Best Platforms to Prepare for the Duolingo English Test (DET) in 2026

For most students, Arno is the best DET prep platform. It has a generous free tier with unlimited practice questions for every question type. On paid plans, you get unlimited AI feedback on writing and speaking questions, full and mini mock tests with detailed Score Reports, and personalized study plans that allow you to quickly raise your scores.

Over the last 10 years, the DET has been the fastest-growing English proficiency test, and it is now one of the most popular tests in the world. There are already a lot of prep platforms and other resources — and more are being created all the time. This can make it difficult to know which one you should choose. This article will help you figure it out.

Below, we objectively review and compare some of the most popular DET preparation platforms available today, including Arno, Duolingo, DET Practice, DET Ready, and DreamyDET.

Arno

Best for: Students looking for an affordable platform that meets all of their DET needs

Overview: Since we launched Arno three years ago, we’ve been working hard to build everything that a student would need to get ready for the DET. This includes free and unlimited practice questions for every question type, full and mini mock tests with accurate scoring, AI-powered feedback on your writing and speaking responses, personalized study plans, lessons from DET experts, an AI speaking partner, a Vocabulary Builder, and a lot more.

Main Strengths 💪

• Free & unlimited practice questions allow to practice each question type as much as you need. We have 30,000+ questions, covering every difficulty level.
• Full mock tests that are just like the real test — including subscores — but our mock tests also give you a detailed Score Report with feedback on all of your answers (which you don’t even get on the real test!)
• Instant AI-powered scoring and feedback that’s like having an expert tutor review all of your answers and show you exactly how to improve them to gain points.
• Personalized study plans that select the lessons and exercises that will allow you to improve the most quickly.
• All of our plans give you unlimited access to AI scoring & feedback, mock tests, and all our advanced features so you can study as much as you like!

Main Weaknesses 👎

• AI scoring and feedback only available on paid plans (but every new user gets feedback on 5 questions for free, so that you can try out the feedback before spending any money)
• All of the features can make it difficult to determine which ones you should use

To create your free Arno account, just click here!

Duolingo

Best for: Students who want to prepare for free

Overview: Duolingo themselves offers free resources to help students get ready. Most importantly, they offer a free mock test that you can take as much as you like. They also have guides with key information about the test questions and some practice questions for most question types.

Main Strengths 💪

• Duolingo makes the test, so their preparation materials are the most trustworthy.
• Their mock test is free and the questions are closest to the real test, including the adaptive difficulty level.

Main Weaknesses 👎

• Their mock test only gives you an estimated overall score (typically a 10-point range) but no subscores or feedback on individual responses.
• Limited number of practice questions
• Practice questions not available for every question type
• Resource section only contains essential test info, not detailed information with strategies, tips, and tricks to help you score higher

DET Practice

Best for: Students who only want to pay for a few mock tests

Overview: DET Practice also aims be to an all-in-one platform for DET preparation. They have a large question bank (18,000+ questions) which they update daily in addition to courses, mock tests, and AI scoring and feedback.

Main Strengths 💪

• Ability to purchase individual mock tests
• Smart Plan feature that suggests practice questions you should do
• Large question bank that covers every question type on the test and has difficulty levels
• AI-powered scoring and feedback on writing and practice questions

Main Weaknesses 👎

• No free tier – you have to pay access to any part of their platform
• Expensive — you have to pay for their most expensive Pro plan ($39.90 USD per month) to get unlimited AI feedback. Even on that plan, you only get 10 mock tests per month.
• Lessons use an AI-generated voice, not a human English teacher, and don’t provide a lot of useful tips.

DET Ready

Best for: Students who want access to live lectures with the world’s most famous DET instructor

Overview: DET Ready was created by Teacher Luke, who you probably already know if you have been preparing for the DET! His platform has practice questions and premium content, including live lessons with him.

Main Strengths 💪

• Teacher Luke probably has more knowledge about the DET than anyone else; he has been helping students get ready for many years!
• Extensive and detailed lessons that go deep into every part of the test
• Premium plans are cheaper than most other platforms’

Main Weaknesses 👎

• Just 15 free practice questions before you have to pay to access more
• The premium plan only gets you feedback on 50 writing and speaking questions
• No mock tests

DreamyDET

Best for: Students who want a comprehensive preparation platform but are willing to give up quality in order to save money

Overview: The DreamyDET platform has practice questions, mock tests, and a DET vocabulary bank — some of the most important tools to have if you are getting ready for the test. They aim to be the “budget” option.

Main Strengths 💪

• Large question bank of community-vetted questions
• Paid plans offer unlimited practice questions and mock tests at a lower price than other platforms
• Mock tests offer AI scoring and feedback
• You can buy individual mock tests for $3.99 USD

Main Weaknesses 👎

• In head-to-head comparisons, DreamyDET’s scores and feedback are less accurate than other platforms’
• You only get 15 practice questions for free before you have to upgrade
• Very limited resource section, indicating that they don’t have DET experts or ESL teachers on staff

Summary

Below is a table that summarizes our reviews of the platforms so that you can quickly decide which one is best for you. Happy studying!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Which DET prep platform is best for beginners?

If you want a single platform that covers everything (practice for all question types, mock tests, and personalized study plans), Arno is the best choice. We have a generous free tier, so you can get started for free, check out our advanced features, and then decide later if they are worth paying for.

Which DET prep platform is best to improve quickly?

This really depends on what is holding you back. If you are not familiar with the DET question types, then you should watch some test walkthroughs on YouTube and take the official mock test. If you find certain questions difficult, then you can watch masterclasses about them and then practice those question types in Arno for free. A lot of students can quickly raise their scores this way.

If you need more help improving, then paying for a subscription to a prep platform may make sense. Arno is great because after you take our mock test, we are able to identify your main areas for improvement and then build you a personalized study plan with the best lessons and exercises to help you improve. This makes it both fast and easy to raise your score.

What’s the best free platform for DET preparation?

For most students, the best free resource is Duolingo’s official mock test. There is also a ton of great free content with test tips on YouTube such as Teacher Luke, Last Minute English, and Arno. Many students also rely on Arno's free practice questions to really focus on specific subscores, sections, and questions.

Do I need AI feedback to improve my speaking and writing scores?

No. Before paying for a subscription, you should learn the best strategies for the writing and speaking questions on the DET. Just search in YouTube or Google, and you'll find a lot of resources.

If learning those strategies isn't enough to improve your scores, then you may want to consider paying to access AI feedback. But before purchasing a subscription to a prep platform, you should test out a platform's AI feedback and see if it's actually helpful to you. In Arno, every new user gets feedback on five writing or speaking questions for free to allow you to do this.

Once you're ready to take the test, be sure to book through Arno. You will save 15% off the booking fee and you'll get your results in just 24 hours.