italki is where you speak with a tutor. Immersed plans that call into your week.
italki is a marketplace for one-to-one online lessons: you pick a teacher, book a time and pay per lesson. Immersed is a language immersion tracker and planner: a free plan built from your answers, then a daily timeline for the shows, podcasts and books you learn from, with reports of your hours. It has no tutors. It plans and records the time around them, broken into nine activities, so your Speaking sits next to the listening and reading that feed it.
Free. About two minutes. No account, no card.
The italki link in Immersed's free blueprint Toolkit is my affiliate link: booking a tutor through it helps keep the blueprints free, at no extra cost to you. Links on this page are plain links.
The short version
Checked October 24, 2026.
Something out of date? Tell me.
If you want to talk with a real person in your language, get corrections, prepare for an exam or just have someone to practise with every week, italki has a huge choice of teachers at prices you set by choosing. Immersed does not offer tutors.
If you want a plan for the hours of listening and reading that make those calls easier, and one record of everything, tutor time included, that is Immersed. A tutor is not a requirement to start. It is one tool you can add when it fits, and Immersed fits it into your week.
01What each one is for
An hour with a person, and the rest of your week.
italki connects you with teachers for more than 150 languages. Professional teachers have verified teaching credentials and often follow a structure or a textbook; community tutors are usually cheaper and closer to a conversation partner. You see reviews, lesson counts and schedules, book a slot and meet online.
A lesson is one hour, maybe two or three a week. Immersed covers the other 160-odd: a daily routine built around your life, milestones for your first months, what to watch and listen to at your level, and a record of all of it.
- italki: one-to-one lessons, trial lessons, packages and group classes
- Immersed: a free blueprint, a daily timeline, nine kinds of session and reports
02Do you need a tutor yet
A tutor is a tool you can choose, not a gate you must pass.
I learned Korean mostly through immersion, from my room in Maryland. My view: you don't need a tutor to start. Many learners spend their first months listening and reading, and the speaking that comes later is easier for it.
A tutor earns its place when you want it: you want to start speaking, you have an exam or a trip coming, you want someone to correct you, or a weekly call keeps you showing up. Immersed's Fluency Checklist has a last stage, Speaking & writing, for when you get there, and Speaking is one of the nine activities you can plan and track from day one if you prefer to start early.
03Planning the week
Put the lesson on your timeline, and the input that feeds it.
italki gives you a calendar of booked lessons. Immersed's timeline holds your whole day from Wake up to Wind down, so the Tuesday call sits next to the podcast on your commute and the episode after dinner.
Plan the lesson as a repeating task with a reminder. In the days before it, plan input on the topic you want to talk about: a YouTube video or a podcast from the Library, or a few minutes on Discover. You walk in with things to say.
- Hidden Immersion Time on the blueprint shows where listening fits around your lessons
- Paste a YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts link and it plays inside the session
04After the call
Log it as Speaking, and see output next to input.
When the lesson starts, press play in Immersed and pick Speaking, or log it afterward with the start and stop time. Add a note with the words your tutor corrected. Rate how much you understood.
Immersed's Growth page then shows time by activity: Speaking next to Active Listening, Reading and the rest, plus streaks, daily average and comprehension over time. Export as PDF, Excel or CSV, or share a report link, which some learners show their tutor.
Side by side · checked October 24, 2026
Immersed and italki, feature by feature.
Speaking
Lessons with a real teacher
Immersed · No
italki · Yes, one-to-one and group classes
Corrections and feedback on your speaking
Immersed · No
italki · Yes, from your teacher
Exam preparation
Immersed · No
italki · Many teachers offer it
Choice of teachers
Immersed · Not applicable
italki · 20,000+ teachers, 150+ languages
Trial lessons
Immersed · Not applicable
italki · Yes, usually cheaper than a full lesson
Planning
A plan built for your day and goals
Immersed · Free blueprint from your answers
italki · No
Immersion milestones for your first months
Immersed · Yes, on the free blueprint
italki · No
Daily planner
Immersed · Timeline from Wake up to Wind down
italki · Calendar of booked lessons
What to watch, listen to and read
Immersed · Library in 22 languages and Discover
italki · Whatever your teacher suggests
Tracking
Tracks lessons
Immersed · Logged as Speaking
italki · Yes, lesson history
Tracks input across every app and platform
Immersed · Yes, nine activities
italki · No
Comprehension rating per session
Immersed · Yes
italki · No
Streaks, consistency grid, time by activity
Immersed · Yes
italki · No
Export your history
Immersed · PDF, Excel, CSV
italki · Not that I found
Apps and price
Phone and computer
Immersed · Web app that installs on both; Android app in testing for Google Play
italki · Web, plus iOS and Android apps
How you pay
Immersed · Free plan, then a subscription
italki · Per lesson, no subscription
Price
Immersed · $60 a year or $9.99 a month
italki · Set by each teacher, from about $5 a lesson
Credit where it's due
Both are good. At different things.
What italki does well
- A real person to talk to, which no app or tracker replaces
- An enormous choice: more than 150 languages and 20,000+ teachers, including regional dialects few other services cover
- Pay as you go, with no subscription and no minimum commitment
- Prices for every budget, from cheap community tutors to credentialed professionals
- Reviews, lesson counts and intro videos that make it easier to pick a good teacher
- Cheap trial lessons, so you can try a few teachers before committing
- Teachers can prepare you for exams, a trip or a job interview in ways self-study cannot
What Immersed does that italki doesn't
- Builds a plan from your time, goals and level, with milestones for your first months
- Plans your tutor calls into a daily timeline alongside the input that feeds them
- Tracks every hour in the language, not only lessons: shows, podcasts, YouTube, books, SRS
- Suggests what to watch, listen to and read for your language, and gives you a Discover feed that counts
- Breaks your hours into nine activities, so Speaking shows next to the input that feeds it, week by week
- Costs about $5 a month on the yearly plan, less than a single lesson with many tutors
Pick italki if
- You want to start speaking and want a patient person to practise with
- You have an exam, a move or a job that needs speaking soon
- You want corrections on your pronunciation and grammar from someone who knows the language
- A booked weekly call is what keeps you accountable
- You are learning a dialect or a less common language with few apps
Pick Immersed if
- You want to build understanding through input before, or alongside, speaking
- You want a plan that fits your actual day, not only one booked hour
- You want one record of all your time in the language, tutor calls included
- You want to spend less while you build a base, and add a tutor later when it fits
Use both, or move over
Speak on italki, plan and track it in Immersed
Put your italki lesson on the timeline as a repeating task, plan a few days of input on the topic before it, and log the call as Speaking. Your report then shows output and input side by side, and your tutor has more to work with.
If you haven't started with a tutor, you don't need to rush. Build a base of listening and reading first, watch your comprehension climb on the Growth page, and book a trial lesson when you want to start talking. Immersed keeps the record the whole way through.
The free blueprint's Toolkit lists italki on its last card, next to HelloTalk and LangCorrect, with my affiliate link. If you want someone to look at your immersion itself, I also keep a 1-on-1 coaching waitlist, five people at a time.
Pricing · checked October 24, 2026
What each one costs.
Immersed
- Free: the blueprint for one language (with the Toolkit, Library picks and the Fluency Checklist's Foundations), the listening games in 12 languages with their leaderboards, Aim Runner, the Discord and the sample app. A free account also gets the Fitting Room's day-one outfits, Hour Marks and badges from game time.
- Immersed Pro: $60 a year (starts with a free week, about $5 a month) or $9.99 a month. Timeline, sessions with the nine activities, Discover, Library, Growth and reports, monthly Sprints, more languages.
italki
- No subscription. You pay per lesson, and each teacher sets their own price.
- Community tutors: often about $5 to $15 an hour. Professional teachers: often about $10 to $40 an hour, more for exam prep or popular languages.
- Trial lessons: usually a few dollars to about $10. Many teachers discount packages of 5 or 10 lessons.
- You buy italki credits to pay; check the checkout total for any payment fee before you confirm.
Ranges are typical published rates from an April 2026 pricing guide; italki's homepage showed featured teachers from $5 to $24 a lesson when I checked. A weekly hour with a community tutor runs about $20 to $60 a month, a professional several times that. Immersed costs about $5 a month on the yearly plan and covers the hours between lessons.
FAQ
Questions people ask.
Is Immersed an italki alternative?+
No. italki is a marketplace for lessons with real teachers. Immersed has no tutors; it plans, tracks and shows your immersion, and you can log italki lessons in it as Speaking. They do different jobs.
Do I need a tutor to learn a language?+
Not to start. Many learners build understanding through hours of listening and reading first. A tutor is a good tool when you want to speak, get corrections, prepare for an exam, or stay accountable. I see it as a choice, not a requirement.
How much does italki cost?+
Each teacher sets their own price. Typical rates are about $5 to $15 an hour for community tutors and about $10 to $40 for professional teachers, with cheaper trial lessons. There is no subscription. Check the checkout total for any payment fee.
How do I track italki lessons in Immersed?+
Press play in Immersed when the lesson starts and pick Speaking, or log it afterward with the start and stop time. Make it a repeating task on your timeline so it shows up every week with a reminder.
Community tutor or professional teacher?+
Professional teachers have verified credentials and suit exams and structured study. Community tutors are cheaper and good for conversation practice. Reviewers say the label does not always predict quality, so try a trial lesson or two.
Does Immersed connect to italki automatically?+
No. Immersed doesn't connect to italki or read your lesson history. You press play when the lesson starts, or log it afterward.
Does Immersed earn anything from italki?+
Only through one link. The italki link on the free blueprint's Toolkit is my affiliate link: if you book a tutor through it, it helps keep the blueprints free, at no extra cost to you. The links on this page go to italki directly.
More comparisons
Stop guessing. See what your hours add up to.
Answer a few questions and Immersed builds your plan: a daily routine that fits your life, milestones for your first months, and things to watch at your level. Free, about two minutes, no account needed.
The plan is free and stays free. No card.
The italki link in Immersed's free blueprint Toolkit is my affiliate link: booking a tutor through it helps keep the blueprints free, at no extra cost to you. Links on this page are plain links.
Checked October 24, 2026 against published product information. Prices and features change; if something here is out of date, tell me on Discord and I'll fix it.