Help & FAQ

Open the app and go to Settings (the cog icon). There, under ‘Language’, you can select your preferred learning language and native language, or switch between them at any time.

LinguaFlow offers a free basic service and a Premium subscription with access to all content. Subscriptions are processed via the Apple App Store or Google Play Store and can be cancelled there at any time.

Yes – the annual subscription includes a 30-day free trial for new subscribers, on both iOS and Android. You can try out all the Pro features at your leisure. If you do not cancel before the 30 days are up, the paid annual subscription will start automatically afterwards. You can cancel at any time directly via the Apple App Store or Google Play.

The Birkenbihl Method is a brain-based approach to language learning, developed by Vera F. Birkenbihl. Instead of cramming vocabulary, you learn through decoding, active and passive listening, and finally active speaking – much like a child learns their mother tongue.

Some lessons can be listened to offline once they have been downloaded. You’ll need an internet connection to download new content and synchronise your progress.

During a lesson, you’ll find a speed control below the player. This allows you to adjust the pace to suit your level – from slowed-down to native speaker speed.

Yes, the download and some of the content are free to use. For full access to all languages and lessons, there is an optional premium subscription.

Yes, English is one of the most popular languages to learn on LinguaFlow. You’ll decode English texts word by word, listen to them actively and passively, and develop a natural feel for the language – without having to cram vocabulary or grammar rules.

LinguaFlow offers over 30 languages, including English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Russian, Turkish, Greek, Hungarian, Hebrew, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic and many more – all using word-for-word decoding inspired by the Birkenbihl Method.

Duolingo and Babbel use traditional vocabulary training and grammar exercises. LinguaFlow, on the other hand, takes an approach inspired by the Birkenbihl Method: you decode real texts word for word, listening both actively and passively – just as a child picks up a language. The result is a deeper understanding rather than memorised phrases.

The Birkenbihl Method was developed by Vera F. Birkenbihl based on neurological findings and has been successfully used by hundreds of thousands of learners since the 1990s. It utilises the brain’s natural way of learning – the very same way in which we acquired our mother tongue.

Yes, in LinguaFlow you can paste in any text and have it decoded word by word straight away. There’s also an integrated book library featuring classics and modern texts, which you can work through chapter by chapter in the Book Reader.

No, you can start even as a complete beginner. The Birkenbihl Method is ideal for beginners because you don’t need to learn any vocabulary or grammar rules beforehand. Even if you do have some prior knowledge, you’ll benefit from decoding texts specifically tailored to your level.

The method consists of four steps: first, the foreign-language text is decoded word for word into your mother tongue – the app does this for you – so you understand the structure of the language without having to cram grammar. Then you listen to the text actively (whilst reading along), followed by passively (in the background during everyday life), and finally you start speaking yourself. LinguaFlow is inspired by these four steps and incorporates them directly into the app.

Yes, even more so than ever. The method is based on how the brain naturally absorbs language – and this principle hasn’t changed. In the past, the most time-consuming step – decoding word by word – had to be laboriously done by hand. In LinguaFlow, the app does this in seconds – making this learning approach more practical today than ever before.

Vera F. Birkenbihl (1946–2011) was one of the best-known trainers and non-fiction authors in the German-speaking world. She coined the term ‘brain-friendly learning’ and published over 40 books. The method named after her – learning languages through decoding rather than rote learning of vocabulary – remains her best-known legacy to this day and is the inspiration behind LinguaFlow.

The method has been used by many language learners since the 1990s. Many particularly appreciate that they can understand real texts right from the start and make progress without rote memorisation. The quickest way to find out how well this learning approach works for you is to try LinguaFlow – inspired by the method – for free.

It’s best not to start with grammar and vocabulary lists, but with real sentences that you understand straight away. This is exactly how LinguaFlow works, inspired by the Birkenbihl method: the app decodes a short text for you word by word; you listen to it and take in both the sound and the meaning at the same time – just as you learnt your mother tongue as a child. Just 10 minutes a day is enough to get you started.

That depends on your goal: English and Spanish open the most doors worldwide, French and Italian are popular in Europe, and languages such as Japanese or Korean appeal to many out of an interest in the culture. More important than the ‘right’ choice is your motivation – learn the language that really inspires you. In LinguaFlow, you can choose from over 30 languages, and you can switch at any time.

Translation apps help in a pinch, but they’re no substitute for understanding the language yourself: real conversations, humour, nuances and spontaneous encounters only work if you understand the language yourself. What’s more, learning a language keeps your brain sharp. LinguaFlow takes the hard work off your hands by decoding the text – the actual understanding and speaking remain up to you.

LinguaFlow combines an approach inspired by the Birkenbihl method with three AI systems that work together: The first translates every text word for word (the decoding), the second produces native-speaker-quality speech output, so you can have any text read aloud to you as if by a native speaker, and the third generates suitable learning content such as practice texts. In the past, decoding used to take hours of manual work – today, the app does it in seconds.

The Birkenbihl Method mimics the way children learn their mother tongue – quite naturally through listening and comprehension. The app itself is aimed at teenagers and adults, but is well suited for use with younger children, for example when listening together. There are deliberately no vocabulary tests or grades.

With LinguaFlow, you can download the app for free and try out Birkenbihl-inspired learning with some of the content at no cost – with no time limit on your trial. For full access to all languages and Pro features, there’s an optional Premium subscription, which you can cancel at any time via the App Store or Google Play. This way, you can first see if this learning approach suits you and then decide at your leisure.

Yes. In LinguaFlow, you can read whole books and have them read aloud to you in native-speaker quality. What makes it special is that you stay in the flow of reading because any words you don’t yet know are decoded directly below – so you never have to leave the book to look anything up. This way, you read real texts from day one and expand your vocabulary as you go along.

Yes. As well as major languages such as English, Spanish and French, LinguaFlow also offers languages that many traditional Birkenbihl courses don’t even include in their programme – for example, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek and Ukrainian. There are over 30 languages to choose from in total, and you can switch between them at any time.

You’ll find it easiest to learn languages that use the familiar Latin alphabet and are related to German – such as Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish or English. Spanish and Italian are also considered relatively easy to learn. Languages with their own writing systems, such as Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, Greek or Russian, take more time because you also have to learn a new script. However, because LinguaFlow shows you the meaning of every word straight away, it’s easier to get started with even more challenging languages.

You can get started for free – for full access, there’s a Premium subscription, and there’s a good reason for this: behind the scenes, three AI systems are at work for every decoding process, every native-speaker-quality voice-over and every generated practice text, and these incur ongoing costs. In return, you get native-quality audio for any text, over 30 languages and whole books to read – completely ad-free and with no sale of your data. Compared to a language course or private tuition, this is just a fraction of the cost; with the annual subscription, you can learn from around €9 a month. This ensures the app is fairly funded and is constantly being developed.

Yes, and that’s a major difference compared to many other apps. Instead of just offering pre-written texts about holidays, cooking or restaurant visits, LinguaFlow decodes any text on any topic – from song lyrics to specialist articles. You can have the AI generate texts specifically related to your job or interests, or even import entire specialist books. For example, if you ask the app what a mathematical term is called in Swedish, the entire specialist vocabulary is automatically decoded word for word – including the correct pronunciation for you to listen to. This way, you learn exactly the language you really need.