Looking for the best Spanish app for kids? The right one depends on your child’s age. A good Spanish for kids app builds vocabulary and a 10-minute daily habit, but none will teach your child to speak, because nobody answers back. If you’re in a hurry, here are our top Spanish apps for kids by age:
- Ages 3 to 6: Gus on the Go (one-off $3.99) or Studycat.
- Ages 4 to 9, if they love stories: FabuLingua.
- Several children of different ages: Dinolingo, one subscription for up to six children.
- 10 and up, if they read confidently: Duolingo, free with ads.
How to choose the best Spanish app for kids (even if you don’t speak Spanish yourself)
- Your child’s real age, not the store’s. Almost every kids’ app is rated “4+” on the App Store, which only means there is nothing inappropriate in it. What matters is whether your child can read: an app built on reading sentences tends to frustrate a five-year-old. Privacy and screen time matter too: see are language apps safe for kids.
- The language of the menus. If you don’t speak Spanish yourself, look for English menus and instructions, or an app simple enough to need none. If Spanish is spoken at home, an app where your child only hears Spanish is better.
- Native-speaker audio. Your child will copy what they hear: check the preview videos for real native voices.
- Speaking or just tapping. Most apps are played by tapping pictures, which trains understanding. Apps that ask children to repeat out loud or record themselves make them say the words, which is the hard part.
- Price. Pay for one month before committing to a year.
What are the most effective Spanish learning apps for kids?
The ones that match your child’s age and ask them to say words out loud. For ages 3 to 6, Gus on the Go or Studycat; for story lovers aged 4 to 9, FabuLingua; from 10, Duolingo, if they read confidently. None teaches conversation: for that, your child needs people who answer back.
Best Spanish learning apps for kids: our six picks
We checked on 27 October 2026 that every app still exists and gets updates. Prices are from the US and UK App Store; on Google Play they may differ slightly.
| App | Ages | Price | Menus | What it practises | What it doesn’t do |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studycat | 3–8 | $14.99/month or $59.99/year | Spanish only in activities | Words and phrases, said out loud | No conversation |
| Gus on the Go | 3–6 | $3.99 / £3.99, one-off | English, very little text | About 90 words | Doesn’t ask the child to speak |
| Dinolingo | 3–10 | $19/month or $199/year, family | Spanish, no translations | Listening: videos, songs, stories | Little speaking practice |
| FabuLingua | 4–9 | $11.99/month or $69.99/year | English | Stories; the child records their voice | Nobody answers or corrects the child |
| Spanish School Bus | 5–11 | $4.99/month (£4.99) | English | Topic vocabulary, numbers, verbs | No Android updates since 2023 |
| Duolingo | 10+ | Free with ads | English | Reading, writing, repeating sentences | Doesn’t work for children who can’t read well yet |
1. Studycat: Learn Spanish (ages 3 to 8)
In the activities your child only hears Spanish. Speaking challenges ask them to say words and phrases out loud. It works offline, has no ads and allows four profiles.
- Best for: beginners, and children who hear Spanish at home but rarely speak it.
- What it doesn’t do: short phrases, not conversation; from about 9 it feels too young.
- Price: free to download; the full content costs $14.99 a month or $59.99 a year (from £12.99 a month in the UK). Also on Google Play.
2. Gus on the Go: Spanish (ages 3 to 6)
Gus the owl travels around a map, and each stop teaches a set of words: animals, food, clothes, colours. There are about 90 words, recorded by a native speaker. No ads and no in-app purchases.
- Best for: a first taste of Spanish for a preschooler, or a long car journey.
- What it doesn’t do: 90 words run out in a few weeks, and it is all tapping, no speaking.
- Price: a one-off $3.99 or £3.99. On Google Play it is called “Gus Learns Spanish for Kids”.
3. Dinolingo (ages 3 to 10)
A huge library of videos, songs, stories and games, all in Spanish with no translations. One subscription covers 50 languages and up to six children.
- Best for: families with several children of different ages.
- What it doesn’t do: much of it is videos and songs, which is good for the ear but never asks your child to say anything.
- Price: the family plan is $19 a month or $199 a year on its website, and $19.99 or $199.99 on the App Store. Also on Google Play.
4. FabuLingua (ages 4 to 9)
FabuLingua teaches Spanish through interactive stories: your child listens, plays with the words inside the story and can record themselves reading or repeating sentences. If your child is growing up outside a Spanish-speaking country, read a story together, then ask them to retell it in their own words.
- Best for: children who prefer stories to drill-style games.
- What it doesn’t do: your child records their voice, but nobody answers or corrects them.
- Price: $11.99 a month or $69.99 a year (£11.99 or £69.99 in the UK). Also on Google Play.
5. Spanish School Bus for Kids (ages 5 to 11)
Topic-by-topic vocabulary with quick games and songs, a little Hispanic culture, and a verbs course for older children. If your child is growing up outside a Spanish-speaking country, try one quick game after school, then use one of its words at home that evening.
- Best for: complete beginners.
- What it doesn’t do: it teaches separate words and verbs, not conversation. The Android version hasn’t been updated since December 2023, so we only recommend it on iPhone or iPad.
- Price: $4.99 or £4.99 a month, or a one-off $49.99.
6. Duolingo (ages 10 and up)
You’ll often see Duolingo called the best app to learn Spanish, but those rankings are usually about adults. The Spanish course has short lessons, streaks and exercises for listening, reading, writing and repeating sentences into the microphone.
- Best for: children of 10 and over who read confidently in English.
- What it doesn’t do: almost everything is reading and translating, and what your child says into the microphone never becomes a conversation.
- Price: free with ads. Super Duolingo, without ads, costs $12.99 a month or $83.99 a year, though prices vary by user. Also on Google Play.
Is Duolingo good for kids?
It depends which Duolingo. The regular Duolingo app does teach Spanish, but it relies on reading, so it works from about age 10. Duolingo ABC doesn’t teach Spanish: it teaches children from preschool to the first years of primary school to read and write in English.
Both the App Store and Google Play listings describe Duolingo ABC as a learn-to-read app in English: the alphabet, phonics, sight words and stories. The iPhone and iPad version hasn’t been updated since August 2023. To compare apps with live teaching, read online language classes vs apps.
Spanish-language apps that don’t teach Spanish, but help
Some useful Spanish apps for kids aren’t courses at all: they are apps your child already likes, switched to Spanish. Stories, cartoons and games in Spanish build passive vocabulary, so your child understands more words even before using them. Netflix and Disney+ let you switch your child’s favourite cartoons to Spanish audio. One episode watched together and talked about is worth more than an hour alone.
What no app can do for your child
An app can’t answer your child, correct them kindly, or give them a reason to speak Spanish when their whole world is in English. When a child says “yo sabo”, a grandparent answers “¿ah, tú sabes?” without stopping them, and the child picks up the right form. An app can only say “correct” or “try again”.
In 2007, linguist Annick De Houwer looked at 1,899 families with children aged 6 to 10 where at least one parent spoke a language other than the country’s main one. When both parents spoke only the family language at home, the children spoke it in 97% of families. With “one parent, one language”, in 74%. The study is about bilingual families in general, not about apps.
A language survives when people use it with the child at home. For what to do at each age, read how to teach your kids Spanish at home, age by age, and if your child already understands but answers in English, see Spanish for kids who understand but won’t speak.
How to combine an app with Spanish at home
An app works best as one small part of a routine:
- 10 minutes of app, at the same time every day. After school or before bath time.
- A phrase of the day. Take one phrase from the app and use it that evening: if today’s lesson was “tengo hambre”, ask “¿tienes hambre?” before dinner.
- Read together. Ten minutes of a Spanish picture book at bedtime, with one question per page. Here are some Spanish books for children to start with.
If you don’t speak Spanish, the phrase of the day still works: learn it alongside your child.
When to move on to a class
An app has done its job when your child knows the words but doesn’t use them, or understands everything but answers in English. If they answer in English, the teacher waits for an answer in Spanish and, when they make a mistake, repeats the correct form without stopping them.
At Diluu we run live online Spanish classes for kids aged 4-12, taught by native Spanish teachers. Groups have no more than 6 children, at times that work in every time zone. Your child can try a class for €3 ($4 in the US), with no commitment.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free Spanish app for kids?
None of the six in this guide is completely free and ad-free: most are free to download and charge for the full content. Duolingo is free with ads, but it relies on reading, so it suits children from about 10.
What age can a child start using a language app?
Around 3, with tap-and-listen apps such as Gus on the Go or Studycat, in short sessions and with an adult nearby. For the youngest, an app is an extra: what matters most is talking, singing and reading to them in Spanish.
Is Duolingo good for kids?
It depends which one. The regular course teaches Spanish, but your child needs to read well, so it works from about age 10. Duolingo ABC teaches reading in English, not Spanish. Neither of them replaces talking with someone who answers back.
How long should my child use a Spanish app each day?
We suggest 10 to 15 minutes a day, at the same time each day. That is enough to learn new words without the app eating into time for talking, reading or playing in Spanish with the family. A little every day beats a long session once a week.
Can an app teach my child to speak Spanish?
Not on its own. An app gives your child vocabulary and a good ear, but to speak they need to use Spanish with people who answer back: family, Spanish-speaking friends or a class where they have to take part. The app prepares the words; conversation gets your child using them.
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