Best Free Online Language Courses
When it comes to value for money and overall effectiveness, it's hard to go past Rocket Spanish. There's a huge amount of learning material packed into each level for a pretty darn reasonable price. You get what is essentially three Spanish courses: A 31-lesson interactive audio course which is great for listening to in the car, a 33-lesson 'Language and Culture' course which goes into greater depth and explains the grammar, plus a suite of testing tools which work on your retention, pronunciation, writing and listening skills.
Let’s take a look at the different ways you can study the English language for free online. Here are my top 10 free English courses, plus a few bonus courses! Free English Language Lessons Online: My Top Choices. Here are my favourite websites for helping you learn English.
Best Free Online Language Learning Sites
I especially like the interactive audio course: Each lesson is around 20 minutes long, and I'm constantly surprised at how much I learn in each short lesson. If you're going to get just one Spanish course, this is my top recommendation. It gives you everything you need to get well-rounded Spanish skills, and it offers tremendously good value for money compared to other courses and software out there. Pros Amazing value for the price. You get an audio course as well as a grammar course so you don't need to buy them separately. One-off purchase (no subscription fees) and free updates for life.
Friendly community. Works on PC/Mac, plus a separate app for iOS and Android..
Cons Only available online. (Digital download and physical versions with free international shipping available.) Not as polished-looking as Fluenz.
Best Free Online Language Translator
If Rocket Spanish doesn't tickle your fancy, Fluenz comes in a close second. It also does an excellent job of blending grammar and interactivity so that you actually learn how Spanish works. (Compared to courses like Rosetta Stone which don't teach the actual mechanics of the language — Fluenz seems to have a bit of a vendetta against Rosetta, if you look at their sales material. Claws out!) The biggest selling point for me is the undeniable charm of presenter (and Fluenz founder) Sonia Gil. In each lesson you'll see her popping up to explain the vocabulary and grammar you're learning.
Part of the Fluenz philosophy is to restore the tutor experience to the language learning course, and it works: She's smart, sympathetic, and encouraging, and I want to stick through the course just so I don't let her down! Like Rocket Spanish, Fluenz offers a nice mix of explanation and testing. You end up with well-rounded skills in listening, writing, recall and pronunciation. Fluenz Spanish doesn't pack quite as much into each level as Rocket Spanish does and the price tag is a bit higher, but it also has seriously high production values.
Earlier versions of Fluenz were only available as physical copies (so you had to wait for them to be shipped to you), but they now offer a digital download version. The price is the same. Pros Beautiful to look at.
Engaging presenter puts the material into context. Lessons include tests which ensure you've mastered the material. Teaches grammar, rather than relying on gimmicks (watch out, Rosetta Stone!) Cons No free trial. Hefty download to get started. Harder to 'binge' on material. You need to go through all the exercises. No grammar manual — you may need to purchase a separate book if you want a reference.