What are the safest language learning platforms online?

Today, the most popular language learning platforms act similarly to social networks: you can message other members, send audio messages, join live events, and even take one-to-one lessons with tutors anywhere in the world. That shift has unlocked huge opportunities for more authentic language practice, but it’s also raised an important question for learners and parents alike:

How safe are language learning platforms, really?

When you’re speaking with strangers online, safety is about far more than blocking the occasional spam account. Safety needs to encompass questions like who can find you, what they can see, how they’re vetted, how quickly bad behavior is dealt with, and what happens to your data in the background. And because each platform takes a different approach to identity checks, moderation, and privacy, the experience can feel very different from app to app. Here, we aim to answer the question: what are the safest language learning platforms online, and which one is right for you?

What makes a language learning platform safe?

What constitutes a “safe” language learning platform isn’t just about blocking the occasional spam message. Safety is an umbrella term that extends from personal comfort to data privacy and everything in between.

As language learning apps have transformed into social networks with in-app texting, audio messages, and calls, platforms need to build serious safety stacks. Members ought to feel comfortable interacting on the platform, but also secure and in control of the situation.

Therefore, for most learners, “Is this app safe?” breaks down into a few different assessment categories.

• Identity and age safeguards: Are minors protected if/when they use the apps? Is it easy to create fake profiles or hide behind a false identity?

• Mandatory screenings: Are members required to go through any screening process, or are they automatically approved to use the platform?

• Community rules and enforcement: Are there clear guidelines against harassment, hate, spam, dating or flirting, and scams? Is there an active safety team that warns individuals or enforces bans?

• In-app control tools: Is there any easy way for a member to block or report someone if they feel unsafe or uncomfortable? Can members limit who can contact them, or turn off their profiles to limit new conversations? Can members control who sees their profile?

• Design choices for minors: Are there age limits or teen-only spaces available? Or, is there a boundary in general that restricts member access until they’ve reached a certain age?

• Data and privacy: Are the privacy policies transparent and easy to understand? Can members control who can see their profile, how their data is accessed and stored, or how their in-app behavior is tracked for use in third-party advertisements? Is it possible to delete member data?

• Safety education: Are there platform-specific reminders about not sharing personal details and how to spot red flags in potential language exchange partners?

Tandem: One of the safest platforms for authentic language exchange

Tandem is a peer-to-peer language learning app where millions of people teach each other. Although equipped with intuitive messaging features and language tools to help learners practice their target languages together, one of the most advantageous features of Tandem is that you speak with real people, not bots. With that, however, comes the need for strong safety structures, which Tandem has made a core part of its identity.

While no platform is risk-free, Tandem’s combination of real-identity requirements, strict anti-harassment/dating rules, visible safety education, and active moderation is why it stands out as one of the safest options among language exchange apps.

Some of the ways that safety is built both into the app and the community include the following:

Real identity and age protections

• Tandem expects a real identity and a recent photo of your face to create an account. This significantly reduces anonymous trolling and fake persona profiles. AI-generated images are not allowed.
• Members are also required to use their authentic name, including the last name, which is visible to other members. The username can be modified, but within certain parameters.
• Members under 16 are not allowed, and features like Language Parties and parts of the Community are restricted for under-18s, reducing the risk of adults mixing with minors in unmoderated spaces.

Profile verification and trust signals

• Tandem offers profile verification and a badge for Pro members, which adds a layer of traceability and social trust. This is particularly useful in an exchange environment where both people are “strangers.”
• To maintain fairness and integrity, every member is only allowed to have one account at a time.

Strong, enforced community guidelines

Tandem is dedicated to language learning, not dating or flirting. Any romantic, flirtatious, or sexual behaviors are not acceptable. The community guidelines state that, although some things of this nature may be acceptable in your own culture or country, it’s important to remember the global nature of Tandem’s community and how your words may make others feel.

Some of Tandem’s Community Guidelines and principles explicitly state:

• Harassment, prejudice, discrimination, racism, sexism, and hate are not tolerated in any form.
• Refrain from sending suggestive, flirtatious, or sexual content, or asking intrusive personal questions.
• Do not use Tandem for matchmaking, dating games, or seeking romantic or sexual relationships.
• Do not ask other members for personal photos.
• Do not publicly post or privately share any nude or sexually explicit images.
• Do not share explicit or graphic descriptions of sexual activities, including “sexting.”
• Do not engage in threats, intimidation, or aggressive behavior.
• Do not use personal attacks, targeted cursing, or derogatory slurs intended to demean someone.
• Do not contact members who have asked you to stop or blocked you.
• Never express contempt, loathing, or disgust towards individuals or groups on the grounds of race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, caste identity, sexual orientation, sex, gender identity, neurodivergence, disease, or age.
• Do not use dehumanizing language, harmful stereotypes, or derogatory generalizations against anyone or any group based on protected characteristics.
• Do not use hate symbols, imagery, or gestures associated with supremacist or extremist ideologies.

There is also a zero-tolerance policy toward any content or behavior that depicts, promotes, trivializes, or supports the exploitation, sexualization, or endangerment of children. Other Community Guidelines are listed for each category, which cover topics such as violence and graphic content, dangerous organizations and individuals, and fraud and deception.

Violations trigger a review by the Community Safety team. Depending on severity, members receive warnings or permanent bans. You can appeal, but repeated violations mean removal from the platform. In serious, albeit rare, cases, Tandem may work with the authorities to protect the community and comply with legal requirements.

This combination of clear rules plus actual enforcement is one of the biggest reasons Tandem ranks highly in independent “Is Tandem safe?” reviews.

In-app controls: reporting and blocking

There are also controls to allow members to take immediate action if they feel unsafe or uncomfortable. Some of the options that help facilitate a safe language exchange community include:

• Report tools everywhere: you can report a member from chat, from their profile, or from inside a Language Party. You’re prompted to add context and conversation screenshots so the Community Safety team can act quickly.
• Anonymous reports: reports are not visible to the other member and are routed to Community moderators, meaning that the member you reported will not be notified.
• Block members instantly: members can also block other Tandem members instantly by clicking the three dots in the top-right corner of a chat and selecting “Block.” You can learn more about how to block and unblock someone here.

Safety-minded designs

Tandem’s Community Guidelines are grounded in three core principles that serve the mission and help members get the best language exchange experience:

1. We are here to learn
2. We celebrate our diversity
3. We share generously

Essentially, Tandem is a place to spark meaningful conversations, learn languages, and celebrate different cultures, and the app is intentionally designed to cultivate these three pillars specifically. This means:

• Language-first positioning: Tandem repeatedly reinforces that this is a language and cultural exchange app, not a dating app. Members are encouraged to report users who only want to flirt or date.
• Stay-on-platform guidance: official safety pages tell you to keep communication inside Tandem so that blocking, reporting, and identity checks actually work, and specifically warn against moving to other platforms.
• On-platform identity checks: if someone pushes to move to another app, Tandem recommends doing a video call inside Tandem first to verify they really are who they say. Still, in-app communication is always recommended as the safest option.

Speaky: An open and accessible app, but often less moderated

Speaky is another popular language exchange platform built around text and voice chat. Like Tandem, it connects learners directly, but its safety model is somewhat lighter and more “open world,” which has trade-offs. There aren’t as many formal vetting processes for language partners, which means the quality of exchanges can vary. Additionally, in terms of moderation, Speaky is less hands-on, so users are encouraged to practice caution and use blocking/reporting tools if they feel uncomfortable or unsafe.

Some of the strengths of Speaky include:

• Quick sign-up and low barriers to entry make the platform accessible to more people.
• Users can search for partners using filters, which helps control who they interact with.
• Speaky offers blocking and reporting capabilities.

Still, the strengths can be problematic, especially if they result in discriminatory behaviors. It’s important to navigate each language exchange with caution to ensure that you find someone you feel comfortable with.

Some of the limitations of Speaky when compared to Tandem include:

• Looser identity requirements may mean more anonymous or low-effort profiles.
• Community guidelines exist, but the moderation system is less visible and not as proactively enforced.
• Fewer design cues discourage flirting and non-language-related uses.
• The platform encourages quick connections, which can increase exposure to spam or inappropriate contact.

Speaky isn’t unsafe per se; you can use it responsibly, and many do. However, compared to Tandem, it takes a more hands-off approach that depends more on individual vigilance.

Duolingo: Limited interactions and a low social risk, but potential issues with user data

Duolingo isn’t a live exchange app; it’s a gamified self-study platform with some social features (friends, leaderboards, clubs, profile pages). That dramatically changes its safety risk profile. For one, you don’t need to worry about someone else making you uncomfortable, and there are very few opportunities to actually interact with others.

Why Duolingo tends to be “low-risk”

• Children under 13 don’t get messaging capabilities, so social interactions are restricted for younger users.
• There are privacy settings to control who can see your profile, who can send friend requests, and how visible your activity is.
• Your full personal information is typically not visible to other users, and you can choose a username that’s completely irrelevant to your legal name.
• Duolingo offers mechanisms to download your data, delete your data, or delete your account entirely (Duolingo Data Vault and related tools).

However, Duolingo’s terms do not explicitly say whether they sell users’ data to third parties. They do say that they share user data with third-party advertisers, who may use personal data to track users and display targeted messaging on other apps or services.

The biggest concern regarding Duolingo is related to data collection, not interpersonal safety. Still, since there’s no real conversational exchange, it typically can’t replace apps like Tandem or Speaky for building true speaking confidence.

Tutor marketplaces (Preply, italki): vetting & professionalism

Tutor marketplaces are a subcategory within language exchange platforms: instead of casual conversations, you book one-to-one lessons with vetted tutors. Typically, sessions are paid, and pricing varies based on tutor experience or specialization, but they can provide more structure and guidance than peer-to-peer conversations. While the two main tutor sites for language exchange vary in pricing and overall structure, they typically lack the convenience and spontaneity of other apps.

Regarding safety, however, both platforms take a proactive approach and focus on professionalism.

Preply

• Has rules for students that explicitly ban sexual harassment, fraud, and inappropriate behavior, and clarify that repeated violations lead to blocking.
• Offers harassment policies and ways to report lessons or spam messages; students and tutors can block each other when needed.
• Requires identity verification for tutors, especially before they can withdraw earnings, which discourages bad actors from cycling through burner accounts.

italki

• Positions itself as a professional tutoring marketplace with structured application and vetting for teachers; reviews and rating systems provide social accountability.
• Safety in practice depends heavily on which tutor you choose and your own comfort level with video calls (often on third-party tools like Skype or Zoom).

Both of these apps can be very safe, particularly for learners who prefer professional teachers and predictable schedules. However, because many lessons still happen via external tools, you lose some of the on-platform safety protections you get inside an app like Tandem (e.g., one-tap reporting, built-in block lists, centralized moderation). In these circumstances, it’s important to avoid sharing sensitive information or details regarding your location and take the appropriate action with the company if you ever feel unsafe or uncomfortable.

Platform Type	Platform	Identity Controls	Reporting & Moderation	Safety Culture	Risk Level
Language Exchange	Tandem	Strong real-identity expectations; under-16 ban	Active moderation; robust reporting	Clear anti-dating stance, safety-first design	Low
Language Exchange	Speaky	Basic identity; more anonymous profiles	Reporting + blocking; lighter enforcement	Less guidance and fewer guardrails	Medium
Self-Study	Duolingo	Strong child protections	Minimal interpersonal risk	Mostly privacy-focused	Low
Tutor Marketplace	Preply / italki	Verified tutors	Review-based accountability	Professional environment	Low–Medium (varies by tool used)

How to choose the safest platform for you

If you’re struggling to determine which language exchange is best for you, it helps to compare platforms and ask yourself a few questions, such as:

• Who will be using it?

  • Children or teens ➝ Prefer platforms with strict age separation and limited social features (Duolingo for basics, then Tandem with teen safeguards and clear reporting).
  • Adults wanting authentic conversation ➝ Tandem offers one of the best balances of openness and safety.

• What kind of interaction do you need?

  • Vocabulary practice ➝ Gamified apps (Duolingo) with tuned privacy settings.
  • Real conversation & cultural exchange ➝ Tandem or Speaky; Tandem’s stricter anti-dating stance and strong moderation make it particularly attractive for learners who want a focused, harassment-free environment.
  • Structured lessons with a teacher ➝ Preply / italki, with attention to reviews and identity-verified tutors.

• What safety features matter most to you?

  • If your priority is interpersonal safety while talking to real people, then real-identity expectations, clear rules against flirting and commercial spam, active moderation, and easy, in-app reporting/blocking are non-negotiable. This is where Tandem currently has a competitive edge among language exchange apps.

Practical language exchange safety checklist for learners

Regardless of platform, you can dramatically increase your own safety by following a simple checklist, many of which Tandem explicitly teaches in its safety guides. For example, always:

• Stay on-platform for as long as possible; don’t rush to WhatsApp, Telegram, or Instagram.
• Use video inside the app (where available) before trusting someone’s identity.
• Never share financial details, addresses, or sensitive photos/videos.
• Block and report at the first sign of harassment, pressure, or something that “doesn’t add up.”
• For parents: create accounts together, review privacy settings, and periodically check in on how interactions feel.

At the end of the day, if you want safe, real-time language exchange, platforms like Duolingo alone won’t be enough; you need a social environment that takes safety seriously. Tandem is one of the safest language exchange platforms currently available, and has a proactive team of Community Moderators to help ensure that every member feels safe and respected while using the app.