Global Language Learning Market Statistics in 2024

Language difficulty - how difficult it is to learn and speak a language - is integral to the language learning market statistics as a whole. Foreign language and translation skills have permeated every industry as the world became more global and businesses expanded their international operations.

While English might be spoken widely around the world, it's not ubiquitous. And with the increasing prevalence of non-English entertainment and new emerging markets, the need for language learning solutions has never been higher. Fortunately, the market is responding to that need.

In this guide, we highlight the language learning market value and the leading market players.

We also showcase the key indicators of the market by target audiences and region, the technological developments within the industry, and take a look at the potential future language learning market trends. Let's dive in.

Key Language Learning Market Statistics

• The language learning market was valued at $52.7 billion in 2022 and is forecast to grow to reach$337.2 billion by 2032, with a CAGR of 20.8%.
• As of September 2023, the leading language learning app by revenue is Duolingo, having made almost $26 million in IAP that month.
• In Q3 of 2023, Duolingo was downloaded47.6 million times, with 16.5 million downloads taking place in August.
• Asian languages like Japanese and Korean are more popular with Gen Z, which is the biggest group of language learners in many countries.
• European languages like Italian and Spanish are more popular among learners aged 40 and above.
• Duolingo was downloaded almost 50 million timesin the APAC region in 2023, with the majority of downloads (21.01 million) taking place in Q3.

Most Popular Languages to LearnSource: Newsdle

English is the most spoken language worldwide, withalmost 1.5 billion people speaking it either natively or fluently in 2023. So, it's no surprise that it's also the most studied language in the world. Fluency in English can give people a leg up when seeking employment and make international communications easier.

Indeed, in Continental Europe, English is the most commonly studied language, with an estimated96% of students learning English. It's also the most common language on the popular language learning app Duolingo, topping the ratings in 122 countries.

Other popular languages to learn are French, Spanish, and Mandarin. For native English speakers in the UK, knowing these languages can mean high-paying jobs. In the US, Spanish is the most common language to learn, as it's taught to 93% of students at school.

Language Learning Market ValueSource: Global Market Insights

In 2022, the language learning market was valued at $52.7 billion, according to Global Market Insights. It's forecast to grow to reach$337.2 billion by 2032, with a CAGR of 20.8%.

English, Spanish, and Mandarin languages are forecast to be the biggest segments throughout the period, with the Spanish segment growing at a CAGR of 22%.

The largest growth is expected to be in the 18-20 years segment of the market, as more young people get interested in other cultures and foreign languages are increasingly in demand by employers.

EFL Market Statistics

Since English is the most popular language to learn worldwide, it's no surprise that the English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) market is substantial on its own.

In 2022, EFL's revenue was $5.6 billion after a significant dip during COVID-19. The pandemic had a significant adverse impact on the market due to the social distancing and travel restrictions, leading the revenue of the EFL market to decrease from $8.86 billion in 2019 to just $3.3 billion in 2020, and then further to $2.75 billion in 2021.

Leading Language-Learning ProvidersSource: Statista

Thanks to technological advancements and increased interest in the subject, language-learning apps are getting more and more popular and becoming large players in the market.

As of September 2023, the leading language learning app by revenue is Duolingo, having made almost $26 million in IAP that month. It was also the most downloaded language learning app worldwide in September 2023 - it was downloaded a whopping 16.3 million times.

We now take a closer look at Duolingo and other popular language learning apps, like Babbel and Mondly.

Duolingo

Given its popularity, it's no surprise Duolingo is the highest-earning language learning app worldwide. In 2022, it made $369.5 million - almost $120 million more than the year before. 74% Duolingo's revenue comes from subscriptions, and 12% is generated by advertising.

As our infographic shows, Duolingo is also the most downloaded language-learning app, by far. In Q3 of 2023, it was downloaded47.6 million times, with August being the peak month (16.5 million downloads). The same quarter also accounted for 24.2 milliondaily active Duolingo users (DAUs).

According to Duolingo's 2023 report, English, Spanish, and French were the most popular languages in 2023, taking first place in 122, 34, and 22 countries, respectively. These figures were fairly similar in 2022.

BabbelSource: Statista

The German language learning service Babbel might not be as popular as Duolingo, but its average revenue per user (ARPU) is nearly twice as high, $17, compared to Duolingo's $6.76, as of 2022.Its total revenue that year was 247 million ($270 million), which is almost $100 million less than Duolingo's.

In terms of DAUs and downloads, Babbel's January 2022 daily active users amounted to 750,000 across both iOS and Android. The app was downloaded 966,980 times in September 2023.

Of course, compared to Duolingo's 24.6 million DAUs and 16 million downloads (September 2023),these amounts are quite small. Let's look at some other language-learning providers.

MondlySource: Statista

The popularity of the Romanian language learning provider Mondly is almost on par with Babbel's. In January 2023, Mondly had 1.28 milliondownloads, which was its best month to date.

But in September 2023, it was downloaded 767,740 times, compared to Babbel's 966,327 and Duolingo's 16.3 million downloads.

In terms of revenue, Mondly lags behind Duolingo and Babbel. In September 2023, its IAP revenue amounted to $713,325, compared to Babbel's $4.4 million.

Rosetta StoneSource: Statista

The Rosetta Stone brand is one of the most well-known language-learning brands around the world. However, its downloads statistics leave a lot to be desired, compared to Duolingo and even Babbel.

Rosetta Stone's best month in terms of downloads was December 2022, when it was downloaded 334,169 times.Since then, however, the downloads have gone down, and the resource was only downloaded 224,324 timesin September 2023.

Language Learning Market by GenerationSource: Duolingo

In this section, we take a look at the language-learning market statistics and trends across different generations.

Learning a language is beneficial to people of all ages, and today, all generations have accessible ways of doing so. A report by Duolingo suggests that different generations have different learning habits and are interested in learning different languages.

For example, we know thatGen Z is the biggest group of language learners in many countries,and that they're most interested in Asian languages like Japanese and Korean.These learning patterns may stem from their interest in pop culture phenomena from these regions, including Otaku culture, K-pop, manga, and anime.

On the other hand, European languages like Italian and Spanish are much more popular among learners aged 40 and above. For them, traveling is a big motivator. And Duolingo streaks" over 365 days are particularly prevalent among older learners, particularly those aged and above - 30% of themhave such streaks,compared to only 7% of teenagers.

Language Learning Market Statistics by Region

Now, let's take a look at some of the regional statistics and trends in the language learning market.

USA
Source: Statista

When it comes to foreign language education services brand awareness, Rosetta Stone takes the lead in the US with 63% of the population knowingabout it. Babbel is second with 48%, and Duolingo is third with 42%.

However, the American usage statistics of language learning services tell a different story. Duolingo takes the lead,with 23% of US language-learning consumers using it. The well-known Rosetta Stone service shares the second spot with Babbel, with only 8% of consumers using each.

Europe

As you can see from our infographics, Duolingo is a firm leader in many European countries as of 2021 for the 20 to 30-year-olds cohort. And the EMEA region saw 13.61 million downloads in Q3 of 2023, a significant 3.3 million more than the previous quarter.Its IAP revenue in the region that quarter was 24.53 million - 2.3 million more than in Q2.

Unlike the US, where Duolingo is the third-most-known education service, it takes the lead in Europe. For example, 49% of Internet users in the UK knowabout Duolingo. By comparison, only 41% and 40%, respectively, know about Rosetta Stone and Babbel, the two the most well-known providers in the US.

APAC

The Asia-Pacific region language learning market statistics tell us that Duolingo shines here, too. In 2023, it was the most popular language-learning app in Vietnam, The Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia. Other popular tools are ELSA, Cake, and EWA.

In terms of the total amount of downloads, Duolingo was downloaded almost 50 million timesin the APAC region in 2023, with the majority of downloads (21.01 million) taking place in Q3. Its APAC IAP revenue that year amounted to $23.95 million.

Travelling for Learning Languages StatisticsSource: Statista

In addition to app- and web-based learning, many providers offer classroom-based learning in a country where the learner is surrounded by native speakers. English-speaking countries offer many opportunities like that, with the UK, the US, and Australia making the most revenue from such services.

Key Future Language Learning Trends

Our world is more connected than ever, we're fostering connections at a speed that was hard to imagine even a couple of decades ago. Communication is pivotal in this world, which is why the market for language learning solutions is growing at an exponential rate, and more and more people are learning foreign languages.

And like any market, the language learning market is impacted by current trends. Let's take a closer look at some of them.

Tech Advancements

Integrating technology into education has been a mainstay for many years, but it's been significantly accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. We saw in this guide how popular the language learning apps are across the world, not least because of their democratization of foreign language learning.

Some of them, such as Duolingo, are leveraging AI to offering a learning process that adjusts to the learner's style and mistakes.

These tech and AI advancements can support individual learners by tailoring lessons to address specific needs and allowing them a choice of language learning solutions that work for them. We expect even more immersive and interactive language learning experiences to come in the future as technology advances further.

Gamification

Apps like Duolingo were at the forefront of gamification as a learning tool, and it's advanced rapidly in recent years. Gamification elements like rewards and badges are used by language learning tools to motivate learners, adding an element of fun to language learning and supporting continuous engagement and progress.

Such features encourage users of all ages to practice regularly and persist in their learning journey. For that reason, the gamification trend is likely to grow - both in and out of the classroom- as educators explore new ways to make language learning a more accessible, dynamic, and interactive.

Globalization

We already mentioned how globalization and removing travel restrictions post-pandemic are helping the language learning market advance. The emphasis on branching out into international markets and consumers' renowned interest in travel are fueling this growth.

Moreover, we expect that Generation Z, being the most diverse generation to date, and their interest in foreign language media will significantly influence the market, too, as the generation's purchasing power increases in the next few years.

Language Learning Statistics Takeaways for 2024

We looked at the language learning market statistics and trends, so you now have a good grasp of where the market is going. We dived into the key players of the language learning market and the regional and generational trends and explored the possible future trends of the market.

Overall, we would say that the global language market is still poised to grow, with key trends such as globalization playing a pivotal role in its advancement. We look forward to seeing how technology, and AI in particular, will change the language learning market in the near future.

SourcesClick to expand sources

1. Language Learning Market Size, by Language, by Learning Mode, by Learning Type, by End User, Forecast 2022-2032 (Global Market Insights)
2. Language Learning Market by Age Group, Language, End User, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2030 (Meticulous Research)
3. The most spoken languages worldwide in 2023 (Statista)
4. Revenue of the global English language learning market from 2013 to 2022 (Statista)
5. Distribution of English language learning revenue in 2022, by country (Statista)
6. Number of downloads of selected language learning apps in the Asia-Pacific region in 2023YTD, by market
7. Number of downloads of leading mobile language learning apps worldwide from September 2022 to September 2023 (Statista)
8. Leading language learning apps worldwide in September 2023, by revenue (Statista)
9. Number of daily active Duolingo users worldwide from 3rd quarter 2020 to 3rd quarter 2023 (Statista)
10. Language learning apps - Statistics & Facts (Statista)
11. Annual revenue generated by Duolingo Inc. from 2019 to 2022 (Statista)
12. Market share of leading multilingual language learning apps among users aged between 20 to 34 years in selected European markets in 2021 (Statista)
13. Average revenue per user (ARPU) of language learning apps worldwide as of 2022 (Statista)
14. Distribution of revenue generated by Duolingo in 2022, by segment (Statista)
15. Number of Duolingo app downloads worldwide from 1st quarter 2017 to 3rd quarter 2023, by region (Statista)
16. Leading online education services ranked by brand awareness in the United States in 2022 (Statista)
17. Leading online education services ranked by brand awareness in the United Kingdom in 2022 (Statista)
18. Share of consumers in the United States who ever used selected language learning online programs and mobile apps as of May 2023 (Statista)
19. Leading language learning apps worldwide in September 2023, by downloads (Statista)
20. Most popular foreign language learning mobile applications in Vietnam as of June 2021 (Statista)
21. Duolingo in-app purchase revenue worldwide from 1st quarter 2017 to 3rd quarter 2023, by region (Statista)
22. Annual revenue generated by Babbel from 2013 to 2022 (Statista)
23. Number of Babbel daily active users (DAU) via iOS worldwide from January 2019 to January 2022 (Statista)
24. Number of Babbel daily active users (DAU) via Google Play Store worldwide from January 2019 to January 2022 (Statista)
25. Highest Paying Foreign Language Jobs (Newsdle)
26. What Are the Most Studied Languages in the World? (Newsdle)
27. Duolingo language report reveals changes in top 10 languages studied around the world (Duolingo)
28. 2023 Duolingo Language Report (Duolingo)
29. 2022 Duolingo Language Report (Duolingo)
30. Special report: Which generation is most serious about their streak? (Duolingo)
31. Dear Duolingo: How does language learning differ between generations? (Duolingo)
32. On the Cusp of Adulthood and Facing an Uncertain Future: What We Know About Gen Z So Far (Pew Research Center)

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