The 12 Best Spanish Lessons
Who Offers the Best Spanish Lessons Online?
Have you ever wanted to learn Spanish? Maybe you would like to interact with native speakers while traveling. Or perhaps you would like to speak Spanish with your contractor or other people you do business with.
Here are some fun facts for you to consider. According to a recent US census, Spanish is the most common non-English language spoken in US homes, 12x greater than the next four most common languages. The US is the world's fourth-largest Spanish-speaking country. And, as such, jobs in the US are always looking for bilingual (English-Spanish) speakers.
Tuesday, October 8th
2024 Spanish Lesson Reviews
Spanish Pod 101
SpanishPod101 has it all - well, almost! It's fun, motivating, and they keep it interesting with humor and varied lesson formats. The lessons range from beginner to even those looking for advanced fluency, which is rare in online Spanish lessons. Once in your level, you can choose your lesson's theme and you don't have to go in order. Their free access is okay but you need to realize that lack of material will leave you wanting more, so as you run out of material at your level you'll probably want to subscribe. The only downside? We don't like their outdated recording and speech-recognition technology. Currently, with SpanishPod101, you have to listen to yourself and decide if you can be understood, but there's actually technology out there that will do it for you, and we wish SpanishPod101 would obtain that. Other than that, they've really got it all and we've given these Spanish lessons our highest ranking.
Busuu
Busuu offers a Spanish-language learning platform where you're not inundated by flashcards. You'll learn language in context, meaning you'll grasp the meaning of new words in a situation, much like you might do while traveling or speaking to someone. Partnered with a major textbook company, the lessons are many and complete. Your written and spoken work is corrected by native speakers, and you can choose to correct the work of English-learning students. What's lacking, however, is the fun. If they had animation and fun goal setting, it would be more motivating to want to fit in just one more lesson and look forward to the next session. But, Busuu is still an excellent resource for Spanish lessons.
Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone is one of the first language programs to be available to the public, ever since their coveted (and spendy) audio cassettes in the 1980s. They have a proven method for teaching languages and have an amazing reputation for helping you to communicate with ease. Their method isn't for everyone, though, as Rosetta Stone doesn't usually use English explanations to guide you. There aren't animated animals to entertain and motivate you, and mostly, their speech-recognition technology to give you feedback on your speaking could be better. But, if you like the idea of tried-and-true Spanish lessons and not relying on English to learn, Rosetta Stone is well worth checking out.
Memrise
Because Memrise's creators have specialized knowledge in learning and memorizing, and one has his Ph.D. in neuroscience, you can be assured that there is plenty of quality Spanish material using excellent learning and memorizing techniques. We rate both their speech-recognition and writing-recognition software quite highly, and these are important features you'll find in very few language-learning platforms.
Fluenz
Fluenz offers recorded videos of a real person, and you can watch these at any time, repeating or pausing when necessary. You pay per course rather than per month, so if you have a busy season of life, you can let Spanish lessons rest for a while. Fluenz even offers group travel opportunities. We love what Fluenz offers but the prices are a bit hefty and the program should get to a more advanced level if the company wants to move beyond our rating.
Mondly
You won't get bored studying Spanish with Mondly. They have created advanced technology to keep you interested, entertained, and excited to take the next lesson. The free version offers limited access, so you'll want a subscription; and for the price, the lifetime access is the best bang for the buck. You're not going to do a deep dive into fluency with Mondly, but you'll definitely have some fun as you start learning Spanish.
Babbel
There's so much to love about Babbel. Babbel offers reasonably-priced, live Spanish classes with six or fewer students in them. There are podcasts available, even if you're just starting out. Our issue, though, is that the Spanish lessons really don't hold our attention after a while. If the attention isn't held, the learner isn't motivated to continue with lessons that day - "maybe just one more” - and they aren't going to be motivated to pick it up the next time. We'd call Babbel "good enough” for learning Spanish, but we'd recommend comparing it with other lessons out there before you commit.
Duolingo
Duolingo is a free app that's easy and fun to use. Duo the Owl and all the other characters help entertain and motivate you to continue your Spanish lessons, wanting to squeak in just one more lesson. The free version, though, has ads and will pause you if you make too many mistakes. The inexpensive paid-subscription version is void of both annoying ads and pauses. Duolingo is great for the beginning Spanish learner, but if you're more advanced, you'll probably want one of our other highly-rated programs as actual conversation and application is lacking.
Ouino
If you're the person who likes to make their own trail by choosing which Spanish unit you want to study and when, Ouino is for you. You pick the topic you want that will motivate you to learn. Grammar lessons are interspersed in an easy-to-learn method. But the problem with this choose-your-own-lesson-order method is you can't go from easy to more difficult as a natural progression. Even if you like the format, Ouino doesn't teach advanced levels, and we're not impressed with the technology. Ouino isn't our favorite place to get Spanish lessons, but it's not the worst option out there either.
Rocket Languages
Rocket Languages, launched in 2005, offers interactive, downloadable Spanish lessons created by experts and native speakers. You'll choose your level, with Level 1 alone offering over 130 hours of material, including audio, language, and culture lessons. Lessons are topic-based and include speech recognition to improve your pronunciation. You buy a course level for $149.95 with no subscription fees and a 60-day money-back guarantee. While it provides structured, comprehensive content, it lacks engaging features like videos and isn't suitable for kids. Though effective, Rocket Languages could use more fun elements to boost motivation, earning a "just average” rating from us.
StudySpanish
If you need extra help in your Spanish class, StudySpanish has the drills and practice you might be looking for. They have flashcards upon flashcards and grammar lessons galore to answer all the questions you would have, and it's explained in English. But if you're looking for courses and lessons to help you become more fluent, StudySpanish isn't for you. You'll want to consider our list of alternative online Spanish programs for you to learn and communicate in Spanish.
Preply
Preply has more than 7,000 native, Spanish speakers ready to teach you, regardless of if you are a beginner or advanced learner. Your tutor creates lessons based on your ability and purpose for learning. Prices are more than reasonable, and you receive a free trial lesson. There are lessons specifically for children, and Preply's tutors can even cater to those with ADHD and Asperger's Syndrome. The quality of your tutor may be hit or miss as they probably do not have a degree in education or Spanish, even though they speak Spanish every day. Plus, concerns about how Preply pays its tutors give us pause.
Continued from above...
No matter why you want to learn Spanish, the real question is which online Spanish lessons are right for you. With so much of our life being digital and using apps regularly if not daily, it's only natural to want to explore apps or online methods for learning Spanish. There are many to choose from, and we can help you sift through the options.
The first thing to consider is how much Spanish you already know. If you're just getting started, your choices are almost endless, as many programs have an abundance of material for beginners. In fact, some of these programs focus so much on the beginners that they seem to run out of steam when creating material for the intermediate students, and then there's none if you want to hone your advanced Spanish with them. There are those who cater to all levels of proficiency, but it's certainly not all, and you have to know which is which. No worries - wherever you are on your Spanish-learning journey, we have excellent online programs and apps to recommend for your needs.
Another consideration is your learning style and preferences. Some learners need motivation through lessons with animation, gamification, and prizes. Others find animation and gamification overwhelming and would rather get straight to business, preferring the old-school grammar lessons and vocabulary flashcards. Consider if you want your Spanish curriculum to tell you where to start and then follow those lessons in a linear fashion. If you do, great. However, other people want to choose their own path and select lessons where the theme is of interest to them. Either way, there are plenty of online Spanish lessons that will suit you.
Once you're more aware of why you're learning Spanish and how you want to learn it, there are a few more aspects you should consider as you choose where to take lessons:
- The right fit. Consider a trial period or the money-back guarantee period of time to try out the Spanish lessons to see if it delivers for you. Maybe you thought you were self-motivated, but instead you actually want animation and gamification to give you that little push. The trial period can shed some light on your fit with the program.
- Live tutor. Some online Spanish-learning programs offer a live tutor so you can learn all on your own with the tutor, or at least can be in a small class setting of 6 students or fewer. Or you can get a tutor to help you when you're stuck with the material you're learning. Sometimes it's nice to have a live person to help out.
- Value. Once you give a free trial a chance, believe it or not, sometimes the month-to-month price can be more expensive in a year's payments than the whole lifetime one-time-payment option.
- Refund policy. Once you've committed to an online Spanish program, is there a money-back guarantee? If so, how long do you have to decide? Some offer 60 days, 30 days, and some offer only 7 days to try it out and get your money back.
The experts at Top Consumer Reviews have evaluated, rated, and ranked the best choices for online Spanish lessons. We're sure that with this information, you'll have what you need to make the right choice for your goals in learning and becoming fluent in Spanish. ¡Ya vamos!
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