Duolingo Is Bringing New ‘Energy’ to Language Learning

Duolingo is on CNET’s list of the best language learning apps, and on Monday the free version introduced a new Energy mechanic that could propel your learning experience further.

“We want to reward you for doing well and find ways to motivate you via this mechanic, rather than just penalize you for getting things incorrect while you’re learning,” Moses Wayne told me in an interview. Wayne is a senior software engineer at Duolingo, and he thought up the new system. “We think this is going to make Duolingo a lot more fun and a lot more fair.”

The new mechanic replaces the Hearts system in the free version of Duolingo. The Hearts system gave you five hearts per day, and if you got a question wrong in a lesson, you lost a heart. If you got five questions wrong, you couldn’t continue.

There was a way to practice past lessons to get hearts back, but you’d have to finish a whole lesson to get one heart back. The old system could slow your progress or bring it to a standstill if you continued struggling with a particular lesson. But the new Energy system should make it easier for people to keep learning.

Some people who use the free version of Duolingo on iOS will see the new mechanic now, and others on iOS will see it soon. People on Android should see the change later this year. 

Learning with Duolingo can give you energy

With the new system, you start with 25 units of energy, and you still lose one unit when you get a question wrong. But you’ll “recharge” energy over time, and you can earn energy by watching ads in between lessons. Some treasure chests in the app could reward you with energy, too. 

But the main way to earn back energy is by getting questions right.

“If you get a lot of things right in a row, like maybe the five combo mark, the 10 combo mark … there’s this little animation that shows some numbers and tells you how much [energy] you’ve earned,” Wayne said.

Duolingo’s intent is to motivate people to keep learning, even when they make mistakes. That way, you can keep pushing forward in your lessons.

“Making mistakes is part of learning,” Wayne said. “This is allowing learners to engage a lot more with Duolingo.”

What You Need to Know About Chess Lessons on Duolingo 

Though this is a seemingly minor change, I think it’ll be a huge help for people trying to learn a new language or how to play chess. 

When I used the app to learn a little Italian before traveling to Rome last year, I felt like the Heart system forced me to really focus on what I was learning. 

But I still got frustrated when I had to restart lessons, because I used up all my hearts. I was doubly frustrated when I used up hearts on lessons I didn’t think would be particularly helpful for traveling, like the lesson on describing a scary hotel.

If I hadn’t been using the app with the goal of learning a language for travel, I might’ve bailed on it. But I imagine the Energy system will help alleviate some of the frustrations people might feel when they make mistakes in their lessons.

And according to Duolingo, folks who’ve already used the new system have responded positively to the change.

“A lot of people have been engaging a lot more with Duolingo,” Wayne said. “We’re already seeing learners do more in the Energy system than they were with Hearts.”

For more on Duolingo, here’s our review, and here’s what to know about chess lessons on the app. You can also check out our roundup of the best language learning apps.