CANTONESE HEAD TO HEAD
Choose between LingQ Cantonese and Canto School by the practice you want, the price you actually pay, and what you need alongside it.
Published by Canto School, the maker of one of the apps compared here. Our picks are editorial recommendations. See sources and method.
For an English-speaking beginner who wants a practical daily phone course, our pick is Canto School. Choose LingQ Cantonese when its specific strengths below matter more to you.
Documented features are separated from what we could not verify. A lower price is not evidence that an app supplies the same service as a tutor, a dictionary or a larger content library.
| What matters | Canto School | LingQ Cantonese |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free browser course; optional US$7.99 / month native Full Course | US$14.99 / month |
| Billing | No subscription for the browser course or public audio library. The optional native Full Course is a monthly subscription: three monthly payments total US$23.97; twelve total US$95.88. Those are sums of monthly payments, not annual-plan offers. Stores show local prices and renewal terms. | Premium USD web snapshot: US$119.99 for 12 months or US$215.76 for 24 months, paid upfront. Premium Plus is a separate tier. |
| Try before paying | The full browser course and published Cantonese audio library are free. The native app is a separate offer: free download and starting lesson, plus free Build with available exact recordings. Native Full Course adds all course stages, full Vocabulary, flashcards, Review and Theory. | Limited free account: 20 saved words/phrases and five imported lessons on the checked pricing page. |
| Main practice | A free browser Cantonese course with recorded listening, meaning checks, replies and sentence-building practice. The native app adds its phone lesson path, Build, vocabulary, flashcards and review. | LingQ emphasizes input through reading and listening, word lookup/saving, imported content and spaced vocabulary review. |
| Pronunciation notation | Traditional Chinese, Jyutping with tone numbers and English support. | Jyutping functionality is documented by LingQ support. Check current samples and settings. |
| Offline study | The browser course and web audio need an internet connection. Native app lessons and available recordings are included for offline study. Purchases, restores and subscription checks can need internet; this is not a promise of indefinite offline subscription access. | Cantonese page advertises offline audio and device synchronization. |
| Speaking and feedback | Exercise answer feedback and record-and-compare speaking practice. Supported iPhones can check recognized words; Android does not. Neither is a pronunciation or tone grade. | Vocabulary review and reading/listening tools; not an included live tutor. |
LingQ is built around understanding content. You read and listen, look up unfamiliar words, save vocabulary and revisit it. Its Cantonese catalogue includes beginner stories and more demanding material; the ability to bring in content is valuable once you know what interests you.
Canto School sets up a different daily task: follow a lesson, understand a prompt, choose or build an answer and return to the path. We prefer that as an uncomplicated starting point for a learner who does not yet want to curate a library of input. It also includes personal flashcards, although it is not an unrestricted media-import tool.
There is no need to claim that reading and listening are weak methods in order to recommend Canto School. A learner who already has a foundation may reasonably choose LingQ for longer content and vocabulary tracking. The question is whether you need more guidance or more material right now.
Premium is US$14.99 monthly in the checked USD web view. Its longer plans cost less per month but are prepaid. If you choose Canto School first, add a free level-appropriate video or story for listening variety before paying for a second subscription.
Try a free Canto School browser lesson and an appropriate sample or lesson from LingQ Cantonese. Compare whether you understand the instructions, can follow the sound support and know what to do next. Choose the routine you can repeat. For personal pronunciation correction, seek a suitable Cantonese teacher rather than treating an exercise score as a tone assessment.
Check the full cost guide and study-budget planner, or read our suggested learning approach.
HEAD TO HEAD
A beginner who likes guided listening and speaking during a commute or walk, and can regularly make time for audio recall.
Read the comparison ↗HEAD TO HEAD
A visual learner who enjoys quick vocabulary practice, or a learner adding vocabulary games alongside a broader Cantonese course.
Read the comparison ↗HEAD TO HEAD
A beginner who wants a familiar app lesson path, games, dialogue practice and access to multiple languages; less suitable if automatic speaking lessons or writing lessons are essential.
Read the comparison ↗Our competitor price research uses official product pages, pricing pages, help centres and app-store listings checked on 22 October 2026. Canto School’s free browser-course access was updated on 2 November 2026; the Duolingo course-audience answer carries its own check date. The comparison considers Cantonese availability, fit for English-speaking learners, practice format, pronunciation notation, offline access, feedback and the actual billing commitment. We have not independently tested every resource or measured learning outcomes. External links are source links, not affiliate links.
Prices are snapshots, not checkout quotes. Currency, tax, storefront, promotions and platform can change the amount. A prepaid yearly or two-year plan is labelled as such. We do not treat a monthly equivalent as a cancel-any-month price. A missing verified price is marked rather than guessed.
This page compares advertised access and study formats; we have not bought every plan or independently evaluated every recording. Current price and availability are controlled by the relevant provider.
Our overall recommendation favours a practical daily Cantonese course that combines guided practice and review. Different goals lead to different choices. We publish Canto School, so this is a disclosed product comparison, not an independent award or a scored laboratory review. Report a correction through Support.
