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Learning a new language can expand your skills for work and travel and give you a new hobby that's fun as well as challenging. But finding the time to attend weekly classes doesn't always work for your schedule. That's where a good language learning website comes into play.
The best online language learning sites let you learn everything from Spanish to Italian on your own, no matter where you are. If you plan to travel abroad, knowing another language is practically a travel necessity. At home, meanwhile, it can make you stand out on a resume if you're looking for a new job or promotion. In addition, you can also surprise the avid traveler or linguist into your life with a membership gift on one of the various platforms available if you're looking for a unique gift idea.
Artists and musicians even use their multilingual skills to create some of their most popular singles, including Lady Gaga, who worked in some French and Italian with her songs “Bad Romance” and “Born This Way.” respectively, as well as Shakira who can speak seven languages, according to Business Insider. K-pop fans, meanwhile, are using online language sites to learn Korean so they can sing along with their favorite artists.
What are the best online learning sites?
Instead of letting you do the research yourself, Billboard Markets has rounded up some of the most popular online language learning sites to help you find the right platform for you or to gift your loved one.
Keep reading to discover the best language learning websites below.
Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone is one of the most popular online language sites, thanks to its easy-to-follow format and large list of languages. Once you've signed up, you'll be given a personalized learning plan that you can follow on your laptop, tablet or full courses right from your smartphone. Live streaming lessons are offered, or you can download lessons and audio guides to take with you on the go.
Rosetta Stone is currently offering 50% off almost all of its plans — including the Lifetime Membership subscription which is normally a single payment of $399, but has dropped to $199 for a limited time. With a subscription, you can choose from 25 available languages and benefit from immersive lessons that can be completed online or offline, as well as advanced speech technology to help you perfect your pronunciation.
Udemy
Unlike Rosetta Stone, which only offers online language courses, Udemy offers a variety of online courses, including languages, photography, business skills, and even health and wellness. While Rosetta Stone gives you lifetime access to all classes on its site, Udemy lets you choose individual classes to take. When you sign up, each lesson comes with on-demand videos and practice tests to assess your skills. Most courses come with downloadable articles and a certificate of completion when you finish — and you can do it all on a smartphone or computer.
For a more customizable experience, Udemy offers a new student offer that will get you courses for $14.99/month. The platform also offers a seven-day free trial so you can access more than 11,000 classes, certification preparation, goal-focused suggestions, and AI-powered coding exercises. You can choose from a personal plan, or if you want to share it with your entire workforce, there's an enterprise option.
Coursera
Similar to Udemy, Coursera provides a range of online courses, including languages such as Korean and French. Each lesson will come with a set number of lessons with an estimated time it will take to complete. The lessons also state how many videos you will have to watch, if there are any readings, and the total amount of quizzes. If you're going through a tough time, each lesson also tells you how long it will take to get over it. If you are traveling, you can do most of the work through your smartphone or you can use a laptop.
Whether you want to explore your French or dive into beginner Chinese, Coursera offers a large library of online course offerings to suit your needs. You can take a combination of free courses or pay as little as $10/month to learn skills from universities and companies that will even earn you recognized credentials to add to your resume.
Prepare
Preply offers a more interactive experience whether you want to learn Arabic or Japanese. When you sign up, you'll be able to find a tutor to connect with for up to 50 minutes virtually. From there, you'll get to know each other and create a personalized learning plan based on your goals. You can then decide how many lessons you want to have a week or month and you will be billed for a 28 day cycle. You can do it all via computer, tablet or smartphone.
More than 30,000 real-life tutors are available with lessons starting at $5 per session. You can choose how many lessons you want to take and read reviews based on other students to discover the best teacher for you.
Babbel
Babbel wants to teach you language skills that you can apply to your life right away. Focusing on speaking and pronunciation, you'll be able to take live online lessons with real instructors or use the online app to play language games, listen to podcasts and more using your smartphone. When you first sign up, you'll be able to create your own personalized language learning routine based on your schedule throughout the app.
Choose from a one-, three-, six-, or 12-month subscription, or you can pay a one-time payment for a lifetime subscription.
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