation scenarios if desired, giving you great freedom in the content of the AI language course.

Price-wise, Univerbal starts from about $10 per month and also has a very fair trial offer: You can test the full functionality and all languages of the provider for one week, completely without providing payment details. This way, you run no risk of falling into a subscription trap. Excellent! Univerbal is particularly suitable for learners with prior knowledge.

Conclusion: YourTeacherAI in Review

‒ Not Recommended at This Time ‒

As unfortunate as it is: This sentence probably best summarizes our YourTeacherAI experiences. Because the provider, like all AI language tutors, has great potential – but unfortunately, it currently just can’t realize it. Who knows what the future holds, though. Currently, however, we would instead clearly recommend providers like Langotalk, Aimigo, or Univerbal.

Generally, YourTeacherAI gives us the impression that they are working with the absolute minimum for a functioning app in many areas. Yes, the program does what it’s supposed to do: offer conversations with an AI. But there is absolutely nothing that currently distinguishes the AI tutor didactically, design-wise, or with any other special charm. You might as well use ChatGPT completely free for language learning, or spend your money on one of the better AI conversation courses.

In itself, like any AI language tutor, a nice idea. But in terms of cost and didactic implementation, it’s a moderate disaster. We simply cannot recommend YourTeacherAI at the moment, because the competition does it noticeably better. And sometimes for significantly less money. There is still a lot of room for improvement!

Why so many polyglots lend their names to the program is beyond our comprehension. Presumably, there’s a hefty commission behind it, which could also explain the high costs for YourTeacherAI users. A pity – this could almost be called a scam, because didactically, the polyglots should definitely know better.

Overall Rating: 4.6 / 10