Memrise is one of the most popular language learning platforms in the world, with over 55 million registered users and an active community of lesson creators, tutors and learners.
Founded in 2010 by British entrepreneur Ed Cooke and neuroscientist Greg Detre, the app was built using processes both co-founders conceived as the easiest way to learn languages effectively, though the psychological spacing effect.
Before Memrise, Cooke had been awarded the Grand Master of Memory title by the International Association of Memory and Detre was specialising in memory at Princeton University.
Memrise uses flashcards, often with videos provided by members of the community saying the words. The word or phrase will then be spaced out as the user learns more words and then brought back in at a later date, which is a way to enable faster memorisation.
At the start, Memrise was heavily focused on the web app, which led to a large community growing out of it creating their own courses on specific languages. There are hundreds of courses available on the web app, some cover other topics such as history, geography and trivia.
On the mobile app, the Memrise experience is more straightforward. 20 languages are available to learn and users need to subscribe to be able to complete the full course and receive additional features, such as offline viewing.
Memrise has seen a gradual increase in mobile users, with a surge in interest following its award for Google App of the Year in 2017.
It hasn’t all been easy sailing however, with Memrise’s community going against the company’s decision to launch Decks, a separate app for user created content. After much criticism of the decision on the forums and Reddit, it decided to reverse course.
Some are worried that like Memrise’s own content, the user generated content will soon become gated behind a subscription.
With the Duolingo IPO on the NASDAQ and Babbel planning an IPO on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, there is some interest in Memrise potentially hitting the public markets, although the company has not made any indication that it will do so.
It has been profitable since 2016, but trails Duolingo in total users and Babbel in revenue.
We have collected data and statistics on Memrise. Read on below to find out more.
Memrise key statistics
- Memrise made an estimated $24.5 million revenue in 2021, a 7% increase year-on-year
- Memrise has 60 million registered users
- It has raised $21.8 million, with its latest round in June 2018 (Crunchbase)
Memrise overview
| Title | Title 2 |
|---|---|
| Launch date | September 2010 |
| HQ | London, UK |
| People | Ed Cooke (co-founder, CEO), Ben Whately (co-founder, CPO), Greg Dutre (co-founder) |
| Business type | Private |
| Industry | Language learning |
Memrise revenue
We estimate that Memrise made $24.5 million revenue in 2021, mostly from its premium subscription service.
Memrise annual revenue 2017 to 2021 ($mm)
| Year | Revenue ($mm) |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 6.3 |
| 2018 | 11.4 |
| 2019 | 16.3 |
| 2020 | 22.8 |
| 2021 | 24.5 |
Memrise registered users
Memrise last reported its registered users figure in 2018 when it reached 40 million, we have estimated its growth since.
Memrise annual registered users 2017 to 2021 (mm)
| Year | Users (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 35 |
| 2018 | 40 |
| 2019 | 45 |
| 2020 | 55 |
| 2021 | 60 |
Source: Company data
Memrise vs competitors: revenue
Want to learn more? Read our language learning sector profile
Memrise FAQ
How many language courses does Memrise offer?
Memrise has 20 languages available and courses specifically for different dialects, such as Mexican Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese
How many user generated courses are available?
There are over 200 user generated courses available on Memrise
