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Alternatives
A parent-led Little Pim alternative
Families looking past Little Pim have usually read about screens and babies, or added up the subscription, or run out of its 360 words. Here is what we replace, what we don’t, and who else to consider.
We make Their First Words, so this is our own comparison — written by the two parents who build it, not by a reviewer. The facts about Little Pim were checked on October 2, 2026 against its store listings and website, and the sources are listed at the end. Prices are US prices and change. Where another app is the better choice for your family, this page says so.
Why parents look
Why families go looking for a Little Pim alternative.
- A screen for a baby. The WHO recommends no screen time under one, and the AAP says children under eighteen months learn from real-world interaction, not screens.6, 7 Video immersion sits on the wrong side of that for the youngest.
- The subscription. $9.99 a month or $69.99 a year, after a trial.1, 2
- 360 words and phrases per language. A foundation, by its own description.1 A two-year-old in a talkative home uses that many words by spring.
- Wanting to be the voice. Some parents want a native speaker to check against, then to say the word themselves, looking at the child.
- No word on offline. Its App Store listing doesn’t say whether episodes play without a connection, which matters on a plane.2
Their First Words as the alternative
What it replaces — and what it doesn’t.
It does replace
- First words and phrases in Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, Italian, Korean and Russian (and English), with a female and a male native voice on every card
- The subscription: $9.99 once, or the free 75 words and 35 phrases forever
- A design that keeps the screen in the parent’s hands for the first years
- Offline use on iPhone, iPad and Android, with no account
It does not replace
- Videos — nothing plays by itself
- Mandarin, Japanese, Arabic or Hebrew
- Themed episodes, scripts and printable lessons by email
- Anything a child does alone
At a glance
Side by side, no adjectives.
| Fact | Little Pim | Their First Wordsours |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Five-minute immersion videos with a cartoon panda, built around 360 foundational words and phrases per language | Parent-led flashcards: illustrated first words and everyday phrases, each spoken by a female and a male native voice |
| Ages | Babies, toddlers and pre-K — “under the age of 6,” as the maker puts it | 0–5, in three parent-chosen stages (phrases are not split by stage) |
| Price | Subscription: $9.99 a month or $69.99 a year; free trial | $9.99 once for everything; no subscription |
| What’s free | The trial. Some US public libraries offer it free through Mango Languages — ask yours | 75 words and 35 phrases, forever, in all eight languages with both voices |
| Languages | 12: Spanish, French, English, Mandarin, Italian, German, Japanese, Arabic, Hebrew, Russian, Korean, Portuguese | English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, Italian, Korean and Russian on every card (the app’s own screens are in English) |
| Who holds the phone | The screen plays; the child watches, with printable parent guides alongside | The parent. You say the word; the app is the prop. |
| Works offline | Not stated in its listing | Yes, completely — every picture and clip ships inside the app |
| Ads | None, as the maker states | None, at any tier |
| Account | Required | Not needed; optional sign-in only syncs progress between devices |
Little Pim facts checked October 2, 2026; sources below. “Who holds the phone” is who the app is designed around: a child playing, or a parent holding it and talking.
If you switch
What you keep, what you give up.
You keep
- All eight of our languages, if yours is among them
- Native speakers on every word
- An ad-free app
- Profiles for siblings
You give up
- The videos and the panda
- Four languages
- The episode structure and parent guides
- A possible free ride through your library
Not us
Other Little Pim alternatives worth a look.
- Dinolingo · Subscription: $19 a month or $199 a year; 7-day free trial · Web browser, iPhone, iPad, Android. Fifty languages and a full course with videos, games and worksheets for ages 2–14, at $199 a year; for a school-age child who has outgrown Little Pim.
- Gus on the Go · $3.99 once per language app · iPhone, iPad, Mac (M1+); Android for some languages. A $3.99 one-time vocabulary app per language, about 90 words each; cheap and ad-free, though some editions have not been updated in years.
- Canticos Bilingual Preschool · Subscription: $6.99 a month or $57.99 a year (other plans listed at $39.99 and $45.99); 7-day free trial · iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Vision; an Android version is listed by the maker. For an English–Spanish home: songs, books and games in either language, ages 1–5, on a smaller subscription.
- Khan Academy Kids · Free — no ads, no subscriptions, no in-app purchases · iPhone, iPad (iOS 13+), Android, Amazon Fire. Free, English, and excellent from about three; not a language app, but the one to have once the child can play alone.
Questions
What parents ask us.
Is there a free Little Pim alternative?
Our free set — 75 words and 35 phrases in eight languages, no account — and, for a bilingual home, video calls with relatives who speak the language, which the AAP treats as relationship time rather than screen time.7
What about Ms. Rachel?
Ms. Rachel’s videos are free on YouTube and model English speech warmly; the same screen guidance applies, and they are English only. Little Pim and our app are both about other languages.
How young can we start with Their First Words?
From the first months, used as a prompt: you look at the picture together and say the word. The app’s First Words stage is built for 0–24 months, and the first-words guide explains what to expect when.
Want the full head-to-head? Read Their First Words vs Little Pim.
What this is based on
Sources
- Little Pim, home page — the twelve languages, the method, 360 words and phrases per language, prices, ad-free. littlepim.com
- Apple App Store, Little Pim Video — subscription prices, age band, privacy label, last update. apps.apple.com
- Mango Languages support, Little Pim — library access. support.mangolanguages.com
- DeLoache, J. S., Chiong, C., Sharp, K., Vanderborght, M., Troseth, G. L., Strouse, G. A. & O’Doherty, K. (2010). Do babies learn from baby media? Psychological Science, 21(11), 1570–1574. doi:10.1177/0956797610384145
- Kuhl, P. K., Tsao, F.-M. & Liu, H.-M. (2003). Foreign-language experience in infancy: effects of short-term exposure and social interaction on phonetic learning. PNAS, 100(15), 9096–9101. pnas.org
- World Health Organization (2019). To grow up healthy, children need to sit less and play more — no screen time under one; none recommended for sedentary one-year-olds. who.int
- American Academy of Pediatrics (2026). Helping kids thrive in a digital world: the AAP policy explained — under 18 months learn from real-world interaction; play alongside; video chat with family is relationship time. healthychildren.org
Facts about other apps were checked on October 2, 2026 against the sources above. Store prices are US prices on that day; they change, and the store is the authority for today’s price.
Keep looking
Alternatives to other apps.
Speech Blubs alternativesLooking for a Speech Blubs alternative? What families usually want instead — no subscription, more languages, a parent-led pace — what Their First Words does and does not replace, and other options worth a look.Read ›
Lingokids alternativesLooking for a Lingokids alternative? The usual reasons — the subscription, the size of it, a child playing alone, English first — what Their First Words replaces and does not, and the free and calm options worth a look.Read ›
Khan Academy Kids alternativesLooking for a Khan Academy Kids alternative? There are few good reasons to leave a free app this good — a child under three, a second language, or wanting a parent-led pace are the honest ones. What Their First Words replaces, what it doesn’t, and other options.Read ›
Dinolingo alternativesLooking for a Dinolingo alternative? The usual reasons — $199 a year, a course built for ages up to 14, a child learning from a screen — what Their First Words replaces for the under-fives, what it does not, and other options by language.Read ›
The best app for your familyTen guides by who you are: bilingual homes, late talkers, one-year-olds, travel, no subscriptions.Browse the guides ›
Simple Words, Special Moments
Start with one word.
75 words and 35 phrases are free, forever, with both voices. One $9.99 purchase opens the rest of the 1,000+ words and 500+ phrases, in all eight languages at once. No subscription, nothing renews.