French · Français
Guided 96 resource listings .
French has full A1–C2 paths and on-site tools on this site — start with the level that matches your speaking, not your reading vanity. Last reviewed 2026-08-01
Watch: A1-A2 dialogues at the cafe and shopping
More short dialogues on the Study New Languages YouTube channel.
French beyond one country
French is taught worldwide from a Paris-centered standard, but real speech shifts by country and register.
- France: Textbook baseline. Informal speech drops ne, uses on for “we,” and packs in slang (verlan, youth forms) that exams still under-test.
- Québec: Distinct vowels, vocabulary (char, dépanneur, magasiner), and anglicisms. Formal writing stays close to international French; street French needs Québec-specific listening.
- Belgium & Switzerland: Small number differences and local words (septante, nonante in Belgium/Switzerland vs soixante-dix/quatre-vingt-dix in France).
- Africa & the Caribbean: Huge communities of speakers. Local French mixes with national languages; news French is often clear, while informal speech may include code-switching learners should expect.
For CEFR exams and most courses, aim at international/Metropolitan French first, then add the regional media you actually need.
About French
- Language family
-
Indo-European, Italic, Romance (Gallo-Romance) Source: Glottolog stan1290
- Where it's spoken
- France, Canada (Quebec), Belgium, Switzerland, much of West and Central Africa
- Speakers
-
roughly 80 million native speakers and 300 million total Estimate source: Ethnologue language page (fra)
- Writing
- Latin
French developed from the Latin spoken in Roman Gaul, layered with Frankish (Germanic) influence, and was standardized around the Île-de-France dialect used in Paris. Colonial and diplomatic history spread it across West and Central Africa, the Caribbean, and parts of Canada, where it remains an official language today. It shares a large cognate vocabulary with the other Romance languages.
Speaker counts are approximate orders of magnitude for learners, not census figures. Family labels follow Glottolog-style classification; vitality notes (when shown) follow UNESCO WAL / Ethnologue-style framing and should be re-checked for program planning.
Sources
- ISO 639-3:
fra - Glottocode:
stan1290 - Ethnologue — French (fra)
- Glottolog — French (stan1290)
How to start
- Pick one free course (or free-with-upgrades) below and finish a short beginner unit before hopping apps.
- Bookmark one dictionary or grammar reference and look up every unknown word for a week.
- Add 10–15 minutes of listening most days — news, radio, or a teaching channel.
- Drill vocabulary with First 500 words , then situational lists in topic decks .
- Go deeper with the Language Hacks – French series · Buy on Amazon.
- When ready, use a tutor marketplace listing below for short speaking sessions.
Practice on this site
Deep links into trainers and drills that already cover French.
Language home First 500 words Topic decks Root Explorer Root of the day Cloze practice Conjugation Explorer Quick practice False-friend quiz Register & nuance Collocations Output workshop Media sheets C1 tasks Listening picker
Some outbound links may earn us a commission. Commission never affects inclusion or ranking. Full disclosure.
| Resource | Type | Levels | Cost | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
20 Minutes France
Established 20 Minutes resource for French learners.
|
reading | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
Alison French courses
Well-known learning resource.
|
course paid | A1-B2 | freemium | — |
|
Alliance Française resources hub
Network for courses and cultural programs.
|
course free | A1-B2 | free | — |
|
Best first stop
Anki Shared French decks
Well-known learning resource.
|
course free | A1-B2 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Apple Podcasts French
Well-known learning resource.
|
listening | A1-C2 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
ARTE Français
Established ARTE resource for French learners.
|
listening | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
Babbel French
Beginner starter path.
|
course paid | A1-A2 | paid | — |
|
BBC Languages French
Well-known learning resource.
|
course free | A1-A2 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Bonjour de France
Free French exercises by level.
|
course free | A1-B2 | free | — |
|
Brainscape French
Well-known learning resource.
|
tool | A1-B2 | freemium | — |
|
Clozemaster French
Sentence-based cloze practice.
|
course paid | A2-C1 | freemium | — |
|
CNRTL
French linguistic reference portals.
|
reference | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
Coffee Break French
Well-known learning resource.
|
listening | A1-B1 | freemium | — |
|
Conjuguemos French
Well-known learning resource.
|
course free | A1-B1 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Coursera French courses
Well-known learning resource.
|
course paid | A1-B2 | freemium | — |
|
DeepL French
Translation aid for checking comprehension.
|
tool | A2-C2 | freemium | — |
|
DLI GLOSS French lessons
Defense Language Institute graded listening/reading lessons.
|
course free | B1-C1 | free | — |
|
Drops French
Well-known learning resource.
|
course paid | A1-A2 | freemium | — |
|
Duolingo French
Structured beginner practice.
|
course paid | A1-A2 | freemium | — |
|
Duolingo French Podcast
Stories in accessible French with English framing.
|
listening | A2-B1 | free | — |
|
Easy French
Street interviews with subtitles.
|
youtube channel | A2-B2 | free | — |
|
Easy French podcast
Established Easy French resource for French learners.
|
listening | A2-C1 | freemium | — |
|
edX French courses
Well-known learning resource.
|
course paid | A1-B2 | freemium | — |
|
FluentU French
Authentic video with interactive captions.
|
course paid | A2-C1 | paid | — |
|
Francais Authentique
Natural French listening for intermediates.
|
youtube channel | A1-C1 | free | — |
|
Francais avec Nelly
Clear French for intermediate learners.
|
youtube channel | A2-B1 | free | — |
|
Francais Immersion
Slow, clear immersive French.
|
youtube channel | A2-B1 | free | — |
|
France 24
International news in French.
|
listening | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
France Culture
In-depth French radio for advanced listening.
|
listening | B2-C2 | free | — |
|
France Info
Clear French news video and articles.
|
listening | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
France Inter
Established Radio France resource for French learners.
|
listening | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
Franceinfo
Established France Télévisions resource for French learners.
|
reading | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
Français avec Pierre
Established Français avec Pierre resource for French learners.
|
youtube channel | A1-C1 | free | — |
|
Français Facile
Established Français Facile resource for French learners.
|
course free | A1-B2 | free | — |
|
French School TV / education clips
French educational media for clearer input.
|
youtube channel | A2-B2 | free | — |
|
French Today podcast
Audio lessons focused on spoken French.
|
listening | A2-B2 | freemium | — |
|
FrenchPod101
Pod101-style audio and video lessons with a free tier.
|
course paid | A1-C1 | freemium | — |
|
FrenchPod101 YouTube
Beginner French video lessons.
|
youtube channel | A1-B1 | free | — |
|
Glossika French
Well-known learning resource.
|
course paid | A1-C1 | paid | — |
|
Google Books French
Well-known learning resource.
|
reading | B1-C2 | freemium | — |
|
Google News French
Well-known learning resource.
|
reading | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
Google Translate French
Quick lookup tool; verify output against references.
|
tool | A1-C2 | free | — |
|
HelloTalk French
Well-known learning resource.
|
tutoring | A1-C2 | freemium | — |
|
InnerFrench
Comprehensible podcasts/videos for intermediates.
|
youtube channel | B1-C1 | free | — |
|
Internet Archive French
Well-known learning resource.
|
course free | A1-C1 | free | — |
|
italki French tutors
Well-known learning resource.
|
tutoring | A1-C2 | paid | — |
|
Journal en français facile transcripts
Transcripts paired with easy French news audio.
|
reading | A2-B1 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Language Reactor French
Well-known learning resource.
|
tool | A2-C2 | freemium | — |
|
LanguageGuide French
Well-known learning resource.
|
reference | A1-B1 | free | — |
|
LanguageTool French
Writing and grammar checker.
|
tool | A2-C2 | freemium | — |
|
Larousse Dictionaries
Well-known learning resource.
|
reference | A1-C2 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Larousse French dictionary
Authoritative French monolingual dictionary.
|
reference | A2-C2 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Le Conjugueur
Established Le Figaro resource for French learners.
|
reference | A1-C2 | free | — |
|
Le Figaro
Well-known learning resource.
|
reading | B2-C2 | free | — |
|
Le Monde
Major French newspaper.
|
reading | B2-C2 | freemium | — |
|
Le Monde des ados / Jeunes
Youth-oriented French current events.
|
reading | A2-B1 | free | — |
|
Le Point du FLE
Large free FLE exercise directory.
|
course free | A1-B2 | free | — |
|
Le Robert
Established Le Robert resource for French learners.
|
reference | B1-C2 | freemium | — |
|
Learn French with Alexa
Clear beginner French lessons.
|
youtube channel | A1-A2 | free | — |
|
Learn French With Alexa playlists
Beginner playlist .
|
youtube channel | A1-A2 | free | — |
|
Libby French audiobooks
Well-known learning resource.
|
listening | A2-C2 | free | — |
|
LingQ French
Read and listen while saving vocabulary.
|
reading | A2-C1 | freemium | — |
|
Linguee French
Bilingual corpus examples and dictionary.
|
reference | A2-C2 | free | — |
|
Lingvist French
Well-known learning resource.
|
course paid | A1-B2 | freemium | — |
|
Listen Notes French podcasts
Well-known learning resource.
|
listening | A1-C2 | free | — |
|
Live Lingua French library
Public-domain course downloads with audio where available.
|
course free | A1-B1 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Loecsen French
Free travel phrases with audio.
|
course free | A1-A2 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
LyricsTraining French
Song-based listening practice.
|
listening | A2-B2 | free | — |
|
Mango Languages French
Well-known learning resource.
|
course paid | A1-B2 | paid | — |
|
Memrise French
Video and spaced-repetition vocabulary course.
|
course paid | A1-B1 | freemium | — |
|
News in Slow French
Slowed news with transcripts.
|
listening | A2-B2 | freemium | — |
|
Omniglot French
Well-known learning resource.
|
reference | A1-B1 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Open Culture French lessons
Well-known learning resource.
|
course free | A1-B2 | free | — |
|
Oxford Languages French
Well-known learning resource.
|
reference | B1-C2 | freemium | — |
|
Piece of French
Comprehensible French stories.
|
youtube channel | A2-B1 | free | — |
|
Podcast Français Facile
Slow French audio with transcripts.
|
listening | A1-B1 | free | — |
|
Project Gutenberg French
Well-known learning resource.
|
reading | B2-C2 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
Project Gutenberg French fiction picks
Searchable French public-domain books.
|
reading | B2-C2 | free | — |
|
Readlang French
Click-translate reader with flashcard export.
|
reading | A2-C1 | freemium | — |
|
Reverso French conjugator
Well-known learning resource.
|
reference | A1-C2 | free | — |
|
RFI Journal en français facile
Well-known learning resource.
|
listening | A2-B1 | free | — |
|
RFI Savoirs – Apprendre le français
Free lessons and news for French learners.
|
course free | A1-B2 | free | — |
|
Rocket French
Interactive course with audio and grammar.
|
course paid | A1-B2 | paid | — |
|
Rosetta Stone French
Immersion-style commercial course.
|
course paid | A1-B1 | paid | — |
|
Shorted / graded French stories
Parallel French–English short stories.
|
reading | A1-A2 | free | — |
|
Speechling French
Well-known learning resource.
|
tutoring | A1-C1 | freemium | — |
|
Spotify French podcasts
Well-known learning resource.
|
listening | A1-C2 | freemium | — |
|
Tandem French
Well-known learning resource.
|
tutoring | A1-C2 | freemium | — |
|
Tatoeba French sentences
Open bilingual example-sentence corpus.
|
reference | A1-C1 | free | 2026-08-02 |
|
TED French talks
Well-known learning resource.
|
listening | B1-C2 | free | — |
|
TV5MONDE Learn French YouTube
Established TV5MONDE resource for French learners.
|
youtube channel | A1-C1 | free | — |
|
Verbling French tutors
Professional online tutor marketplace.
|
tutoring | A1-C2 | paid | — |
|
Wikipedia French
Open reading practice by topic.
|
reading | A2-C2 | free | — |
|
Wikisource French
Established Wikimedia resource for French learners.
|
reading | B2-C2 | free | — |
|
WordReference French
Dictionary + forums.
|
reference | A2-C2 | free | — |
|
YouGlish French
Well-known learning resource.
|
tool | A2-C2 | freemium | — |
Know a better classroom-friendly resource for French? Suggest it with attribution.