One of my several New Year’s resolutions for 2021, hopefully a superb year in comparison to its predecessor, is increasing my language proficiency.

I currently speak three languages, though I don’t speak Cantonese & Mandarin as much as I should. I looked at several languages apps, one of them being Duolingo. This app has gained in popularity over the last few years, with an uptick during quarantine last year. Over 700 million people use the platform and according to the app, more people are learning a language on it compared to the entire U.S. public education system.

I have used it for an entire week and they try to make it as interactive and fun as possible, making it easier and more enjoyable to learn a language. There are incentives such as rewards and gems for you to redeem as you progress along your language journey. They even have a streak to track how often you go about each session. There are 20+ languages for English speakers which even include two fictional languages from Game of Thrones and Star Trek. I plan on continuing to use the app as it is completely free. If you are wanting to simply improve your language skills, not guaranteeing you will be fluent, and be productive with your time, I highly recommend engaging in Duolingo.