6 Slowly alternatives compared (2026): slow letters, pen pals, language exchange

Disclosure first. This article is written by the team that makes Lettie, and one of the six apps is ours. Lettie sits at the bottom of the table, with its downsides. It is still a small app (917 people in 79 countries as of October 3, 2026).

People leave Slowly for one of three reasons: the language gap, finding someone to write to feels like work, or replies drying up. Different reasons, different answers. And if you love slow letters and share a language with your pen pals, staying on Slowly is often the right call.

At a glance

App	One line	Translation	Letter delay	Purpose
Slowly	The original slow-letter app, lots of people	External / paid	By distance	Pen pals
InterPals	The biggest pen-pal community (web-first)	None	Instant	Pen pals · languages
HelloTalk	Chat with native-speaker corrections	Built in	Instant	Language exchange
Tandem	Voice & video language exchange	Built in	Instant	Language exchange
Penpal World	Old-school pen-pal matching	None	Instant	Pen pals
Ablo	Auto-translated chat	Built in	Instant	Light conversation
Lettie (ours)	Letters fly across a globe; pick up strangers' letters. Still small	In-app, 70+ languages, free	1–24 h by distance	Pen pals

1. If language was the wall → HelloTalk, Ablo, Lettie

The most common complaint about Slowly is translation: copy the letter out to a translator, paste it back, repeat for every letter.

• HelloTalk is chat, but sentence-level corrections and translation make it the most efficient tool if learning is the goal. No letter rhythm, though.
• Ablo auto-translates every message. Good for casually talking to people in many countries; don't expect depth.
• Lettie (ours) puts the translate button inside the letter — 70+ languages, one tap switches between the translation and the original. The slow, distance-based delivery is the same idea as Slowly. With far fewer people, though, you have less choice of who to write to.

2. If finding someone to write to felt like work → InterPals, Lettie

• InterPals has the fastest search: filter by country, age and language and find someone to write to today.
• Lettie (ours) skips the search: you start by picking up a letter a stranger released and replying, plus a few introduction cards a day. No photos, no swiping. It suits people who'd rather start from one letter; the downside is that there may be no one from the country you want yet.

3. If you want the biggest crowd → InterPals, Penpal World

• InterPals has been the largest pen-pal community since the 2000s. If you need someone in a specific country or city tonight, it's the fastest. The usual downsides: web-first UI, people asking for WhatsApp in the first message, spam accounts.
• Penpal World is simple profile-based matching that's been around forever. Fine if you can live with ads and a dated design.

4. If speaking practice is the point → Tandem

Tandem is strongest at voice and video calls. It's the opposite end from letters, but if "language exchange" was why you used Slowly, this may fit better.

5. If you're leaving because replies died

One note, because this follows you to the next app: replies die mostly because the first letter is all introduction and no question. Whatever app you use, end the first letter with one question that's easy to answer.

Summary

• You like slow letters and share a language → keep Slowly
• Numbers matter most → InterPals
• Language learning → HelloTalk; speaking practice → Tandem
• You want letters with people in other languages and don't mind a small place → Lettie (ours)

Based on public information as of October 2026. Corrections welcome.