“paying 10 euro for VIP and still getting bombarded non stop with ads and "upgrade to VIP plus ultra pro max v2" pop ups make this app unbearable it's just a chat app with AI translations and a money sink. Used it for 2 years, any…”
Independent automated assessment · 6 signal sources · 694 reviews scanned · analyzed 2026-10-04.
HelloTalk - Learn Languages
HelloTalk Learn Languages AppLearn languages by chatting with native speakers on HelloTalk, the world’s le…
3.4 ★238,516 ratings
10M+Downloads
12+Age rating
—App size
Free · In-app purchasesIn-app purchases
About this app
Learn languages by chatting with native speakers on HelloTalk, the world’s leading language exchange app. Practice English, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, French, Chinese and 260+ languages through real conversations with people around the world!
HelloTalk helps you learn languages naturally by connecting you with native speakers for language exchange, voice chats, livestreams, and social posts. Whether you’re improving speaking skills, preparing for exams, or exploring new cultures, HelloTalk makes language learning practical, engaging, and fun.
With millions of users worldwide, HelloTalk is one of the best language learning apps to practice languages with real people.
⭐ WHY HELLOTALK?
🌍 PRACTICE LANGUAGES WITH NATIVE SPEAKERS HelloTalk connects you with native speakers around the world for authentic language exchange.…
Preview
Real screenshots from the store listing.
Independent evidence report
The evidence behind this assessment
This is where the page changes from an app-store listing into an evidence report: findings, important reviews, pricing and a dated history.
Which version this describes
When we ran this analysis, and what the store lists now.
This analysis describes version 6.4.10 of the app (the version number recorded inside the package we inspected), analyzed 2026-10-04 . The app may have changed since.
The store currently lists version 6.4.20, updated 2026-09-23.
What we measured
Each line is a measurement published as a measurement, never a verdict.
Each line is a measurement, published as a measurement. Where we have not looked, the line says so rather than reading as a zero.
Developer replies to reviews
Replies to at least 1 review in 20
Price in the store description
States no price and billing period
Cancelling, in the store description
Does not say how to cancel
Themes reported by reviewers
2 themes reported
Counted from the reviews we have read for this app. "No theme reported" means no theme reached our reporting threshold — it is not a finding that nothing is wrong with this app, and we do not say it is.
Five-star share of ratings
Under 65% five-star
Arithmetic on the stores' own published rating counts. It says nothing about why the ratings fall where they do.
In the package we scanned
From the package we downloaded and read — version 6.4.10, scanned 2026-09-27.
Permissions Android classifies as dangerous
6 or more requested
Counted against the eighteen permissions listed in collect-package.ts. A dangerous permission is one Android asks the user to grant; requesting one is not itself a finding.
Analytics or tracking SDKs in the scanned package
3 or more found
Advertising SDKs in the scanned package
10 or more found
Counted as distinct SDKs in the package we scanned. One mediation bundle can contribute several, so this is not a count of advertisers.
Graded bands · predicate set 1.4 · how these are measured
What the analysis found
App-specific findings, grouped by what each one rests on. How they are graded lives on its own page.
The catch list 2
Charges we publish at a strength we stand behind: measured from an artefact, agreed by independent sources, or reported by enough users to clear that charge's own published bar.
Multiple ad networks bundled
The package embeds several distinct advertising or mediation SDKs — a stack built for ad volume, not for a single house ad.
What we saw: Bundles 16 distinct ad networks / mediation SDKs: Amazon Publisher Services, AppLovin MAX, BidMachine, Chartboost and 12 more
Aggressive ad load
Advertising volume or placement that interrupts normal use: ads between every action, unskippable or forced full-screen ads.
What we saw: Progress is gated behind watching an ad: "Watch an ad to unlock"
Context 1
Measured and published because a reader would want to know — deliberately not a charge. The measurement alone does not show a harm.
Asks for more sensitive permissions than similar apps
The package requests substantially more of the device's sensitive permissions than the typical app in its category. This is a measurement, not an accusation: a permission is granted because a feature needs it, and a wide request list is a reason to look rather than a finding on its own.
What we saw: Requests 7 sensitive permissions (ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION, ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION, CAMERA, READ_CALENDAR, READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE, RECORD_AUDIO, SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW); the median for 56 scanned apps in Education is 2
Positive evidence 2
Things this app does right, published at the same strengths as the catch list.
States a price, or offers a one-time purchase
The app's own text offers a one-time or lifetime purchase, or reviewers report that the price is stated clearly.
What we saw: Offers a one-time or lifetime purchase: "One Time Purchase"
Developer says data deletion can be requested
The developer's data-safety disclosure on the store states that users can request deletion of their data, or the app's own text offers a way to delete the account. This restates what the developer declares; it is not a test of whether deletion works. Apple publishes no equivalent disclosure, so on an Apple-only listing only the app's own text can support it.
What we saw: The developer's store data-safety disclosure states that data deletion can be requested; we have not seen a deletion control in the app's own text
One source only — shown, not confirmed 4
A single kind of evidence. We publish these because withholding them would be the bigger distortion, and we do not treat any of them as a finding we stand behind.
In the app's own text: Pay to progress
Advancement or competition is gated behind spending money rather than playing.
What we saw: Progress itself is for sale: "Need more coins to extend the time"
In the app's own text: A plan is pre-picked as 'recommended'
The purchase screen arrives with one plan already framed as the recommended or most popular choice, so the default is the app's preference rather than the user's. We do not compare the plans' prices, and only the app's own text evidences this, so it is shown, but never counted as a charge.
What we saw: Purchase screen steers the choice: "BEST VALUE"
In the app's own text: Countdown-timer purchase pressure
The app's own purchase copy attaches a deadline to buying — a countdown, 'offer ends in', 'limited time' — or ships a countdown view on a purchase-screen layout.
What we saw: Deadline pressure in the app's own copy: "Offer ends in"
Reported by users: Paywall blocks the basics
The core of the app — not extras — sits behind payment, or previously-free function moved behind a paywall.
What we saw: Paywall blocks the basics: raised by 10 distinct reviewers (1.4% of 694 reviews scanned)
Highlighted reviews
Representative public review excerpts shown as user reports, not Appworthy audit evidence.
“suck so many ads and too expensive”
“This application is really good for speaking practice of any language but slow and full of ads”
Assessment & version history
App changes and Appworthy events in one timeline.
Store listing updated to version 6.4.20.
What this app sells
Useful store-disclosed pricing, kept below the app listing.
Items shown0
Lowest—
Highest—
Google Play does not publish per-purchase prices.