Abraham Yousef · November 2023
Duolingo: Redefining Engagement in the EdTech Space
Duolingo is adding math and music learning to its app to increase user engagement and attract more subscribers. The use of gamification elements to expand these subjects could help bolster already high retention rates and drive user and subscriber growth. ST data shows that Duolingo is one of the stickiest EdTech apps with an impressively low churn rate, high share of retained users, and increasing engagement ratio (DAU/MAU) vs its peers.
Key Takeaways:
As of Oct '23, Duolingo saw a 28% churn rate among its users in Western markets, a 23% YoY decrease. Duolingo had the lowest churn among leading apps across the music, language, math and kids learning EdTech space, outperforming Simply Piano (64%), Babbel (58%), Lingokids (44%), and Brainly (35%) per ST data
Duolingo’s share of retained users - at 68% in Oct’23 - was also higher than other EdTech apps, including Brainly (59%), Babbel (42%), and Simply Piano (33%), but notably closer to top grossing game apps such as Roblox, Royal Match, and Candy Crush which had a 73%, 66%, and 64% share of retained users, respectively
Duolingo's gamification has boosted retention rates, evident in 23% of reviews praising engaging and fun in-app elements from 1Q23-3Q23, up 7 ppts from 2019, and significantly higher than EdTech peers such as Simply Piano (11%), Babbel (10%), and Brainly (< 1%) per ST data
Gamification features have helped Duolingo become an integral part of users' daily routines. The app’s stickiness is a testament to its success in the EdTech space, with Duolingo’s DAU/MAU ratio increasing across time and remaining significantly above education peers, including Babbel, Simply Piano and Ultimate Guitar
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Written by: Abraham Yousef, Senior Insights Analyst
Date: November 2023