Education · iOS
Lingvano - Learn Sign Language
by Lingvano GmbH






Lingvano targets complete beginners who want to learn American Sign Language through short, video-based lessons taught by Deaf instructors. At 86 MB it stays light on your phone, and its 600-plus lesson library gives newcomers a genuine curriculum rather than a glossary dressed up as a course. With 111,000 ratings averaging 4.88 stars and three million users, the audience response is hard to argue with, though free-tier limits and the absence of advanced content are worth weighing before you commit.
Video Quality and Pacing Tools
The standout detail here is the turtle-icon slow-motion control on every video and dialogue clip. For a visual language where hand shape and movement timing are everything, being able to drop playback speed without hunting through settings is genuinely useful. Lessons are taught by Deaf instructors, which matters for authenticity, and the visual matching exercises tie signs to pictures or video rather than just text definitions, keeping the learning mode appropriate to the language.
Curriculum Depth vs. Ceiling
Six hundred lessons is a serious number for a mobile app, and the structure moves from vocabulary building through grammar and fingerspelling with chapter-ending quizzes to mark progress. That said, the app positions itself as a beginner to conversational tool, so learners aiming for fluency or professional interpretation will hit a ceiling. The built-in dictionary helps when a sign slips from memory, but there is no evidence of advanced or intermediate tracks beyond the core course.
Who Actually Benefits
Lingvano fits hearing people who want to communicate with Deaf family members or coworkers, and students supplementing a formal class. The ten-minutes-a-day design suits busy schedules, and offline usability is implied by the self-contained 86 MB package. It is less suited to anyone who already signs at a conversational level and wants structured advancement, or to learners outside ASL, since the app focuses on a single language variant.
Pros
- Slow-motion playback on every video clip aids sign recognition directly
- Lessons are created and taught by Deaf instructors, improving authenticity
- 600-plus lessons provide more curriculum depth than most competing apps
- Fingerspelling and number training are included as separate practice tools
- Lightweight at 86 MB with frequent updates, most recently June 2026
Cons
- Content appears capped at beginner to conversational level with no clear advanced track
- Free tier scope is unspecified, so the paywall position is unclear before download
- Covers ASL only, limiting usefulness for learners targeting other sign languages
- No mention of live feedback on the user's own signing accuracy beyond self-review
- Community or social practice features are not detailed in available information