Hello English Review: A Good Idea But So Buggy It’s Almost Unusable
Most websites that teach English do it in English. The program Hello English tries to change the language from 22 other languages, making it much more accessible.
Hello English has some quick-paced games and lessons, as well as video lessons. Unfortunately, it’s also extremely buggy and many of its features don’t actually work. Both the website and app also frequently become unavailable with no warning.
The premise behind the program is promising, but there’s still much work that needs to be done before I can recommend it.
Contents
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What Is Hello English?
Hello English by CultureAlley is a free language-learning application. It’s essentially a tutor, online course and video game mixed into one application. It’s described on the website as “India’s #1 English learning platform.”
With Hello English, you can learn English with instructions in your native language—there are 22 different native languages to choose from, such as Spanish, Hindi, Tamil or Portuguese. It’s worth noting that many of the languages you can choose from are East Asian, since the company is based there.
There are nearly 500 lessons to go through for free, as well as videos and games. Hello English is available in the Google Play store, the iTunes store and on the website. It’s free to download with ads and also offers in-app purchases.
The Hello English Website: Pros and Cons
Con: Many of the features simply don’t work
I would normally start with the pros of something but my first impressions of the website were just not very favorable. The website feels incomplete and a lot of the features are broken. Maybe this has something to do with the website being down for a brief period in July 2024, and it’s possible that the issues will be fixed in the future.
Every time I visit the website, it takes a long time to load. Once the page finally loads, there are three tabs and some additional sections… in theory. In reality,
The “Live” tab is where you can find upcoming virtual classes with a teacher. However, it’s completely blank for me. There are additional features and options in the sidebar. Of these, only “My Report Card” loads, letting you customize your avatar and email. Presumably, it also houses lesson details but there’s nothing there for me (yet). Nearly all the other options don’t work at all. Clicking them does nothing.
Con: Splotchy website translation
Hello English teaches the language from a number of other languages, many of which are East Asian. Since I know Spanish, picked the one that teaches English from Spanish. Although the lessons and games are in Spanish, all the information on the pages, including the lesson names and non-functional sidebar, are in English.
Sometimes, other languages show up, so it was impossible to read some of the content. The “Messages” section, for instance, was really garbled, making it completely useless for me.
Pro: Well-organized lessons
The actual learning program on Hello English is divided into Homework, Basic English and Live. As I mentioned earlier, the “Live” section was empty on the website. However, I could access and use the other two just fine.
The actual lessons are housed in the “Basic English” section. Most classes consist of the actual lesson and a few games or activities related to the topic.
Lessons are generally multiple choice, and are organized in a logical way, starting with basic greetings and common useful phrases (like “where are you from?”). From there, the lessons teach grammar and vocabulary of increasing difficulty.
You can complete any lesson at any time, giving you a lot of freedom for how to use the program.
Pro: Coins encourage daily learning (when they work)
Every time you complete a lesson or game in the “Basic English” section, you earn coins. I like the idea of coins even if I have no idea what they’re actually for. The “Homework” tab assigns you additional tasks to complete, from playing learning games to reading lessons. If you complete your homework within a certain time limit, you get bonus coins.
The coins didn’t load immediately after I finished some games and lessons, but my total did update when I came back the next day. It would be great if the coins could actually be used for something, even if it’s something small like purchasing customization options. Maybe Hello English has something planned for this in the future.
Pro: Timed games encourage quick thinking
Besides lessons, Hello English has a variety of games. The games are simple, usually relying on some form of multiple choice but in a more colorful and engaging way. For instance, in the “tea” game, you have to choose the word on the right “biscuit” in a cup of tea.
Almost all these games are timed—and very closely timed, too. I’m a fluent English speaker and I sometimes had trouble typing and selecting the right answers on time. I like that it asks a lot of questions that people tend to have trouble with, like correct article usage.
The Hello English App: Pros and Cons
Pro: Better designed and more features than the website
I was glad to see that the app version of the program works better than the website. All the “Basic English” features are present here, as well as additional features, many (but not all) of which actually work. The messages seem to work in the app, with both the word of the day and the daily tip showing up correctly. The messages section also has a option to ask a teacher a question.
Besides these highlights, the app also allows you to watch video lessons, practice speaking, interact with other learners and a few more features. Another feature available on the app but not on the website was the Hello English Score, which is a test you can take for a fee that rates your skill and ability to communicate in English on a scale from 0 to 100.
Pro: Video courses available for purchase
You can purchase access to video courses on the Hello English app, an option that I didn’t even see on the website. Courses are made up of individual lessons, and each complete course lasts between three and nine hours and costs about $11 to $13. You can subscribe to get access to a lot of the video courses or buy them one by one.
Videos have the quality and style of a YouTube lesson. They’re compiled into comprehensive courses that teach everything from culture to improving your listening comprehension.
Pro: Can watch recordings of live classes for free
Unlike on the website, the live classes do show up for me on the app. Subscribed learners can join daily live classes hosted by different teachers. However, you can also view recordings of previous live classes for free, without a subscription. This is a useful feature if you’re not sure you want to commit the time or money to a scheduled class. It also lets you preview what to expect if you do sign up for a virtual class.
The recordings show the classes to be useful and the teachers helpful and excellent at staying on task. It’s worth noting that most of the teachers have a heavy East Asian accent, so if you’re looking for a native English speaker with an American, British, Australian or any other kind of accent, you won’t find it here.
Pro: Has some simple scripted speaking practice
The app has a section for speaking practice, an often-overlooked aspect of language learning. The “conversations” section lets you speak into your phone to improve your English speaking skills. This feature is fairly limited, as all the conversations are heavily scripted. The dialogue featured is stilted and a little unnatural. However, it’s still a solid way to try speaking out loud without the stress of talking to a real person.
Con: Has intrusive and lengthy ads
If you use the app without a subscription, it’s ad-based. Ads tend to show up in between lesson recordings and any time you switch sections.
While some of the ads are brief, some are full-length. I found these to be intrusive, especially when I was just clicking around to see what the program has to offer. However, it’s understandable that the program needs to make money. Take this as a warning if you don’t love ad-based programs, especially ones that are subscription-based.
Con: Some features are still broken or buggy
While the app functions a lot better than the website, many features are still broken or lacking. Here are a few examples I discovered from just a short while of trying the app:
- The “teachers” tab says I need to update the app, even though I just downloaded it and it’s up to date (I double-checked).
- The “tutors” tab is blank for me, stating “no tutor available.”
- The “practice” tab has news but they don’t work
- Challenges can only be completed with an in-app friend and since auto-match didn’t work.
- There are articles for reading practice but I only found six short options.
Alternatives to Hello English
For Recorded Video Lessons: English Addict with Mr Duncan
Mr. Duncan has been posting English learning videos on YouTube since 2006. All his content is available completely for free!
The YouTube channel has an excellent mix of short and long lessons, expert learning tips and authentic vlog content. Mr. Duncan is a professional but friendly teacher, and every video feels like a one-on-one lesson with an experienced teacher.
For Real-world English: FluentU
It uses a natural approach that helps you ease into the English language and culture over time. You’ll learn English as it’s spoken in real life.
FluentU has a variety of engaging content from popular talk shows, nature documentaries and funny commercials, as you can see here:
FluentU makes it really easy to watch English videos. There are captions that are interactive. That means you can tap on any word to see an image, definition and useful examples.
For example, when you tap on the word "searching," you'll see this:
Learn all the vocabulary in any video with quizzes. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you’re learning.
The best part is that FluentU keeps track of the vocabulary that you’re learning and gives you extra practice with difficult words. It even reminds you when it’s time to review! Every learner has a truly personalized experience, even if they’re learning with the same video.
Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
For Speaking Practice: ELSA English
ELSA, which stands for English Language Speech Assistant, is an AI-powered English learning program. ELSA lets learners have realistic conversations with a chatbot, for stress-free speaking practice.
The program’s AI works with you at your current level, building a curriculum that’s customized to you. The speech recognition engine was trained on the voices of English speakers from around the world, making it uniquely skilled at understanding foreign speakers.
For Learning from Another Language: 50languages
This free resource lets you pair any two languages from a set of 50. This means that you can study English from Italian, Swedish, Punjabi, Thai, Africaans or any other language available on the program.
50langauges is more like a phrasebook than a traditional learning program, so it teaches common phrases. It’s an excellent resource if you’re trying to learn English from a different language and want to start with expressions and vocabulary that are useful in everyday situations.
Final Thoughts
Hello English has potential, but a large part of the program is downright broken. The video lessons and conversation practice are useful tools for learners and I think there’s a lot of value in the English lessons available on both the website and app. However, at its current state, I don’t think it’s worth purchasing a subscription.
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