MindSnacks no longer exists as an app. MindSnacks made bite-sized language games and SAT vocabulary games for iPhone and iPad. About a year before December 2014, the team pivoted to brain training and became Elevate, according to a December 2014 Fox Business profile of CEO Jesse Pickard. Apple named Elevate its best app of 2014. An email to users, posted on MacRumors, said MindSnacks would stop working on iOS 11 and later after six years, and offered 45% off Elevate Pro. Apple released iOS 11 in September 2017. Today, www.mindsnacks.com redirects to the Elevate page at themindcompany.com, the site of The Mind Company.
Elevate is no replacement if you came for Spanish, French or Japanese. Its games train broader skills such as communication and analysis, in English. The apps below are the ones that kept MindSnacks' idea alive: short sessions, points, sound effects and a reason to come back tomorrow. They are ordered from the best free option to the more structured paid courses, with prices from each app's US App Store page as of November 6, 2026.
Our method is on How we review tools.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Price | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duolingo | A full free course in game form | Free with ads, Super from $9.99 | iOS, Android, Web |
| Drops | Five-minute picture vocabulary games | Free tier, Premium from $7.99 | iOS, Android, Web |
| Memrise | Native-speaker clips and AI chat | Free tier, Annual $61.99 | iOS, Android, Web |
| LingoDeer | Japanese, Korean and Chinese with grammar | Free tier, $14.99/mo | iOS, Android, Web |
| Mondly | Daily lessons and weekly quizzes in 41 languages | $15.90/mo, $74.90/yr | iOS, Android, Web |
| Clozemaster | A game for learners past the basics | Free, Pro from $69.99/yr | iOS, Android, Web |
| Babbel | Short lessons with real grammar | From $17.99/mo | iOS, Android, Web |
Duolingo
Duolingo turns a whole course into a path of short levels with streaks, gems and a cartoon cast. You can finish every lesson without paying. It holds 4.7 stars from 5.6M ratings on the US App Store and claims 40+ languages.
It has grown past languages too. The same app now carries Chess, Math and Music courses, so a family can share one habit app. Super Duolingo removes the ads, and gem packs from $0.99 to $19.99 buy in-game items.
Best for: Anyone who wants MindSnacks' game loop with a complete free course behind it.
Pricing:
- Free, with ads
- Super Duolingo listed at $9.99, $12.99, $83.99, $95.99 and $119.99 on the US App Store, depending on plan length
- Gem packs from $0.99 to $19.99
Watch out for:
- The free version shows ads, and the listing flags in-app messaging and advertising. Parents of young children may want Super.
- Five different Super prices on one listing make it hard to know what you will pay. Read the plan screen before you tap.
Official site: Duolingo.
Drops
Drops feels the most like MindSnacks did. Sessions are tiny, every word comes with an illustration, and you swipe and tap to match words to pictures instead of typing sentences. The App Store listing claims 55+ languages and shows 4.7 stars from 72K ratings. The seller is PLANB LABS OU.
It sticks to vocabulary. You learn words by topic, such as food, travel or the body, and the app keeps cycling the ones you miss. It suits a learner who wants a daily five-minute word game, the same habit MindSnacks built, more than one who wants to hold a conversation.
Best for: Learners who miss MindSnacks' quick, colourful vocabulary rounds.
Pricing:
- Free tier with a daily time limit
- Premium from $7.99, listed as "Genius for a month" on the US App Store
- Other Premium listings at $9.99, $11.99, $14.99 and up to $99.99; periods are not named
- All Language Learning Plans listed at $69.99
Watch out for:
- A June 2022 App Store review says free play gives five minutes that refresh about every nine hours. Long sessions need Premium.
- Ten in-app purchases with similar names, several just called Premium, make the real yearly price hard to read from the store.
Official site: Drops.
Memrise
Memrise started as a flashcard game and has turned into a speaking app. The current listing centres on native-speaker video clips, real-life conversation scenarios and AI Buddies, chat bots you talk to for practice. It shows 4.8 stars from 218K ratings and lists about 139 languages, the widest choice in this article.
The game side is still there in the word reviews and progress streaks, but the app now pushes you toward scenarios like ordering food or meeting someone. Memrise also sells a Lifetime Plan, rare among these apps, at $329.99 list.
Best for: Learners who want to hear real people and practise speaking, not only tap answers.
Pricing:
- Free tier
- Monthly plan $24.99, Annual plan $61.99 (US App Store)
- Lifetime Plan $329.99, with offers at $131.99 and $98.99
Watch out for:
- A January 2024 review says the redesign pushes new lessons before you finish reviewing words. Memrise replied that review appears when its algorithm predicts you are about to forget.
- The monthly plan, at $24.99, costs as much as the 3-month plan on the same listing, so monthly billing is poor value.
Official site: Memrise.
LingoDeer
LingoDeer was built for Asian languages first, and it shows. Japanese, Korean and Chinese courses teach the writing system and explain grammar in short notes inside the game-style lessons. It holds 4.7 stars from 28K ratings on the App Store.
The Multilingual Pass covers every course on one subscription. The description claims 20 languages, including Arabic, Greek, Hindi and Ukrainian, alongside the European majors. Lifetime access is sold too, which helps if you plan to study for years.
Best for: MindSnacks Japanese or Chinese users who want the games plus grammar notes.
Pricing:
- Free to download with some free content
- Multilingual Pass: $14.99 monthly, $34.99 quarterly, $95.99 annual (US App Store)
- Lifetime listed at $119.99 and $159.99, or $299.99 for new users
Watch out for:
- A February 2025 review calls the vocabulary per lesson too small and the stories too short. The developer said it is looking at adding content.
- The listing's language metadata names 15 languages while the description claims 20. Check that your course exists before paying.
Official site: LingoDeer.
Mondly
Mondly packages every course as a daily routine. There is a Daily Lesson, a Weekly Quiz and a Monthly Challenge, tracked on a streak calendar that shows the points you earned each day. The listing names 41 languages and shows 4.7 stars from 33K ratings, from ATi Studios.
Lessons mix picture matching, listening and a chatbot that answers what you say. One subscription opens all languages, so a learner who once had three MindSnacks apps installed can switch between courses freely.
Best for: People who like a fixed daily lesson and a quiz to aim for each week.
Pricing:
- Unlimited Access monthly listed at $15.90, often with a 1-week free trial
- Unlimited Access 12 months listed at $74.90
- Promotions down to $7.99 a month appear on the same listing
Watch out for:
- Reviews describe a chatbot that fails to recognise answers and stiff word-for-word translations in the Thai course (December 2022).
- It sells about ten near-identical plans, from $7.99 to $19.99 a month. Compare the offer on screen before you subscribe.
Official site: Mondly.
Clozemaster
Clozemaster is the game for when beginner apps start to feel easy. Every round is a real sentence with one word missing, and you score points for filling the gap. The App Store listing claims 50+ languages and 170+ language pairings, so you can practise one foreign language from another.
Its look is plain, with none of MindSnacks' cartoons. Pro adds listening in 30+ languages and offline play on mobile.
Best for: Learners who finished a Duolingo tree and want harder, sentence-level games.
Pricing:
- Free tier on web and mobile
- Pro Monthly listed at $8.99 and $12.99, Pro Yearly at $69.99 and $79.99 (US App Store)
Watch out for:
- It assumes you already know basic grammar. A true beginner will guess more than learn.
- There are no pictures or story, so children who liked MindSnacks may lose interest.
Official site: Clozemaster.
Babbel
Babbel is the least game-like pick, and it is here for adults who want the short sessions without the cartoons. Lessons are short, build toward a dialogue and explain the grammar as you go. It holds 4.7 stars from 757K ratings on the US App Store.
Recent additions include Babbel Speak, an AI conversation partner, and Guided Conversations, plus flashcards, a review system and offline mode. Courses are sold per language, or as an All Languages plan.
Best for: Adults who outgrew games and want a short course that teaches why, not only what.
Pricing:
- One language: $17.99 for 1 month, $45.99 for 3 months, $89.99 for 1 year (US App Store)
- All Languages 12-month plan: $107.99
Watch out for:
- A March 2025 review reports the progress tracker sometimes failing to update and breaking a streak.
- Each plan covers one language unless you buy All Languages at $107.99. The description claims 14 languages, far fewer than Memrise or Drops.
Official site: Babbel.
How to choose
| If you need | Pick |
|---|---|
| A free game that teaches a whole course | Duolingo |
| The same quick picture-and-word rounds MindSnacks had | Drops |
| Native speakers on video and an AI to talk to | Memrise |
| Japanese, Korean or Chinese with grammar notes | LingoDeer |
| A set daily lesson and a weekly quiz | Mondly |
| Harder games after the beginner level | Clozemaster |
| A grown-up course with short lessons | Babbel |
Can you still use MindSnacks
Only on an old device. The apps stopped working on iOS 11 and later, and the website now redirects elsewhere, so a working copy survives only on an iPhone or iPad still running iOS 10 or earlier with the app already installed. There is no account to sign into and no new content. If you liked the company's later work, Elevate is the direct descendant, but it trains skills in English rather than foreign languages.
Frequently asked questions
What happened to the MindSnacks app?
The team behind MindSnacks pivoted to brain training about a year before December 2014 and became Elevate. MindSnacks then ended support for its apps from iOS 11, which arrived in September 2017, and the website now redirects to Elevate's page.
Was MindSnacks bought by another company?
No. The Fox Business profile says Jesse Pickard's MindSnacks team made SAT and language games, then pivoted and became Elevate about a year before that December 2014 article. Apple named Elevate its best app of 2014. It was the same team under a new name, and www.mindsnacks.com now redirects to the Elevate page.
What app is most like MindSnacks?
Drops, for the short illustrated vocabulary rounds. Duolingo, if you want a free game that also teaches grammar and sentences. Both run on iPhone, iPad and Android.
Is there a MindSnacks for reading in a language?
Not in game form. Once the games feel easy, the next step is reading graded texts with audio. Our LingQ alternatives page covers readers from free to paid.
