Hi, Luke!

I used Duolingo when I started learning Swedish a couple of years ago. Similar to apps like Memrise and Busuu, Duolingo is great for building vocabulary and learning some basic grammar rules, but what it doesn't do is help with actually using the language in a natural context and practising your conversational skills.

Italki will help you take your language learning to the next level by taking what you've learnt in terms of vocab and grammar and applying that to real life conversation. The fastest way to improve in a language is by talking with native speakers as this is ultimately what learning a language is about - communicating with others.

One option is to look for a Language Exchange Partner: someone who speaks your target language whom also wants to learn your native language. You can then connect on Skype (or equivalent) and chat with each other, alternating between your native language and theirs. This is mutually beneficial as you are both the teacher and the learner.

If you want to learn your chosen language more efficiently without spending half of your time talking in your native tongue, you can purchase lessons with a Professional Teacher or Community Tutor. Professional Teachers have formal teaching qualifications and tend to charge more for their lessons, whereas Community Tutors are native and/or fluent speakers who often have a less structured, conversational approach. Most offer a 30 minute trial lesson, so you can try out several teachers and find one with your preferred teaching style.

There are also other features on Italki such as Articles, Notebook, Answers, and Discussions, all of which allow you to ask and answer questions about languages, practise reading and writing in your target language, and connect with the Italki community.

I hope this has been of some help to you and you enjoy your time on Italki. I wish you all the best with your language learning!

I didn't like Duolingo because First: I hate flash cards and Second: I felt like a kid using it.

Watching from short videos to series and movies (depending on your level...) work for me much faster and natural than spending 10 minutes on something useless like that app.

How I use italki: I study languages by myself (for each language I develop my own method) and I use italki to improve my writing skills, to clear my doubts about grammar or specific details and to meet people which we can help each other.

=)

I tried to use Duolingo to improve my english and I don't think it worked as good as I wanted :{
I felt limited, it's always the same vocabulary