Lang 8

Write in the language you learn, get corrections from native speakers. Closed in 2024.

Shut downLanguage learningWriting correction
See alternatives ↗Last verified: 5 Nov 2026

2006Launched
TokyoLang-8 Inc.
Feb 2017Sign-ups closed
29 Feb 2024Shut down
The short version

What happened to Lang-8?

Lang-8 is closed. It stopped taking new users in February 2017 and was shut down for good on 29 February 2024. Its company, Lang-8 Inc., now points people to HiNative, its other service.

Lang-8 launched in 2006 and was run by Lang-8 Inc. in Tokyo. The idea was simple. You wrote a short journal entry in the language you were learning, and native speakers corrected it line by line. You corrected entries in your own language in return. It was free to use, with an optional Premium plan. New sign-ups were frozen in February 2017, and the site closed for good seven years later.

Bottom line: you cannot use Lang-8 anymore. For quick questions to native speakers, try HiNative, from the same company. For the old "write a journal, get it corrected" routine, LangCorrect follows the same format.

What it did

Key features

Journal-style posts

You wrote entries in the language you were learning, on any topic, and posted them for the community.

Corrections from native speakers

Native speakers edited your sentences and added comments, so you saw exactly what to fix and why.

Give and take

You corrected entries written in your own language, which kept the exchange going both ways.

Premium extras

Premium members got priority display for entries, no ads, PDF downloads, journal search and unlimited learning languages. Free users were limited to two.

What it cost

Lang 8 pricing

Option Price Status today
Free account Free Gone. The site closed on 29 February 2024.
Lang-8 Premium Paid Gone with the site. Priority display, no ads and unlimited languages.
HiNative Free app Still available. Q&A with native speakers, from the same company.

Lang-8 Premium prices are not listed here because they can no longer be checked. New accounts were not possible after February 2017.

Honest fit

What still works, and what doesn't

Still works

  • Asking native speakers short questions on HiNative
  • Journal-style corrections on LangCorrect
  • Any notes or corrections you saved yourself

No longer available

  • Posting new entries on Lang-8
  • Creating a Lang-8 account (closed since 2017)
  • Logging in to read your old Lang-8 journals
  • Lang-8 Premium
What people ask

Lang 8 FAQ

Is Lang-8 still working?

No. Lang-8 was permanently shut down on 29 February 2024. It is not a temporary outage.

Can I still sign up for Lang-8?

No. New registrations were stopped in February 2017 and never reopened before the site closed.

What was Lang-8?

A free site for writing practice. You posted short texts in the language you were learning and native speakers corrected them. You corrected texts in your own language in return.

What is the best Lang-8 alternative?

LangCorrect for writing, HiNative for questions. LangCorrect keeps the journal and correction format. HiNative, run by the same company as Lang-8, is a Q&A app for language questions. See more on our Lang-8 alternatives page.

Who made Lang-8?

Lang-8 Inc. in Tokyo. Yangyang Xi and Kazuki Matsumoto created the site in 2006. The company was set up in 2007.
Keep comparing

Lang 8 alternatives