A language exchange costs nothing by design. Two people teach each other their own language, so there is no teacher and nothing to invoice.
Which makes the ranking below about something other than price. The real question is whether you end up speaking or typing, because most of these apps open on a chat.
On PalVivo the rule is simple: everything is free, on video call, and there is no paid tier to find.
Start your first exchange, no card, no tiers
Free in principle, paid in practice?
The principle costs nothing; the services around it often do.
An exchange pairs two complementary learners: what you are after, the other person has from birth, and the other way round. The teacher becomes unnecessary, and so does the bill.
So where does the subscription come from? From what gets bolted on: search filters, profile visibility, built-in lessons, badges. Useful sometimes, essential never.
Ten language exchange apps, and what each one really costs
Ten apps, each with its own idea of an exchange. For each one: what is free, what is not, and whether you actually speak. Prices checked on the US App Store in September 2026.
| App | How you practise | Free | Paid option |
|---|---|---|---|
| PalVivo | Scheduled video calls | Everything | None |
| Tandem | Chat, audio and video calls | Messages, corrections, calls; 3 translations and 10 new conversations a day | Tandem Pro, 14.99 to 69.99 USD depending on length |
| HelloTalk | Chat, voice and video calls, voice rooms | Chat, corrections, calls; 10 translations a day | VIP, 12.99 USD a month or 79.99 USD a year |
| ConversationExchange | A directory, then the call tool of your choice | Search and contact | NOADS membership, price shown once logged in |
| MyLanguageExchange | Messages, then voice or video chat | Profile, saying Hi, replying | Gold, from 5.99 USD a month, to write first |
| Hilokal | Audio rooms and an AI tutor | Rooms, 10 new conversations a day | Premium Plus, from 11.49 USD |
| Speaky | Text and voice | Everything, according to its site | In-app purchases listed on Google Play |
| Lingbe | Random voice calls | 15 minutes, then time earned by helping | Lingbe Pro and lingo packs, from 0.99 USD |
| InterPals | Pen pal messages | Profile, search, messages | In-app purchases listed on Google Play |
| HiNative | Written and spoken Q&A | The app | Premium, monthly or yearly |
1. PalVivo: video calls, no paid tier
PalVivo has no premium version: no subscription, no ads, no unlocked features. What you see is the whole app.
The one limit is structural: two meetings a week at most, so everyone can find a partner who is actually available. It covers English, Spanish and French, and there is no messaging inbox at all, which is the point.
Try an exchange with no hidden tier, for free
2. Tandem: the big community, with a Pro tier
Messages, corrections and audio and video calls are free on Tandem, with daily limits: three translations and ten new conversations. Tandem Pro gives unlimited translations, 30 new conversations a day, location filters, no ads and a profile boost, from 14.99 US dollars on the US App Store depending on length. Tandem says it has more than 35 million members.
3. HelloTalk: free for the core, VIP for the rest
Chat, corrections, posts, voice messages and calls are free. HelloTalk’s FAQ says its voice and video calls have no time limit. The free plan allows 10 translations a day; VIP removes that cap and adds more than one language, for 12.99 US dollars a month or 79.99 a year. In our experience, its correction tool is the strongest of the ten for writing.
4. ConversationExchange: the veteran, free for the core
ConversationExchange works like a directory: search a partner by language and by country, contact them directly, meet wherever you like. Searching and connecting cost nothing; a paid membership removes the banner ads and the messaging cap.
The interface is twenty years old and it shows. The service itself is reliable, and students with a .edu address get the unlimited membership free.
5. MyLanguageExchange: pen pals and conversation plans
MyLanguageExchange marries written correspondence with conversation, and ships ready-made discussion plans. Free members can say Hi and reply, but writing to someone first requires the Gold membership, from 5.99 US dollars a month. It is the one app on this list where writing first is paid.
6. Hilokal: audio rooms to speak in a group
Hilokal gathers audio rooms where people practise in a group, and now adds an AI tutor. The rooms are free, with 10 new conversations a day; the Premium Plus subscription, from 11.49 US dollars, gives full access to its AI features. The feel is close to a Spanish conversation group, open all day.
7. Speaky: text and voice, free by its own account
Speaky matches you with people who speak the language you are learning, and you talk “through text, or voice”, in its own words. Its site states that it is completely free, with no subscription. Its Google Play listing does mention ads and in-app purchases.
Speaky runs on iOS, Android and the web, and its terms reserve it for users aged 18 and over.
8. Lingbe: a random call, right now
Lingbe skips the search. You press the call button and the app connects you with a native speaker who is available at that moment. Call time is paid in “lingos”, which you earn by helping people learn your own language, and new users start with 15 free minutes. A Lingbe Pro subscription and packs of lingos are sold in the app, from 0.99 USD on the US App Store.
Its store pages describe voice calls on iOS and Android. The iOS app was last updated in March 2024.
9. InterPals: pen pals since 1998
InterPals is a pen pal community first: profiles, messages, photos and groups, with no swiping. Creating a profile, searching and messaging are free, as its FAQ states. Its store pages describe writing, not calls, so you move to speaking on your own once you know someone.
It runs on iOS, Android and the web. Under-13s are not allowed, and adults cannot message younger teens.
10. HiNative: questions rather than conversation
HiNative works differently from the other nine: you post a question, “does this sound natural?”, and native speakers answer in writing or with a voice recording. It is run by the creators of Lang-8. The app is free to download. HiNative Premium, sold monthly or yearly, lets you play every voice answer, save bookmarks and pin your questions to the top.
Useful between two exchanges, not in place of one.
The question that separates them
Feature lists all look alike. One question sorts them: after you match with someone, does the app schedule a spoken conversation, or drop you into a chat?
It matters because writing is the easy half of the deal. In a chat, both people stay where it is comfortable, the call keeps getting postponed, and three weeks later the thread is dead.
If that is already what happened to you, the reason is not the app and not your level: we go into why you can't speak Spanish separately.
Getting your first exchange right
A good start rests on three things: your level, a fixed slot and topics ready to go.
Work out your level first, to avoid a badly matched partner: PalVivo's free level test does it in two minutes.
Then block a slot that comes back every week: regularity matters more than the length of each session. Finally, prepare two or three topics, because awkward silence kills a first exchange faster than any mistake.
Pick one, book one call
A free exchange asks for one thing in return: turning up, week after week, to practise Spanish out loud. That is your half of the contract.
