This is the first of several blog posts that I will be writing about Teaching Spanish Online. I’ll be covering everything from how to find online teaching jobs, tips to help you improve your students’ language skills, plus useful websites and lessons which can help you earn extra income for your Spanish studies.
Here are the best spanish online tools. I hope these blog posts will add value to you – there’s much to learn!
BEST OVERALLBaselang
Baselang is an online Spanish program based in Medellin, Colombia. Offering unlimited one-on-one Spanish lessons for roughly $149 per month, Baselang has two different methods: Grammarless and Real World.
The Grammarless method, as implied in the name, does not use any grammar explanations, but instead makes you start using and practicing new concepts from the beginning. The Real World approach uses a more structured format of learning concepts with examples and then applying them.
The Grammarless method is an 80-hour program (five days a week, four hours a day for a month), which is meant to be completed in either one or two months, and you work with the same teacher the whole time. On the other hand, the Real World method is self-paced, so you can decide how long you want to take to complete it. Plus, you can choose whether to learn with the same teacher or change instructors as often as you’d like.
Either way, Baselang claims that you can be conversational in Spanish within a month. This is a great option if you want an intense program with a live teacher or have lots of time to take several lessons a week.
BEST FOR FREECoursera
Coursera is a website where you can access free online courses on a host of topics offered by universities and companies around the world. If you search for Spanish courses you will find some free lessons offered by the University of California, Davis.
There are five classes that together complete a Basic Spanish Vocabulary specialization: Learn Spanish: Basic Spanish Vocabulary, Spanish Vocabulary: Cultural Experience, Spanish Vocabulary: Meeting People, Spanish Vocabulary: Careers and Social Events, and Spanish Vocabulary Project.
If you’re looking for something a bit more specialized, Spanish for Successful Communication in Healthcare Settings is offered by Rice University via Coursera, too.
The courses are self-paced and include several modules that contain video lessons, readings, and quizzes. You can take online classes through Coursera for professional development, but there are also options for obtaining professional certificates.
Coursera is a great option for those looking for low-cost learning and for those who enjoy the more formal, academic instruction.
BEST FOR PRIVATE OR GROUP CLASSESLingoda
Lingoda is a European online language school based in Berlin that offers lessons in English, German, French, and Spanish via the online platform Zoom.
All of the instructors are native speakers and live all over the world, so they can offer classes around your schedule. Their language instruction is communication-based, with plenty of speaking practice. Lingoda uses the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) to describe proficiency levels, and you can take a free placement test to determine your skill set and where you should begin.
Lingoda offers a free seven-day trial, and the pricing after that varies based on how many courses a week you want to take. The cost for one class a week is about $56 per month ($14 per session), three classes per week cost about $138 per month (about $11 per course), and daily classes cost approximately $380 per month (about $9 per class).
Courses are 60 minutes long, and you can either take private lessons, or join a group of three to five students. Lingoda is an excellent option if you are looking for online private or group lessons and need a very flexible class schedule.
BEST FOR PROFESSIONALSLive Lingua
Live Lingua is an online language immersion school that offers lessons in 7 different languages via the online platform Skype.
All of its teachers are native speakers of Spanish based in different parts of the world, so there is availability around the clock. The teachers are well-trained and can create a customized curriculum to fit your needs.
Additionally, Live Lingua offers specialized courses in Spanish, including Spanish for Tourists, Spanish for Medical Professionals, Spanish for Business, Spanish for Teachers, and Spanish for Priests.
The starting cost for lessons is roughly $18, but they can be as low as $12.99 if you purchase a package of more than 50 hours of lessons. They also offer a free 30-minute trial lesson.
Live Lingua is ideal for someone looking to improve their Spanish for use in a particular professional field.
Preply
Best for live 1-on-1 classes
We’re a little biased of course! But we’ve got a good reason for believing that Preply is a great option to learn Spanish. Preply is a database of online tutors in dozens of languages. You can filter our tutor list to find the perfect Spanish language tutor for you — including when they’re available to teach, whether they’re a native speaker, what kind of Spanish they teach, and importantly, how much they charge for lessons. Lessons start from around $5 per hour and are 1-on-1, so it’s immeasurably better value than sitting in a classroom sharing your professor’s attention with a dozen other students.
Unlike many online courses, Preply lessons are based on speaking. In our experience, even the shyest student feels comfortable speaking Spanish in a private video chat with a kind tutor. It’s a psychologically safe space to start practicing aloud, and, therefore, a fast way to get to a conversational level. Best of all, there’s no inflexible curriculum. You and your tutor are free to decide what lessons should focus on, how much homework to set, and how often to meet. Give it a try and you’ll be amazed at your progress as a Spanish speaker.
Cervantes Escuela International Intensive Course
Best for intensive classes
Attending a language school has a level of prestige attached to it. For some learners, this is a real selling point: it’s another name to add to your CV, after all. If gaining your Spanish skills at a famous institution matters to you, but you want to learn online, Cervantes Escuela International’s distance-learning courses are a solution to consider. The Cervantes International School is recognized by the prestigious Cervantes Institute, the Spanish government’s official body for advancing the study of the Spanish language.
Cervantes’ intensive courses are offered at several levels: A0, A2-B1, A1-B2 and C1+. There’s an assessment test over the phone to check you’ve chosen the correct course for your abilities. The word “intensive” is not an exaggeration. Students are expected to attend 10 hours of group classes on Skype, and fit 40 hours of study around that. There’s a certificate of achievement on offer at the end. At 440€ for four weeks, the price tag is pretty hefty. However, if you want the format and pace of a traditional language course, but just can’t get there in person, it’s the closest online substitute.
The News in Slow Spanish
Best for audio lessons
The News in Slow Spanish is another podcast-based course. This course does what it says on the tin: it’s a world news audio show, in slow-paced, intermediate Spanish. It’s great for those who are bored of working through schematic syllabuses that always start with the same topics.
It’s far easier to follow a news program in Spanish than you might think, because the chances are, you know what kind of topics are currently making headlines, and will be able to listen out for them. What’s more, if you make a habit of listening to your news already, then this will fit beautifully into your existing routine! New podcasts are added almost every day, so you’ll always find something topical.
As Spanish courses go, it’s reasonably priced, at $22.90 USD per month. The first seven days are free, so you can test it out before parting with your cash. Once again, there is no speaking practice on offer here, which will almost certainly hold you back from getting to a conversational level. That said, some polyglots swear that listening practice is the secret to learning new languages. If you’re patient, but not the kind of person to work through a textbook, this podcast-based course is a useful option to explore.
Chatterbug
Best for self-study materials
Not sure whether to take lessons over Skype, or to invest in an online course to work through independently? Chatterbug is a great solution for those who want both. You can buy access to self-study Spanish materials, and there are also live video-chat lessons with online tutors. According to Chatterbug, they go together “like peanut and jelly.”
The pricing is pretty flexible. In general, the more live lessons you want to have, the more you’ll pay. The “lite” package, with one live lesson per month and full access to online content, costs $20. Their most popular “serious” package costs $140 per month, and offers eight live lessons, with the chance to buy more.
Some reviewers complain of mistakes in the self-study materials, but at $20 per month, there’s no denying they are good value for money. Learners tend to find the live lessons the most effective part, since there’s a chance to talk through any problems in real time, with a fluent speaker. These lessons work out at about $18 for a 45 minute 1-on-1 skype chat — if this is the main aspect of Chatterbug that appeals to you, you might find better value elsewhere.
BEST IMMERSION-BASEDRosetta Stone
With courses in 25 languages, Rosetta Stone is one of the best-known language-learning programs out there.
Its methodology involves an immersive curriculum that aims to replicate a naturalistic approach to learning languages, based on real conversations. You can access lessons on your desktop or mobile device, and work at your own pace.
In addition to the lessons, you get a phrasebook, stories, an audio companion, and instant feedback using speech recognition technology to work on your pronunciation. Also, there’s a premium feature that includes live tutoring.
The cost for Rosetta Stone varies depending on the package you decide to purchase, and whether you want to have access to just Spanish or other languages. The best deal is a lifetime package of unlimited languages for about $299.
Rosetta Stone is a great option if you’re interested in learning more than one language and willing to make a large one-time investment.
BEST SELF-PACED WITH INSTRUCTOR SUPPORTLengalia
Lengalia offers online Spanish lessons for self-study, but it is unique because it also has tutors to help when you need it.
The program consists of 24 Spanish courses, including grammar and vocabulary, and also some specialized courses, such as Business and Medical Spanish. There are two different options for how to organize the program: a guided course, which takes you through the learning process, and a personalized course in which you decide what lessons and topics to study at any time.
On Lengalia’s website, you can take a free placement test to determine what level you should start with. There are different pricing options depending on the length of your subscription. A one-month membership is about $35, a 12-month subscription is around $140 (about $6.00 per month), and a 24-month subscription is approximately $212 (about $5.00 per month).
Once you subscribe, you will have access to all the content available, but you can decide at what pace to go through the lessons. You will also be able to use Lengalia’s Spanish tutors, who you can contact via live chat, email, or video call.
Lengalia’s courses are recognized by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), so you can get a certificate to recognize your language skills for professional or academic purposes.
BEST PODCAST-BASEDCoffeeBreak Spanish
CoffeeBreak is a language-learning program by Radio Lingua Network that consists of podcasts and online courses in seven different languages: French, Italian, Chinese, German, Spanish, English, and Swedish.
CoffeeBreak Spanish includes four seasons of 15- to 20-minute podcasts that you can listen to for free and are narrated by a teacher named Mark and a Spanish learner called Kara. There are paid online courses that accompany each season.
Each season contains 40 classes, including audio and video lessons, as well as corresponding notes. Each of the four online courses cost about $124, but you can save money if you buy more than one course as a bundle.
It’s worth noting that there’s also a CoffeeBreak Spanish Masterclass, a six-month course during which learners can obtain feedback and guidance over six modules.
CoffeeBreak Spanish is a great option if you enjoy listening to podcasts.
BEST FOR ON-THE-GORocket Spanish
Rocket Languages is a program that offers 13 different languages you can learn. The comprehensive platform includes 20-minute audio lessons, language and culture lessons, and survival kit lessons with essential vocabulary. The sessions are interactive, so they will ask you to repeat and speak from the beginning. Plus, they use voice recognition so you can practice your pronunciation.
Rocket Spanish includes flashcards, practice activities like quizzes, and a mobile app for on-the-go practice. It is quite extensive, including over 120 hours of lessons per each of the three levels.
There is a free trial, but to purchase the program you have the option of paying for lifetime access to each level separately, or all three levels at once. The cost of each level is about $150.
Rocket Spanish is perfect for students who learn by listening and repeating, and who appreciate doing the lessons while walking or doing other activities.
Conclusion
Teaching Spanish Online is a job that can be done from any part of the globe and not necessarily by someone who has been raised in any Spanish-speaking country or who has Spanish blood in their veins. You don’t have to hold a college degree to teach Spanish. You only need to be passionate about it.