For expats, relocators, medical tourists, professionals, and anyone navigating life or work in another language
Stop sounding like a textbook.
Start sounding local.
StreetTongue teaches you the actual phrases, slang, and pronunciation of the city you're moving to. Not the sanitized phrases no one uses.
60 day money back guarantee. One-time payment. No subscription.
The Problem
Every language app taught me phrases no one actually says.
Textbook Spanish
"¿Dónde está la biblioteca?" When did you last need to find a library?
Gamified Nonsense
500-day streaks and owl mascots, but you still freeze up ordering coffee.
Generic Pronunciation
They teach "standard" accents. But Mexico City doesn't sound like Madrid.
After two years of Duolingo, I moved to Mexico City and couldn't understand a single conversation in a taquería. The Spanish I learned had nothing to do with how people actually talked.
Dax, founder of StreetTongue
Sound Familiar?
That moment you realize you're still the permanent tourist.
Ordering food
The whole taquería hears you butcher "una orden de tacos, por favor" with your textbook accent. The vendor smiles politely and responds in English.
Group conversations
Your local friends start talking normally, fast and full of slang, and you nod along pretending to understand. You catch maybe 40%.
Getting overcharged
When you sound like a tourist, you get tourist prices. At the market, in cabs, at repair shops. Your accent is costing you money.
The deeper loneliness
Language is connection. When you can't joke, argue, or just chat easily, you're always on the outside. It stops feeling like an adventure and starts feeling like isolation.
This isn't about grammar. It's about belonging.
And it doesn't have to be this way.
The Vision
Imagine six months from now.
You walk into your neighborhood taquería, greet the guy who works there by name, and order in the exact way locals do. He laughs at your joke. You're a regular.
At a party, you keep up with rapid-fire conversation, throw in the right slang at the right moment, and people stop treating you like a guest and start treating you like one of them.
You negotiate with the moto-taxi driver in his language, at his pace, and get a fair price. Not because you "spoke Spanish." You spoke his Spanish.
The city stops feeling foreign. You have a neighborhood, a coffee spot, a butcher who knows your name. You didn't just move here. You live here.
This is what StreetTongue is built for. Not test scores. Not streaks. Real life in a real city.
Why Other Apps Won't Get You There
Duolingo is great for streaks.
Not for living abroad.
Other apps optimize for engagement metrics. StreetTongue optimizes for one thing: sounding like you actually live there.
| Approach | Others | StreetTongue |
|---|---|---|
| Teaches gamified vocab lists | ✕ | ✓ |
| Generic "Standard" pronunciation | ✕ | ✓ |
| Broad language, no city focus | ✕ | ✓ |
| Thousands of dollars or years abroad | ✕ | ✓ |
| Fixed schedules, expensive tutors | ✕ | ✓ |
One important note: StreetTongue is not for people who want to pass an exam or earn a certificate. It's for people who want to live and work comfortably in a city where their language of choice is spoken every day. If that's you, keep reading.
The Solution
Introducing StreetTongue
A language app built around the methodology used by the CIA, diplomatic language schools, and missionaries: the people who have to speak fluently, not just pass tests.
StreetTongue is a pronunciation-focused language app that teaches city-specific, street-level dialects. Available for 15 cities across 7 languages, it covers the real phrases, pronunciation patterns, and cultural norms that locals actually use. One-time payment. 60 day guarantee.
City First
Not just "Spanish." Mexico City Spanish. CDMX slang, CDMX pronunciation, CDMX cultural context. Because that's where you're going.
Pronunciation Led
Real time scoring on every word. You hear how locals say it, you try it, you see exactly where your accent drifts. Repeat until it sticks.
Street Level Content
Every phrase was collected from real conversations on real streets. Not curated by linguists. Verified by locals who live there.
The DLI Method
The Defense Language Institute produces the world's fastest language learners by focusing on real world functional communication from day one, not grammar rules. StreetTongue adapts this for the everyday expat: total comprehension of your specific city's dialect in the shortest possible time.
Built By Someone Who Needed It
I built this for myself.
Then decided to share it.
I moved to Mexico City in 2021 with Spanish that was, generously, rough. So I did what everyone does. I downloaded Duolingo. 1,200 days later I could tell you the bear laughed at the telenovela while eating popcorn. Less useful when the guy at the taqueria is rattling off options and I'm just nodding and hoping for the best.
The real problem was that every app, every course, every YouTube channel was teaching me Spain Spanish. I was in Mexico City. Nobody here says "camiseta." I was learning a version of Spanish that made locals look at me funny.
So I built my own app. Not for anyone else. Just for me. Focused entirely on Mexican Spanish and Chilango dialect. The phrases I actually heard, the pronunciation I actually needed. It worked. A friend saw what I was using and said "you should make this for everyone." That app became StreetTongue.
Dax
Founder, StreetTongue
Real People, Real Results
What happens when you sound like a local.
"I'd been living in Barcelona for six months and still struggling. After three weeks with StreetTongue I had my first full conversation in a bar without switching to English. That had never happened before."
Sarah M.
American expat, Barcelona
"The Mexico City module is incredible. It taught me words and phrases my Spanish teacher in college never mentioned. My Colombian neighbors actually asked where I'm from because they couldn't place my accent anymore."
James K.
Digital nomad, CDMX
"I was skeptical because I'd tried everything. But the pronunciation scoring is genuinely different. It shows you exactly which word is off. My taxi driver in Medellín told me I sounded local. I almost cried."
Priya R.
Remote worker, Medellín
One-time payment. 60 day guarantee.
What You Get
Every feature is built for one goal.
Sounding natural in real conversations, in your specific city.
Pronunciation Scoring
Speak a phrase and get scored word by word. Not just pass/fail: you see exactly where your accent drifts. The same technology used in professional language training.
Street Phrase Library
Thousands of real phrases organized by city, situation, and formality. Every phrase includes pronunciation guide, cultural context, and when (not) to use it.
Scripted Conversations
Practice full conversations: at the market, in a bar, catching a cab, meeting neighbors. You hear how the conversation flows before you're in it for real.
AI Conversation Practice
Talk with an AI that responds in your city's dialect. It corrects you gently, teaches you alternatives, and never gets tired of practicing. Available 24/7.
More from the StreetTongue community
"I've tried Duolingo, Babbel, Pimsleur, and private tutors. Nothing came close to what StreetTongue did in four weeks. The city specific phrases are exactly what was missing from every other app."
Marcus T.
Software engineer, moved to Lisbon
"My Japanese was textbook perfect and completely useless in Osaka. StreetTongue taught me the actual Osaka-ben dialect. People kept asking which part of Japan I'd lived in."
Amy L.
Teacher, Osaka
"Worth every dollar. I negotiated my apartment lease in Portuguese after six weeks. Without StreetTongue I would have needed a translator and probably gotten a worse deal."
Roberto V.
Entrepreneur, São Paulo
"The guarantee made me try it. The results made me recommend it to every expat I know. My French finally sounds like I live in Paris, not like I took two semesters in college."
Diana H.
Marketing consultant, Paris
Simple Pricing
Pay once. Speak like a local forever.
No subscriptions. No monthly fees. One payment and the app is yours. Only the AI and pronunciation features require a small annual renewal after 12 months.
Mid
Everything you need to speak like a local
$0.41/day. Less than a coffee.
- ✓ All phrases & categories
- ✓ Unlimited pronunciation scoring
- ✓ Scripted conversations & scenarios
- ✓ Reading comprehension exercises
- ✓ Text translator
- ✓ Writing practice
- ✓ Full cultural tips & grammar breakdowns
- ✓ Listening challenges
- ✓ Full leaderboards & progress dashboard
Premium
The complete language immersion experience
or 4 payments of $63 · 0.68/day
- ✓ Everything in Mid
- ✓ AI conversation practice
- ✓ Voice translator (text + voice)
- ✓ AI grammar explainer
- ✓ Priority feature access
Renewal
Keep pronunciation scoring & AI active
- ✓ Keeps unlimited pronunciation scoring
- ✓ Keeps AI conversation practice
- ✓ Keeps voice translator
- ✓ Keeps AI grammar explainer
- ✓ All content & progress kept forever regardless
What you're actually getting
vs. language app subscriptions
The longer you use StreetTongue, the better the value gets.
| App | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duolingo Max | $168 | $504 | $840 |
| Babbel | $96 | $288 | $480 |
| Rosetta Stone | $144 | $432 | $720 |
| StreetTongue Mid | $149 | $247 | $345 |
60-Day
Guarantee
The StreetTongue Fluency Promise
Use StreetTongue for 60 days. If you're not having noticeably more natural conversations in your city (better pronunciation, better comprehension, more confidence), we'll refund every dollar. No hoops. No awkward emails.
We're confident in this because we've seen it work. But your money is safe either way.
15 Cities at Launch
Find your city.
Each city has its own phrase library, pronunciation guide, and cultural context. Not generic language. The language of your city.
From the Blog
City language guides.
Real language advice for the cities where you live and work.
Apr 2, 2026
The Best Ways to Use StreetTongue to Actually Learn a Language
Five study systems for five types of learners. Whether you have 15 minutes a day or you are already living in the city, here is how to build real fluency with the app.
Read more →
Apr 17, 2026
The Complete Guide to Rio de Janeiro Portuguese Slang (Carioca Portuguese)
Carioca Portuguese sounds nothing like what the apps teach. Here are the phrases, pronunciation patterns, and street level slang you actually need to stop sounding like a textbook in Rio.
Read more →
Apr 15, 2026
The Complete Guide to Osaka Japanese Slang (Kansai-ben)
If you learned Tokyo Japanese and then visited Osaka, you noticed something: the words are different, the melody is different, and everyone seems to be doing comedy. Here is what people actually say on Osaka streets.
Read more →
Questions & Answers
How is StreetTongue different from Duolingo?
Which cities are available?
What's the difference between Mid ($149) and Premium ($249)?
Do I need to be a complete beginner?
What happens after the 12 month renewal period?
Is the $49/year renewal required?
Can I use StreetTongue offline?
I already speak some Spanish/French/Japanese. Will this help me?
Will I sound like a local?
Ready to Sound Local?
Your city is waiting.
Time to sound like you belong.
One payment. Lifetime access. City specific phrases, pronunciation scoring, and real conversations. Not textbook exercises.