HelloTalk reviews: what App Store users complain about

We read the 300 most recent App Store reviews of HelloTalk - Language Learning (by HELLOTALK FOREIGN LANGUAGE EXCHANGE LEARNING TALK CHAT APP) from 14 storefronts, dated 22 June 2026 to 22 October 2026. Average rating in this sample: 2.05★. All-time App Store rating: 4.6★ from 44k ratings. 240 reviews (80%) gave 1–3 stars.

Star ratings in this sample

Rating by month

What 1–3★ reviews mention

129 English-language 1–3★ reviews in the sample (US, UK, Canada, Australia and India storefronts), matched against fixed keyword lists per theme.

A review can mention several themes.

Most-mentioned issues

1. Fix login / account access: 37 of 129 1–3★ reviews. What to do: Audit the sign-in flow (SSO, password reset, verification emails) on the latest version; add clear error messages.
   “I got this a couple years ago however at one point I got logged out and was never able to sign back in I’ve tried quite a few times ever since and it won’t let me in so I tried create a new account and it stops you from making a new account with the same IP which sucks because I…” (3★, v6.4.10, 2026-09-19, AU)
2. Reduce ad frequency and length: 12 of 129 1–3★ reviews. What to do: Cap ads per session, avoid unskippable video, and never show ads in the middle of a core task.
   “P***advertisements girls on videos with bad movements in each advertisement which is frustrating and the same time you don’t allow anyone to speak in P**** and also not all the people want to see those disgusting advertisements videos … can you please stop them because we are lea…” (1★, v6.3.80, 2026-07-22, GB)
3. Answer support requests: 12 of 129 1–3★ reviews. What to do: Add an in-app contact option and reply to these App Store reviews; Apple lets developers respond publicly.
   “1 star, do not recommend. The platform has extremely crude and unfair account review rules. My account and device got restricted unexpectedly without any clear violation notice. I submitted appeals to customer support many times, only receiving generic automatic replies with no r…” (1★, v6.3.80, 2026-07-26, US)
4. Stop data / progress loss: 9 of 129 1–3★ reviews. What to do: Reproduce sync and restore paths; add server-side backup and a visible "restore" option.
   “This app has become the attraction to two specific types of people, the shallow pretty girls who pose selfies upon selfies that bait users and the men chasing them and buying endless amounts of diamonds to stand out. It used to be a really good app in the past to meet genuine peo…” (1★, v6.3.90, 2026-08-25, AU)
5. Improve content quality: 8 of 129 1–3★ reviews. What to do: Review the content areas users name; add a "report a problem" button on content.
   “I used to love this app before, but now it’s just really so bad, because wdym a lot of people reported me? I didn’t even do anything wrong even when I tried to delete my whole account and make a new one I’m still PERMANENTLY banned from messaging people, I really hate this app so…” (1★, v6.4.10, 2026-09-15, AU)
6. Justify or adjust the price: 5 of 129 1–3★ reviews. What to do: Test a cheaper tier, annual discount or one-time purchase; show what paid users get.
   “It’s okay… but I don’t like the vip features that is only exclusive to people like the subscriptions is ridiculous expensive £10.99 where I’m from - the uk Is too expensive I don’t mind if they offer £5.99 like most apps do. So if you change that I’ll give a 5 star review” (1★, v6.4.10, 2026-09-18, GB)

Rating by app version

Versions with fewer than 5 reviews in the sample are left out.

App Store vs Google Play

Method and limits

Reviews were collected once from Apple's public customer-reviews feed (most recent first, 14 storefronts merged, up to 300 reviews). Star, month and version figures are plain counts of that sample. Theme and issue figures come from fixed keyword patterns (for example “subscription”, “charged”, “refund” for pricing) run on English-language 1–3★ reviews only; a keyword match is not a judgement of the review, so check the quotes. The paid report classifies every review with an AI model into 7 themes and 18 issues with severity. This is a snapshot of recent reviews, not the app's full history. Generated 24 October 2026. Not affiliated with HELLOTALK FOREIGN LANGUAGE EXCHANGE LEARNING TALK CHAT APP or Apple.

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FAQ

What do HelloTalk users complain about most?

In 129 English-language 1–3★ App Store reviews from 2026-06-22 to 2026-10-22, the most-mentioned theme was pricing / subscription (33%) and the most-mentioned issue was “fix login / account access” (37 reviews).

How many HelloTalk App Store reviews are negative?

240 of 300 recent reviews (80%) gave 1–3 stars. Average rating in this sample: 2.05★.