Duolingo Gems & Lingots - The COMPLETE Guide - duoplanet (2023)

Ever bagged yourself a chest of gems on Duolingo?

Perhaps you’re swimming in a pool of lingots?

Maybe you’re wondering what they are and why Duolingo has two different currencies?!

Don’t worry, you’re not alone.

Gems and lingots are all the rage on Duolingo. There are lots of ways you can earn them and a bunch of different things you can spend them on.

In this guide, I’ll give you the lowdown on everything you need to know!

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Duolingo gems

So, what are Duolingo gems?

Gems are the virtual currency on the Duolingo mobile app.

If you use Duolingo on your iPhone, iPad or Android device, you’ll find yourself earning chests of gems.

If you use Duolingo on the desktop site, however, then you need to be aware of…

Duolingo lingots

A lingot is pretty much the same as a gem.

The only difference is that lingots are the virtual currency on the Duolingo desktop site.

You earn them in essentially the same way.

Duolingo gems vs lingots

You’d be forgiven for wondering what the difference is between gems and lingots.

For the most part, they’re basically the same.

The main difference is you can only earn gems on mobile devices, whereas you can only earn lingots on the desktop site.

Oh, and the colour. Gems are blue, whereas lingots are red!

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Converting lingots to gems

But wait: what if you like to use the mobile app AND the desktop site?

Can you convert your lingots to gems and vice versa?

The short answer is: no.

Back in the day, lingots were the one and only virtual currency. So whether you were using Duolingo on mobile or desktop, you only had lingots — and the totals were exactly the same on both.

Then Duolingo decided to switch things up.

In 2017, all mobile users had their lingots converted to gems.

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Despite the similarities, the two currencies aren’t interchangeable. So if you use Duolingo on desktop and mobile, then you’ll probably have completely different lingot and gem totals.

There isn’t a clear exchange rate either. Generally Duolingo dish out a lot more gems than they do lingots, and so prices on mobile are generally higher than they are on desktop.

For instance, a double-or-nothing wager costs 50 gems on mobile, whereas it costs 5 lingots on desktop.

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How to get gems in Duolingo

So how do you get gems in Duolingo?

There are currently several ways:

hit daily xp goal

The easiest way to earn gems is to hit your daily XP goal.

For example, if you set your daily XP goal to 10 XP, then you’ll earn a chest of gems after you complete your first lesson of the day.

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daily quests

Another cool way to earn gems is to complete daily quests.

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Not everyone will have this feature as it’s still pretty new. But if you do have it, you’ll find it in your challenges section.

Basically every day you’ll be set 3 easy challenges.

These could include earning a crown, completing a couple of lessons, listening to a certain number of exercises etc.

You’ll earn a chest of gems for each challenge you complete.

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So when you take this alongside the daily XP goal, you’ll have an opportunity to earn at least 4 chests of gems every single day!

leagues

Another good way to earn gems is to finish in the top 3 in your weekly league.

The higher you finish, the more gems you’ll earn.

double-or-nothing wager

If you fancy yourself as a bit of a gambling type, then you’ll probably be interested in a gem wager!

Simply head over to the Duolingo shop and select the wager option.

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There’s only one wager — a double-or-nothing for 50 gems.

The goal is to maintain a 7-day streak.

If you manage it, you’ll get your 50-gem wager back, plus an additional 50 gems!

complete achievements

Completing achievements is another cool way of bagging yourself some gems.

You can find your list of achievements at the bottom of your Duolingo profile.

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Depending on your device and whether Duolingo are doing any A/B testing, you should have about 13 achievements to work through.

Some of the achievements have tiers. Whenever you complete a tier or an achievement in its entirety, you’ll earn roughly 25 gems.

Obviously, there’s a bit of a limit to this as you can only earn an achievement once. But if you’ve still got some to work through, then this is definitely a good way of pumping your gem total!

buy them

Last but not least…

If you’re *that* desperate for gems, you can buy them with real money from the Duolingo shop.

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In the UK, the cheapest chest costs £4.49, and this will get you 1200 gems.

The most expensive costs £17.99, and this will get you a wagon of 6500 gems!

How to get lingots in Duolingo

The way to earn lingots is pretty much exactly the same as earning gems.

You just have to do the above on the desktop site.

Well, some of the above.

Hitting your daily XP goal, finishing in the top 3 in your league, and completing achievements will bag you some lingots.

However, as of April 2022, the desktop site doesn’t have daily quests, and I haven’t been able to find any way of buying lingots with real money either.

But don’t fret — there are some other ways of earning lingots:

level up

An easy way to earn lingots is to move through the crown levels.

Every time you earn a crown, you’ll earn a lingot as well.

And if you manage to complete the entire skill, you’ll bag yourself 2 lingots.

10-day streaks

Keeping your streak burning is another easy way of earning lingots.

Every 10 days you maintain your streak, you’ll bag yourself a lingot.

What are gems and lingots for?

So what’s the point of Duolingo’s virtual currencies? What can you actually do with them?

shop

The Duolingo shop is the go-to place for spending your hard-earned gems and lingots.

Sadly, there isn’t much you can spend them on.

But don’t worry; the shelves aren’t totally bare!

The main things you can buy with your gems and lingots include:

  • Streak Freezes
  • Wagers
  • Bonus skills (depending on the language course)
  • Costumes for Duo
  • Timer Boosts (for timed challenges)

hearts

This one only applies if you’re a mobile user.

If you’re a serial heart-breaker, then you can use your gems to replenish your reserves.

Whenever you run out of hearts, you’ll get an option to restore your hearts to their maximum capacity, allowing you to dive back into your lesson tree.

legendary levels

This one only applies if you’re a non-Plus member.

If you’re a free member, you’ll have to pay 100 gems in order to tackle the legendary levels.

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These are the final levels in a skill, marked by a fancy purple crown.

harder lessons

Oddly enough, you can also spend gems to make your lessons harder.

Every now and then you’ll get a pop-up asking if you want to crank the difficulty up a notch.

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It’ll set you back 20 gems and make the next lesson a bit harder.

If you manage to complete it, you’ll bag yourself double the usual XP!

What happens if you run out of gems on Duolingo?

If you run out of gems on Duolingo — don’t panic!

It’s definitely not as big of a deal as losing all your hearts, as you’re still able to do your lessons, complete practices, read stories etc.

If you’re a free member then it’s actually pretty common to run out of gems, as you’ll often find yourself using them to refill your hearts or doing the legendary levels.

If ever you run your gem balance down to zero, simply try out the following strategy to bring your total back up…

Duolingo gems hack

I’ll be straight with you — I don’t know how to cheat the system, so this isn’t a genuine ‘hack’. (Sorry!).

But! If you’re looking for the most effective legitimate way of earning gems fast, then keep reading…

In my opinion, the best strategy is as follows:

  1. Set your daily XP goal to the lowest setting. This will allow you to bag your daily chest after just one lesson.
  2. Complete all 3 daily quests (mobile only). These are usually pretty easy and you can earn anywhere from 5 to 12 gems per chest.
  3. Take the weekly wager. So long as you maintain your streak, this will guarantee you an easy 50 gems each week.
  4. Use XP Boosts to ensure you finish in the top 3 every week. Good use of XP Boosts will give you the best chance to earn a chest from the leagues. Consider logging in early to get the Early Bird boost and complete crown levels strategically to ensure you earn double XP on your subsequent lessons.

I’m sure there are guys out there who know how to genuinely cheat the system.

However, if you want to keep it clean (which I 100% recommend) then the above is one of the best ways to go!

Have your say!

So then, what do you think of Duolingo gems and lingots?

Are you sitting on a mountain or do you find yourself running out a lot?

Let me know down below 🙂

FAQs

What is the difference between lingots and gems? ›

A lingot is pretty much the same as a gem. The only difference is that lingots are the virtual currency on the Duolingo desktop site. You earn them in essentially the same way.

Are lingots and gems the same Duolingo? ›

Gems are the virtual currency for all iOS and Android mobile users. Web users will see Lingots, also a virtual currency. You will earn Gems or Lingots for completing lessons on Duolingo.

How to get lingots for free? ›

Play every day to get lingots. Inviting friends: if your friend accepts, you both receive 1 lingot. Maintaining a streak: every ten days of a streak, earn an increasing number of lingots. It's only working for some users though.

How to get 500 Duolingo gems fast? ›

8 Ways to Earn Gems in Duolingo
  1. Double or Nothing Wager. If you are willing to be super consistent with Duolingo (which I can NEVER do… ...
  2. Earn Gems by Achieving Your Daily Goal & Daily Quests. ...
  3. Complete Friends Quests. ...
  4. Finish a League in the Top 3 Places. ...
  5. Maintain a Streak. ...
  6. Earn an Achievement.

Where did all my Duolingo gems go? ›

If you've opened your village to find that gems have gone missing, it's because they've somehow been spent. Usually, it's just because another person has used the gems (like a friend or family member). This is also likely if you've loaded your village onto someone else's device, and didn't sign off.

Does Duolingo actually work? ›

Duolingo generally does a good job of balancing the four essential skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing. It doesn't remedy the fact that we might not be pronouncing the words correctly, but the ability to make and speak our own sentences is a great step toward really learning to use the language.

What is the point of lingots in Duolingo? ›

Lingots are Duolingo's in-game virtual currency used to reward people for various accomplishments related to language learning and translation. Lingots can be used to buy items in the Lingot store or reward people in the Discussion Forum.

How to get free unlimited lives on Duolingo? ›

To turn on Unlimited Hearts, follow these easy steps:
  1. Make sure you have the latest Duolingo app version.
  2. Open your Duolingo app and tap on the Super Duo icon (top).
  3. Tap the Unlimited Hearts to turn on.
  4. Now you should be able to make mistakes without losing any hearts.

How can I get Duolingo for free forever? ›

How is Duolingo Free? By using ads to monetize their app (like I use ads to monetize this website and make it possible to continue to write articles!) they can keep Duolingo free forever. Plus, many users choose to upgrade to Duolingo Plus to avoid ads, which also keeps Duolingo free.

What happens when you reach 100 days on Duolingo? ›

Note that some users are further challenged to 14 and 30 days, which double the reward every time. Reaching certain milestones (such as 100 day streak) can earn the user 3 days free of Super Duolingo.

What happens when you get a 365 day streak on Duolingo? ›

You reach the first tier once you hit a 365-day streak. After that, it goes up every year, and this will be reflected on your weekly leaderboards and profile page. So if you keep the flame burning for 3 years, you'll have a little 3-year badge underneath your username.

What happens if you get a 30 day streak on Duolingo? ›

The Streak Society is an exclusive club in Duolingo acquired by users upon reaching a 30 day streak. The program was rolled out on May 28th, 2022 and originally limited membership to users with a 365 day streak. It contains rewards for its members accessible through a tiered system.

Has anyone ever finished every Duolingo course? ›

That said, no course is ever complete (just look at all the changes Duolingo have made to the French and Spanish courses over the years!)

Can you become fluent with Duolingo? ›

We see this question a lot and the answer is: yes. Duolingo is a free language-learning platform, and every language and lesson is totally free!

What happens when you finish all the Duolingo lessons? ›

The guidebook can be accessed any time, even when you complete the unit. NOTE: Guidebooks are not available for all languages. Once you complete all the levels in a unit, you'll complete a challenge to earn your unit trophy. You'll also have the option to earn the Legendary trophy for each unit.

Is it hard to get to diamond in Duolingo? ›

Duolingo Diamond League

Diamond is usually the most competitive of the 10 leagues. Although only 5 users can be relegated, you have to be on your A-game to stay in the league for another week.

Is there a higher level than diamond in Duolingo? ›

Congrats! You are promoted to the next league. There is no league higher than Diamond. If you reach the top 3 of Diamond, you will remain in that league.

What happens if you run out of hearts in Duolingo? ›

You practice previous material to restore a lost Heart. Tap on the Hearts icon towards the top, and then tap "Practice". Each lesson practiced will restore one Heart. Typically, your next Heart will refill every 5 hours, so your total of five Hearts will restore within 25 hours.

Which is better Babbel or Duolingo? ›

The biggest difference between Babbel and Duolingo is the approach to language learning. Babbel is a better option if you want traditional language instructions through modules and lessons. By contrast, Duolingo works great if you need a playful, gamified experience.

Is Rosetta Stone better than Duolingo? ›

Yes. After thoroughly testing out and reviewing each language learning app, we found Rosetta Stone to be a superior program to Duolingo. While we like Duolingo's gamification of learning, Rosetta Stone is simply more comprehensive and effective.

Is Duolingo streak important? ›

helps to create a habit

It's all about showing up every day and exposing yourself to your target language — even if it's just for a few minutes at a time. Duolingo's always been great for this thanks to the streak counter. The bigger the streak gets, the less you want to lose it.

What happens when you get all the crowns in Duolingo? ›

Crowns, then, represent all the levels you've completed in a course. If you've unlocked 140 crowns in the French course then that means you've completed 140 levels. So, in theory, the more levels you complete, the more advanced you will be in your target language.

What is the maximum level in Duolingo? ›

The ultimate goal for serious users on Duolingo is to hit level 25 in your language. This is the highest level possible and takes a LOT of work to get there.

How does Duolingo make money if its free? ›

Duolingo made $250 Million in 2021, a 55% increase from 2020. Duolingo is free to use. Duolingo makes money by leveraging its freemium business model that relies on a premium subscription offering, advertising, and in-app purchases (IAPs) to produce revenue.

Can you only do Duolingo once a day? ›

You get 10 XP per lesson, but you can choose how many lessons you want per day. Casual is one lesson per day, Regular is two, Serious is three, and Insane is five lessons in a day.

Does Duolingo have a daily limit? ›

The free version of Duolingo limits your daily usage. Here's how they do it: everyday you get a limited amount of “hearts.” You start with 5 per day, and if you answer a question incorrectly, you lose a heart.

How do you get a promo code for Duolingo? ›

Visit duolingo.com/redeem in a browser or on mobile web. Enter promo code and click REDEEM. If you're recognized as an eligible user, click CLAIM OFFER. Create a Duolingo profile, or log in if you already have a Duolingo.

How many courses can you do on Duolingo for free? ›

(You can learn unlimited languages on Duolingo for free!)

How do you get infinite XP on Duolingo? ›

The Fastest Ways to get XP on Duolingo:
  1. Use the Desktop Version. ...
  2. Attend a Duolingo Event. ...
  3. Complete Stories (If they are available in your language) ...
  4. Do Ramp Up Challenges in the League Tab. ...
  5. Go Back to Easier Lessons. ...
  6. Choose Automated Answers Instead of Typing (When Possible) on the mobile app.

Does Duolingo expire? ›

Results for the Duolingo English Test are valid for two years. After two years you will still see your expired result on your homepage, but you will no longer be able to share the result or view the certificate.

Can you get unlimited hearts in Duolingo without paying? ›

One of the interesting things about this is that, if you're part of a Duolingo classroom, you automatically get unlimited hearts! It's actually really easy to set up as well. To do so, simply visit schools.duolingo.com… Then, follow the instructions to create a classroom.

How much is a lifetime subscription to Duolingo? ›

Duolingo Plus Pricing Explained

Sometimes, the trial can be restricted to 7 days as well. After that, they impose monthly charges. Upgrading to Duolingo Plus for an annual subscription would cost you $83.88. Presently, there are no lifetime subscriptions for Duolingo Plus.

How long does it take to become fluent on Duolingo? ›

Putting in ten hours of study and practice per day, this equates to two months for “easy” languages and four months for “difficult” languages. How do you get started? Web sites such as DuoLingo can teach you 27 languages for free.

What is a good streak on Duolingo? ›

The streak is a fun and simple feature, but committing yourself to keeping one is also one of the best ways to stay on track of your learning goals. It's no wonder that Duolingo learners who reach a streak of just 7 days are 3.6 times more likely to complete their course.

What happens if you miss a day on Duolingo? ›

A streak freeze on Duolingo allows you to pause (or in this case 'freeze') your streak. This means that if you miss a day — i.e. you don't login and complete any lessons — then your streak won't reset to 0.

Who has the longest Duolingo streak in the world? ›

Congrats to John Arnold, who has the highest-ever Duolingo streak of over 2000 days! He's a horse farmer and chemist who's been studying for 5.5 years straight. His secret?

How do you take a break from Duolingo without losing your streak? ›

If you are traveling to another time zone and would like to prevent your streak from resetting, you can purchase a streak freeze using gems or lingots from the shop within the app in advance to protect it.

What is the longest streak for a Duolingo user? ›

The longest streak on Duolingo is over 9 years long (3,285+ days) and was earned by user christi3. However, multiple users have accomplished this feat of a world record Duolingo Streak and have made it onto a Streak Hall of Fame. Above you can see the list of users who have completed a streak of over 2555 days.

Does Duolingo automatically freeze your streak? ›

A streak freeze must be purchased in advance of a day of a missed lesson to protect the streak. You can equip up to 2 streak freezes at a time. You can purchase a streak freeze via the app and web shop.

What does WildFire mean Duolingo? ›

Each achievement comes in levels, with having to complete the first level in order to move on to the second level, etc. WildFire:StreakReached.

Why did my Duolingo streak disappear? ›

Duolingo tracks every day in which a learner has practiced a lesson. When a learner misses a day, it creates a gap in the contiguous days practiced. This corresponds to when a learner loses their streak. Skipping day four breaks the learner's streak.

What happens after checkpoint 10 in Duolingo? ›

Once you complete a checkpoint on the Duolingo tree, the main thing that will happen is you will unlock the next unit, and therefore pass through to the next big chunk of the course.

What is the easiest language to learn on Duolingo? ›

Spanish. Spanish is generally seen as the easiest Romance language for English speakers to learn, plus it's the oldest Duolingo course and has had more development put into it than any other language.

What is the hardest language to learn? ›

Across multiple sources, Mandarin Chinese is the number one language listed as the most challenging to learn. The Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center puts Mandarin in Category IV, which is the list of the most difficult languages to learn for English speakers.

What happens if you make too many mistakes in Duolingo? ›

Every day, you get five hearts on Duolingo. If you make a mistake and don't get a question right, you lose a heart. If you lose five hearts, it's game over. You have to wait before you can try again, and it usually takes a pretty long time.

Why is Duolingo lessons so repetitive? ›

Duolingo's design largely relies upon a system called “spaced repetition,” a technique in which learned information is repeated at regular (usually short) intervals. And it's true that spaced repetition combats what's called the “forgetting curve,” thus allowing for easier and longer-lasting memorization.

How many times can I practice Duolingo? ›

Once you complete and submit a test, you will need to wait for your results before taking a new test. You may purchase three tests in any 30 day period.

What is a lingot in French? ›

noun. bullion [noun] bars of gold or silver that has not been made into coins.

What is the major difference between gemstones and gems? ›

Investment grade gemstones are of finer quality than gems that are usually used for jewelry. However, it is of course also possible to have a piece of jewellery made from investmentgrade gemstones. These jewelry pieces with high-quality gems are called “high jewellery”.

What does gems mean in a game? ›

A Gem is a game in which the starting pitcher earns a Game Score of at least 65 or throws six or more innings of shutout baseball.

What does the French word CET mean in English? ›

this that

What does pert mean in French? ›

[ˈpɜːʳt ] adjective. 1. [ girl, reply] malicieux/euse.

What is bon ap in French? ›

What does bon appétit mean? Bon appétit is a way of telling someone to enjoy what they are about to eat. Bon appétit comes from French and literally means “good appetite.” It is one of the most common things to say to people before they eat.

What is the rarest gemstone? ›

Painite : Not just the rarest gemstone, but also the rarest mineral on earth, Painite holds the Guinness World Record for it. After its discovery in the year 1951, there existed only 2 specimens of Painite for the next many decades. By the year 2004, there were less than 2 dozens known gemstones.

Which 4 gemstones are considered precious? ›

The four most sought-after precious gemstones are diamonds, sapphires, emeralds, and rubies. gemstone can help you decide what you want to say with your custom piece of jewelry.

What are the three types of gems? ›

Without sounding too much like a science textbook, there are different ways that gemstones are formed, and those are through an igneous, hy- drothermal, metamorphic or sedimentary formation.

What are 4 examples of gems? ›

These are beryl, chrysoberyl, corundum, diamond, feldspar, garnet, jade, lazurite, olivine, opal, quartz, spinel, topaz, tourmaline, turquoise, and zircon.

How do gems work? ›

Gemstones work on the principle and transmission of wavelengths which belong to some particular planet. When we wear a Gemstone it enhances the absorption of cosmic rays of the planet it represents – remember cosmic rays are different from light rays.

What's better than a gem? ›

Diamonds are the most valuable ones and have greater beauty. They are given at weddings, anniversaries and engagements. Even though gemstones are gorgeous in their own way, diamonds are of higher quality and value. Fancy color diamonds are considered even one level above because of their rarity.

How much is gems of the game worth? ›

For the single-card 2021 Gems of the Game hanger, the lowest price to purchase via eBay “Buy it Now” for 2021 Gems of the Game is currently around $22. As mentioned above, the 2020 version contains more cards and thus is probably priced higher on the secondary market.

Why would a person be called a gem? ›

If you say that something or someone is a gem, you mean that you value the quality or beauty of that person or thing highly: The building was an architectural gem.

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