How to Make Your Duolingo Harder? (2025)

Have you ever used Duolingo for so long that it suddenly feels… too easy?
Like you’re just tapping through lessons without really thinking?

Yeah, that happened to me too. After a year of daily practice, I noticed I wasn’t feeling challenged anymore. The lessons were the same old thing, and honestly, I started to get a little bored.

Then one day, I came across a Reddit thread where people were talking about ways to make Duolingo harder.

I didn’t even know that was a thing! But that day changed everything—I realized there are plenty of ways to make Duolingo more challenging (and fun again).

If your lessons are starting to feel too easy, don’t worry!

In this blog post, I’ll share 7 simple ways to make your Duolingo lessons harder and more challenging.

How To Increase Difficulty On Duolingo?

Making Duolingo harder is easy! Here are some ways to make your Duolingo lessons more challenging:

1. Choose the Right Level:

The first way to make Duolingo harder is to choose the right level when you start. when you start learning a new language on Duolingo, it asks how much you already know.

If you select that you’re a beginner, Duolingo will begin with basic lessons that might feel too easy.

So, make sure to choose the right level for yourself.

2. Set a Higher XP Goal:

Another way to make Duolingo harder is to increase your daily goal. Duolingo offers four different goal options:

• Casual: 10 XP
• Regular: 20 XP
• Serious: 30 XP
• Intense: 50 XP

To make Duolingo more challenging, set your daily goal to “Intense” (50 XP). Here’s how you can do it:

1. First, tap on the Profile tab, then select Settings.
2. Then, scroll down and tap on the Edit Daily Goal option.
3. Finally, select “Intense” (50 XP) as your goal and tap the Save button.

3. Try Harder Challenges

Sometimes, after a few lessons, Duolingo allows you to make the next question harder.

You’ll have to spend 20 gems to do this, and if you succeed, you’ll get double XP as a reward.

So, if you see this challenge, don’t skip it – accept it!

4. Practice with Timers

This is my favorite way to make Duolingo more challenging. when I take a Duolingo lesson, I set a timer on my smartwatch and try to finish the lesson before the time runs out.

If you want to make Duolingo harder, you should definitely try this —you’ll absolutely love it!

5. Don’t Use Hints

A good way to make Duolingo lessons more challenging is to avoid using hints.

When you’re doing exercises on Duolingo, you’ll see some words with a dotted underline. If you tap on them, you’ll see their translation.

To make Duolingo harder, don’t tap on the dotted words. Try to figure out their meaning yourself!

6. Try Reverse Trees (Path)

If you’ve completed a foreign language course on Duolingo, try reversing it.

For example, if you’ve finished the Russian course in English or your native language, now try learning the English course using Russian as your primary language.

This will make learning more challenging and also help you to become fluent.

7. Listen to Podcasts

The last but not least way to make Duolingo harder is by listening to the Duolingo podcast.

Yes, Duolingo has its own podcast! Right now, it’s available for people learning Spanish, French, or English.

If you’re studying one of these languages, Duolingo podcasts are a great way to challenge yourself and improve your listening skills at the same time.

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Wrapping Up

So there you have it—seven easy ways to make Duolingo more challenging and way less boring!

Try a few of these tips and see which ones push you the most. And if you discover another fun way to make Duolingo harder, drop it in the comments—I’d love to hear about it!

That’s it for this post! If you found it helpful, please share it with your friends and family.