When comparing Pimsleur vs InternetPolyglot, the Slant community recommends InternetPolyglot for most people. In the question“What are the best sites for learning foreign languages?” InternetPolyglot is ranked 12th while Pimsleur is ranked 17th. The most important reason people chose InternetPolyglot is:
It remembers the words that you've scored poorly on in the past, and repeats these more often in games/tests than the words you know well.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Graduated interval recall
Spaced repetition in and between lessons are timed for maximum recall. This also means you can't skip days between lessons, or work ahead. Each level takes one month.
Pro Very effective for beginners
Pimsleur is based on proven memory science, it's not perfect, but it is very effective. Intermediate learners may not get as much out of it.
Pro Learn while you commute
Pimsleur uses daily 30-minute audio lessons. You can probably fit this in while you're driving to work.
Pro Principle of anticipation
Rather than simple listen-and-repeat, you also have to translate phrases and answer questions in the target language during the lessons.
Pro Teaches pronunciation well
Uses the backchaining technique with native speakers.
Pro Games focus on practicing the words you've struggled with
It remembers the words that you've scored poorly on in the past, and repeats these more often in games/tests than the words you know well.
Pro Free
Access to the whole site/program is completely free.
Pro Five different games to choose from for variety
You can choose from 5 different types of learning games so you can learn in a way that best suits you.
There is a picture game, typing game, guessing game, matching game, and word search.
Pro Very easy to use and covers most of your needs
Cons
Con No writing practice
Pimsleur is an audio-only course. This can be easier for beginners learning languages that don't use the Latin alphabet, but for serious language learners, it's a gap they'll have to fill using something else.
Con Expensive
All the CDs for one language cost nearly a thousand dollars. The .mp3's are about half that. Your local library may carry the CDs, those that don't may be able to get them via inter-library loan (ask your librarian). You can also find them used and re-sell them for nearly as much (depending on how long you want to wait), after you finish. Be certain to get the same edition for all levels.
Con Too slow-paced and repetitive for some learners
If you learn quickly, you may find that the 30 minute lessons covering only a small handful of vocabulary move too slowly for you.
Con Limited vocabulary
It teaches hundreds of words. A great start, but not enough to achieve the thousands required for fluency, even with all three levels. Pimsleur deliberately focuses on the most common words of the target language for maximum recall.
Con Should be used along with another course/book
InternetPolyglot states on their site that the program is meant to aid in memorization only, and should be used along side other resources.
Con Games do not end on their own
You have to decide when you've had enough playing the games, or set a timer. The games do not end the game for you, so it's not smart about conserving your energy or ending the session when you've learned the material or when you've gone beyond 25 minutes which is the limits of most people's ability to focus.