Duolingo energy and hearts: how to keep learning French without the limits

Duolingo's energy and hearts are limits on the free plan that stop you after a run of lessons or mistakes; you can wait, practise to earn some back, or pay for Super, which removes them. If the limit is the only thing in your way, Super fixes it; if you are hitting it because the French is too hard, slow down instead.

Checked October 2026 · Duolingo price: Free; Super from $9.99/mo or $79.99/yr (checked 2026-10-06 (US App Store))

How the limits work

Depending on your version of the app, you have either hearts, which you lose for each mistake, or energy, which each lesson uses up. When the bar is empty you cannot start a new lesson until it refills over time. Duolingo has been moving users from hearts to energy, so two people on the same course can see different systems.

These limits were the biggest single complaint in the 500 most recent App Store reviews we read: 26 of the 118 one- and two-star reviews were about hearts, energy or streaks.

Free ways to keep going

Do the practice and review sessions the app offers: they are the intended way to win hearts or energy back, and reviewing what you got wrong is better study than racing ahead. Spread your lessons across the day so the bar refills between sessions. If you keep running out on the same unit, it is a sign to repeat earlier units rather than push through.

Use the waiting time for something Duolingo does not do. Ten minutes of real spoken French with a transcript, from one of our French listening apps or a free show on our podcasts page, does more for your ear than another unit.

When to pay for Super

Super removes the limits and the ads, from $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year on the US App Store (checked 6 October 2026). It is worth it if you study in long sittings and the limit is genuinely breaking your routine. It adds no new French. See how much Duolingo costs for the plans, and note the renewal date so you can cancel Super if it stops being useful.

If you would rather pay for more French than for fewer interruptions, a structured course costs about the same per year: Busuu Premium was €57.99 a year when we checked from Germany.

Who it's for

This page is for daily Duolingo users whose French sessions keep getting cut short. The free workarounds suit short, frequent study; Super suits long sittings.

Who it's not for

Learners who hit the limit because they are making lots of mistakes. Paying to make more mistakes faster does not help; go back a unit, or add a course with explained grammar such as Babbel.

Questions

How do you get unlimited energy on Duolingo?

Subscribe to Super, from $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year on the US App Store, checked 6 October 2026. On the free plan, energy refills over time and practice sessions win some back.

Why did Duolingo replace hearts with energy?

Duolingo has been switching users from hearts to energy; both limit how much you do in a row on the free plan. Which one you see depends on your version of the app.

Is there a French app without hearts or energy?

Yes. Busuu, Memrise and Clozemaster do not use a hearts system, though their free plans limit content in other ways.