[thanksforfish]

I'll add my (32/M/USA) perspective as someone who subscribed to duolingo plus last month. I'm learning Arabic ahead of a _potential_ move with my spouse to an Arabic speaking country.

First Duolingo is fun to use. I didn't enjoy classroom based learning in high school. Duo gamifies the process really well, it's on my schedule, and I have a concrete reason to want to learn. Duo has been reducing my time on social media as well, always a bonus when picking up a good habit.

The $7/month premium subscription was worth it. I'm investing 30 minutes a day in the app, and ad-free means I can get through more lessons. I have unlimited lives so my learning isn't interrupted if I struggle on a hard lesson.

I'm not expecting to become fluent on Duo alone. But I think I'll get a great handle on some basics. My wife is already fluent, so that's helped me speak and figure out some things I struggled with.

I also tried the Rosetta Stone app. I didn't think that one was fun, it throws you into hard content quickly, so I haven't been using it. If our move happens, I'll enroll in a more traditional environment, and I may take a second look at the Rosetta Stone app. For now I'm happy that I have something that's making me increasingly comfortable with the idea of speaking Arabic.