The short answer: it depends on what you need. Duolingo for a free daily habit, Pimsleur for learning by ear, SuomiSpeak for grammar and exams, WordDive for vocabulary, SaunaSpeak for the Finnish people speak to each other.
No app will make you fluent in Finnish, and that includes SaunaSpeak. Apps are good for things you need to repeat regularly. For fluency you need lots of real Finnish and real conversations with people.
Most people who get there use three things: an app for daily practice, a grammar book or website, and real Finnish. SaunaSpeak is meant to be the first one, and to make the third one easier sooner.
| SaunaSpeak | Duolingo | Pimsleur | SuomiSpeak | WordDive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main focus | Understanding and speaking everyday Finnish | A gamified daily habit for beginners | Audio-led speaking and listening | Structured grammar and vocabulary study | Vocabulary first, with grammar and listening courses |
| Spoken Finnish (puhekieli) | The main focus. Common spoken Finnish from the first lesson, with the written form always shown | Kirjakieli, the written standard, throughout | Standard spoken Finnish in a polite register | A puhekieli module alongside the standard forms | Two spoken Finnish courses out of 58. The rest is the written standard |
| Free tier | All lessons, no limits, no ads | Full course, with ads and a daily energy limit (still hearts on the web) | 7-day trial, then paid | 2 lessons a day, 500 words, 10 stories, 10 conversations | 7-day trial, then paid |
| Conversation practice | Roleplay for everyday situations. One is free, three more can be previewed, all of them with Löyly+ | No roleplay or video call on the Finnish course | Scripted dialogues - you speak in the gaps | 65 branching dialogues, plus AI feedback on writing | None listed. You study words and sentences on your own |
| Grammar approach | Patterns in context, plus spoken-form inflection drills (Taivutus) | Short tips inside the exercises | Absorbed from repetition, rarely explained | The most detailed here: 29 topics and all 15 noun cases explained | Separate grammar courses: verbs, the object, KPT change, plural partitive |
| Listening practice | Whole conversations at natural speed (Kuuntelu) and vowel-contrast drills (Kuulo) | Mostly single sentences | The entire course is audio - 30 minutes a lesson | 53 audio passages with dictation | Audio on the study items, plus three listening comprehension courses |
| Pronunciation and speaking | Record and compare with the course audio. Pronunciation checker with a sentence score and your weakest word: 3 free checks a day with an account. Löyly+ adds feedback on each word, with up to 100 checks a day for repeats and improvement | Basic repeat-the-sentence exercises | The best here: Voice Coach scores you every lesson | Hands-free speaking drills with speech recognition | You say the items aloud. No speech scoring is listed |
| Whose voice you hear | Synthesized Finnish and native-speaker recordings. Approved human takes take priority | Largely synthetic voices | Native-speaker recordings throughout | Advertised as native-quality audio | Recorded by native speakers |
| How far it takes you | From zero to confident everyday speech (A0 to B1), with some harder lessons on top | Roughly A1 - Finnish is one of the shorter courses | One beginner level, 30 lessons | Advertises A1 to C1 | Advertises A1 to C1: 58 courses, 5,000 study items |
| Built only for Finnish | Yes | No - 40+ languages | No - 50+ languages | Yes | No - 9 languages |
| Paid plan | €4.99/mo or €39.99/yr, 7-day trial | Super around €8/mo billed yearly, nearer €13 monthly; Max costs about double | $14.95/mo audio-only, $19.95/mo with the interactive extras | $2.99/mo, $24.99/yr or $44.99 once | €10.99/mo or €106.99 for 12 months |
| Best for | Following and joining the conversation around you | Building a free daily habit | Learning hands-free, in the car | Systematic grammar and exam preparation | Building a big vocabulary, up to advanced level |
| Biggest limitation | Advanced grammar theory and vocabulary breadth are still growing | Teaches Finnish that people rarely speak | One beginner level, at the highest price on this page | Spoken Finnish is one module inside a grammar-first course | Mostly written Finnish, and no conversation practice |
Competitor details re-checked in September 2026 (WordDive in October 2026) from their public sites and store listings. Prices, free tiers and features vary by region and change often, so check before you buy. CEFR levels describe advertised course coverage, not what any learner is guaranteed to reach.